Chand Mera Dil had a disappointing start at the Indian box office after collecting around Rs. 2.75 crore nett on its first day. Early trends and advance bookings had suggested that the film could earn somewhere between Rs. 3.50 crore and Rs. 4 crore on opening day. However, the response remained weak as the day progressed, and the film could not even cross the Rs. 3 crore mark.
While crossing Rs. 3 crore may not have made a huge difference, trade experts believe that an opening above Rs. 4 crore would have given the film a stronger chance to build momentum over the weekend. The film belongs to the emotional romantic drama category, often called the “pain in love story” genre, which saw some unexpected successes last year. One of the biggest examples was Saiyaara, which performed very well at the box office mainly because of its highly popular music album.
In the case of Chand Mera Dil, the music has received a decent response but has not created the same level of popularity among audiences. Industry observers feel that strong music is extremely important for small and medium budget romantic films, especially after the pandemic changed theatre viewing habits across the country. Compared to the strong theatrical business seen during 2018 and 2019, many films in this genre are now finding it harder to attract large crowds to cinemas.
The makers had also reduced ticket prices on the first day to encourage more people to watch the film. However, this strategy may have affected the film’s weekend growth because a section of the audience that usually watches during Saturday and Sunday may have already watched it on Friday. Advance bookings for the following day have also not shown major improvement, which has increased concerns about the film’s overall performance.