The Deepika Padukone – Vikrant Massey starrer ‘Chhapaak’ was expected to open in the 5-6 crore range. There was also an outside possibility off the film going higher than that as a controversy, surrounding the leading lady of the film, has generated two days before the film was scheduled to release and the buzz generated as a result of that could have given a push to the film.
That did not happen. In fact, the film opened at around Rs. 4.25 crores which is lesser than conservative estimates. The film was based on a very serious issue and was devoid of certain trappings which help in making a film hot in the trade prior to its release. Despite this, the presence of a big female star and a director who had two successes (‘Talvar’ and ‘Raazi’) behind her was expected to work in the favour of the film.
Early estimates suggest a decent growth for the film today but the film needs a big turnaround for it to register a healthy total in the final tally.