Akshay Kumar’s latest film, Sarfira, which was released in cinemas on Friday, earned only Rs 2.40 crore on its first day, according to industry tracker Sacnilk. The release clashed with Shankar and Kamal Haasan’s highly-anticipated film Indian 2, which grossed Rs 26 crore on the first day. Sarfira’s debut figures are Akshay’s lowest box office numbers in 15 years, since his ‘8×10 Tasveer’ in 2009, which opened at Rs 1.8 crore. It is also Akshay’s 150th film, making it a milestone in his long career as one of Bollywood’s top actors.
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About Sarfira
Sarfira is a Hindi remake of the 2020 award-winning Tamil film, Soorarai Pottru and has been directed by the same director, Sudha Kongara Prasad. Both films are an adaptation of G. R. Gopinath’s memoir, Simply Fly: A Deccan Odyssey. Starring Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal, and Seema Biswas in pivotal roles, the film is produced by 2D Entertainment, Abundantia Entertainment, and Cape Of Good Films. The overall occupancy for the film stood at a mere 13.08 per cent on the first day. In Mumbai, there were a total of 472 shows and the occupancy was 14 per cent, and in Delhi/NCR, with 570 shows, the occupancy was only 11.75 per cent.
The Plot and Reviews
The film follows Vir Mhatre (inspired by real-life Captain Gopinath), a middle-class man from a small village, who sets out to launch a low-cost airline for those who can afford it. Showcasing his struggles along the way, the story is one of resilience, grit and determination.
Despite its poor performance at the box office, Sarfira has received some positive reviews from fans and critics. A review in India Today wrote, “Akshay, with his earnest performance, makes this film worth a watch.” However, a review in The Hindu pointed out that the emotional story gets ‘diluted’ in the remake, in comparison to the Tamil original.
Akshay’s Movies
In the past few years, Akshay’s films have failed to see major success at the box office. Apart from Sooryavanshi (2021) and OMG 2 (2023), he has had no other hits. Sarfira’s underwhelming debut earrings don’t seem to defy this trend. Even Akshay’s last big-ticket film, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, released this year, surpassed Sarfira’s opening figures, earning Rs 16.07 crore. But, it was ultimately called a flop since its net earnings were only Rs. 59.17 crore. His other recent films like ‘Mission Raniganj’, ‘Selfiee’, and ‘Ram Setu’, also did not do too well at the box office. Sarfira was anticipated to be a strong comeback for the actor but it is off to a slow start, even though earnings are expected to surge over the weekend.
Only five years prior, in 2019, Akshay delivered four consecutive Rs 200 crore hits, with Mission Mangal, Housefull 4, Good Newwz and Kesari. After this period of success, his string of commercial failures has come unexpectedly, with fans and critics complaining about overexposure. Speaking about this, in a recent interview with Galatta Plus, Akshay said, “I’ve seen people who work selectively, and their films flop as well. In our industry, what happens is that people stop offering you work if you deliver flops.” He revealed that Amita Bachchan advised him to “not turn down work.”
