Trade experts feel Pushpa 2 – The Rule will not be affected by Mufasa: The Lion King, Baby John: “If word of mouth is extraordinary, then Baby John, Mufasa will face a lot of problems in terms of screen space”

All-time high-grossing films like Jawan and Stree 2 had the advantage of non-stop screenings. Pushpa 2 - The Rule will unfortunately be up against Mufasa: The Lion King on December 20 and Baby John with Varun Dhawan on December 5. 

Industry veteran Taran Adarsh said, "If the content is as strong as the first part, it will be a problem for these films. Baby John too may be affected, though Mufasa is an international product and has a different target audience." 

Vishek Chauhan, owner of Roopbani Cinemas in Purnia, Bihar, said, "Mufasa: The Lion King and Baby John will definitely be affected. But I don't see Mufasa competing with Baby John in the same way," adding that it is a similar product (action entertainment like Pushpa 2). If the word of mouth is outstanding, Baby John and Mufasa will be a big deal in terms of screen space. At the same time, Pushpa 2's core audience may be bored by then as the film will be released everywhere in multiple languages. Hence, it may reach saturation point sooner." 

Distributor and cinema operator Raj Bansal disagreed: "These films don't make any impact. If Pushpa 2 - The Rule meets even 70% of the huge expectations, it will run unhindered no matter what happens. He will be unstoppable." 

Conclusion: Experts have also praised Allu Arjun, saying his presence adds a lot of excitement. Akshaye Rathi said, "Looking at the euphoria his presence creates even in Patna and Mumbai, there is no doubt that there is a lot of expectation and excitement around him." With Pushpa 2, he will cement his status as a truly pan-India star. He and Prabhas are neck and neck in terms of national appeal." 

Kirtibai said, "I am amazed at the ticket sales. After all, there are no festivals on December 5th. Schools, colleges and offices are open. And Surat is not a city where people book tickets in advance. Hence, we were expecting more spot bookings. But this response shows that there is a tremendous enthusiasm among the audience for the film and Allu Arjun. This is the first time we have received such bookings for a non-festival release since we opened cinemas in 2020.” 

He further added: “I hope the film is very good, otherwise audiences might find it difficult to sit through three hours and 20 minutes. ‘Animal’ was also very long, but nobody complained as it was a very engaging film. Hopefully the same will happen with Pushpa 2 too.”