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Bollywood’s Dhoom 3 has quickly transformed into a potent player at the global box office, where its opening could approach $25 million or more, including north of $16 million in India alone, according to early numbers.
In North America, the movie debuted to a record-breaking $3.3 million from 236 theaters for distributor Yash Raj Films, making it the biggest opening of all time for a Bollywood title and coming in No. 9 for the weekend.
Dhoom 3 also is doing strong business in other countries where there is a notable Indian population, including Dubai, Malaysia, Kenya and the U.K.
Writer-director Vijay Krishna Acharya’s story follows the exploits of a pair of Indian buddy cops (Abhishek Bachchan, Uday Chopra), although the main spotlight falls on superstar Aamir Khan (Lagaan, Talaash) in a flashy turn as Sahir, a modern acrobat and illusionist working in Chicago.
The third outing in the Dhoom (Blast) franchise is the first Indian film to be released in IMAX theaters, including in India. As of Sunday, the movie is playing in 40 Imax locations in 14 territories, including a handful of sites in India and 12 locations in the U.S., where it is splitting screens with The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
IMAX Entertainment CEO Greg Foster said it is the widest release in Imax history for a non-Hollywood title. He expects more theaters to be added based on the film’s initial performance, noting that each showing is averaging $25,000 per screen.
“This was a fantastic movie by very skilled filmmakers and we’re thrilled that this is our first venture into the Bollywood world. Given its success, we’ll be doing more,” Foster said.
In North America, this summer’s Chennai Express was the previous record-holder for biggest Bollywood opening ($2.2 million).
Dhoom 3 is produced by Aditya Chopra, whose family runs one of the oldest studios in India. Aashish Singh executive produced.
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