Released on the 16th of June, Adipurush couldn’t live up to the expectations of the audience. On the contrary, netizens, cinema critics, renowned personalities, and the general masses alike have made several scathing remarks about the film and its makers. Many among them have accused the makers of trivialising the Hindu Mahakavya Ramayana and our divine-incarnated ancestors including Prabhu Shri Ram, Mata Sita, Laxman ji, and Hanuman ji.
The movie which was off to a great start with 200 crore in its first weekend raked only 10 crore on June 20. It experienced a startling drop of 75% on Monday and a subsequent decline on the next day.
It reportedly grossed 10 crore nett on Tuesday (across all languages), with its Hindi portion accounting for merely 5 to 6 crore. An industry tracker, Sacnilk, estimated that Adipurush minted 10.80 crores in total. Its occupancy in Hindi was approximately 11.16 per cent. T-Series announced that the film has made 375 crores worldwide on Tuesday.
The multilingual project’s global box office performance was also weak. It clocked 17.93 crores on Tuesday, following the first-day total of 140 crores internationally, per film industry observer Manobala Vijayabalan. Less than 120 crore Hindi nett in box office receipts for the movie has effectively ended its run. The movie allegedly cost more than 500 crores for its production, however, its global box office revenue has not yet reached 400 crores.
‘72 Hoorain’: Most anticipated upcoming movie
Now, it seems that this has shifted everyone’s focus to the next most anticipated movies slated to release in the near future. Well, if the IMDb list of most anticipated new Indian movies and shows is anything go by, then 72 Hoorain seems to be climbing the popularity chart. The movie directed by two-time National Award-winning director Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan, will be released on the 7th of July.
As per IMDb, ‘72 Hoorain’ is the second most anticipated movie on a real-time popularity basis. Around 16.4% audience is waiting for the release of this film. It is just behind the highly anticipated Gadar 2 with 23.2% votes, which is the sequel to the blockbuster hit Gadar: Ek Prem Katha released in 2001.
Reportedly, the film delves into the much-touted concept of 72 Hoorain (Virgins). Time and again, it has been stated that many religiously-inclined Islamic youths have been brainwashed to believe in it and commit horrifying acts of terrorism.
The IMDb description of the movie states, “72 Hoorain” is a tale, where conviction merges with chaos, where belief dances with brutality, and where the unimaginable becomes a haunting reality.”
It further adds, “In this riveting narrative, an unfathomable force is unleashed, driven by a belief so fierce that it defies all logic. These Fidayeens (Jihadis), bound by an unyielding faith, embark on a harrowing journey that leads them to the celestial realms (Jaanat). Their ultimate goal? To meet the legendary 72 Virgins, known as the Hoorain.”
After The Kerala Story, 72 Hoorain is expected to be another controversial movie, with Islamists already starting to object to it.
Motion poster
Released on June 4, the motion poster of the film depicted pictures of many dreaded Islamic terrorists including Osama Bin Laden who planned and executed the 9/11 attacks in America, Ajmal Kasab who was one of the 10 terrorists in the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, Yakub Memon who executed the serial bomb blasts in Mumbai in 1993, Masood Azahar responsible for the Delhi plane hijack in 1999, and among others.
In the background, the voice of some religious fanatic in the Islamic terrorist outfit is heard saying, “You will get those 72 hoorain (hoors). Those hoorain are made for you.”
In order to capitalise on the strong buzz in the film’s release, the makers decided to release the movie’s first official teaser in 10 different languages – English, Marathi, Tamil, and Telugu to Malayalam, Kannada, Bengali, Punjabi, Bhojpuri, Kashmiri, and Assamese.
The film, ‘72 Hoorain’ will have Pavan Malhotra and Ameer Bashir in the lead roles.
The concept of ‘72 Hoorain’ (72 virgin)
Islamic terrorism has been an undeniable reality for aeons now. Apparently, it has prevailed for centuries throughout the world, particularly in those areas where Islamic tyrants invaded and caused havoc in the name of faith. Unfortunately, India had to face a major brunt of this. In fact, Indian civilisation is one of the biggest suffering survivors of this organised crime in the name of religion.
Jihad – the so-called war for religion – is said to be one of the central pillars of Islamic terrorism. Many religiously fanatic Islamic youth, who join Jihad and prepare to die as martyrs for the Islamic cause, had been lured by various baits shown to them by fanatic religious preachers.
However, the most-touted among them is the allurement of 72 hoorain (hoors or beautiful virgin ladies). They will get this so-called privilege when they go to Jannat (paradise or heaven) after attaining martyrdom for the Islamic cause, that is, wage Jihad against Kaafirs (infidels or non-believers) and kill them.
Ironically, the trap of unbound lust and greed is so tempting that these radicalised Muslim youth become terrorists and then get ready to kill not only others but also themselves.
The film titled ‘72 Hoorain’ (72 Hoors) claims to depict this dark reality of Islamic terrorism. However, since the film talks about a very strong subject, one whose mere mentioning rattles those who in many ways are linked, benefit, or have vested interests in its outcome, it has initiated a vicious moment against itself. These vested interest groups are trying to ban the film or cause commotion of different sorts to stop it from propagating the reality about this concept.
Why account of @ashokepandit is suspended right before the release of his movie #72Hoorain ? @Twitter
— Kapil Mishra (@KapilMishra_IND) June 14, 2023
Pls restore the handle immediately pic.twitter.com/OFfvlV5kNt
Apparently, social media actions are just a part of it and the Twitter handle of Ashoke Pandit, the movie’s co-producer was suspended just a few weeks ahead of its official release.