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'PK' Bags Rs 300 Crore, Becomes The Highest Earning Indian Film Ever, Says Trade Analyst

'PK' The Highest Earning Indian Film Ever, Says Trade Analyst
NEW DELHI, INDIA - DECEMBER 30: Poster of Aamir Khan-starrer film PK torn by activists of rightwing organizations Bajrang Dal and Hindu Sena outside Delite Cinema Theater on December 30, 2014 in New Delhi, India. Right-wing outfits accused Aamir Khan-starrer PK of hurting religious sentiments of the majority community demanded a ban on the film. Bollywood and theatre owners came out openly in support of the hugely successful Hindi film which takes a hard-hitting swipe at organised religion and godmen. (Photo by Raj K Raj/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)
Hindustan Times via Getty Images
NEW DELHI, INDIA - DECEMBER 30: Poster of Aamir Khan-starrer film PK torn by activists of rightwing organizations Bajrang Dal and Hindu Sena outside Delite Cinema Theater on December 30, 2014 in New Delhi, India. Right-wing outfits accused Aamir Khan-starrer PK of hurting religious sentiments of the majority community demanded a ban on the film. Bollywood and theatre owners came out openly in support of the hugely successful Hindi film which takes a hard-hitting swipe at organised religion and godmen. (Photo by Raj K Raj/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

PK, the alien drama that has made far right groups hit the streets in protest against its hard-hitting message against fraudulent godmen and organized religion, is the highest grossing Indian movie ever, a reputed film trade analyst said on Sunday.

PK, that stars actor Aamir Khan as an alien stranded on earth after the remote control to his spaceship was stolen, made Rs 300 crore in its third week in India, film trade analyst and critic Taran Adarsh tweeted on Sunday.

Interestingly, the top three films to have first scored the 100, 200 and 300 crore milestone are all Khan starrers. “#Ghajini first *Hindi* film to cross ₹ 100 cr. #3Idiots first *Hindi* film to cross ₹ 200 cr. #PK first *Hindi* film to cross ₹ 300 cr,” Adarsh tweeted.

“PK all set to cross ₹ 300 cr today [Sunday; Day 17]. Becomes first *Hindi* film to attain the feat in India. Breakup in next tweet,” he had tweeted earlier.

The film made Rs 6.85 cr on Friday and Rs 8.32 cr on Saturday, taking the grand total to Rs 293.84 cr net in India business till early Sunday. Adarsh said it was an “all time blockbuster”.

As protests against the film continued, the producers of the film said it has broken the record of 'Dhoom 3' since its release on December 19.

The film has faced criticism by right-wing organisations who said the Rajkumar Hirani-directed film disrespects Hindu religion, an allegation rejected by its makers. Hirani, 52, said the film's word-of-mouth performance has been overwhelming.

"I had never in my wildest dreams thought this film will cross these numbers. It reinforces faith that content is king. We can continue making films we believe in. The messages I get are overwhelming. People are watching the film over and over again. It's humbling," the director said in a statement.

Aamir-starrer 'Dhoom 3' is second biggest earner with Rs 271.82 crores followed by Salman Khan starrer 'Kick' (Rs 244 crores) and Shah Rukh Khan's 'Chennai Express' (Rs 228 crores).

Writing for Times of India, Chidanand Rajghatta predicted that the film might even cross the $100 million (Rs 630 crores) mark.

“Raj Kumar Hirani/Amir Khan's controversial PK might well be the first Hindi film to stagger across the line….PK’s international receipts in the first two weeks are said to be Rs 122 crores ($20 million), bringing the overall collection to Rs 400 crores ($63 million). Some estimates put the total revenue of the film, including music and video rights, at Rs 516 crores ($82 million), which would bring it just shy of Dhoom 3, which is said to have grossed Rs 542 crores ($86 million) to occupy top place. Since PK still has legs, it is almost certain to beat that record,” Rajghatta said.

The Daily Mail said PK has globally grossed Rs 544 crore in two weeks since its release around Christmas, overtaking the Rs 542-crore worldwide collection of Dhoom 3. This takes into account both global and India collections.

The film raises questions about men who exploit religion and blackmail millions of devotees for personal gains. Hindu groups have protested against the film saying that it insults Hinduism. Activists have burnt posters of the film and ransacked cinema houses.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.