UAE-GCC faces Bollywood blackout on Eid for FIRST time since Covid; Dhurandhar and Border 2’s ‘ban’, Toxic and Jana Nayagan’s postponement, The RajaSaab’s debacle cause losses of nearly USD 15 million

UAE-GCC experiences a major Bollywood movie blackout on Eid for the first time since the start of the pandemic. This marks a significant shift from the usual trend where Bollywood films dominate during the festival. Dhurandhar: The Revenge, the major Bollywood Eid release of the year, faces a ban in the Gulf region, similar to its first part. Toxic, another expected release, has been delayed until June 4 due to the ongoing tensions between Iran and the US. Jana Nayagan, a film starring Vijay Thalapathy, has also been postponed indefinitely due to political reasons.

The film The RajaSaab performed poorly, earning only about 0.45 million USD from the region.

 Only a few other Indian films like Sarvam Maya and Eko managed to bring in respectable earnings, with around 2.6 million USD and 1.2 million USD respectively in the UAE. These figures are far lower than previous Eid releases such as L2 Empuraan and Lokah: Chapter 1, which generated several million dollars from the Gulf.

Industry insiders suggest that Dhurandhar: The Revenge could have earned between 5 to 8 million USD if it had been released, but the lack of major Bollywood films during Eid has led to a significant loss of revenue.

 The financial impact is estimated to be nearly 15 million USD.

Experts like Taran Adarsh note that the UAE-GCC is a crucial market for Bollywood, contributing a big chunk to the overseas box office.

 Atul Mohan adds that the smaller Bollywood films do not perform well, and the market relies on big-budget releases. He also suspects that the ban on Dhurandhar might affect the release of its sequel.

Girish Johar points out that Hindi films, along with Hollywood and local films, are important for the Gulf box office.

 Suniel Wadhwa emphasizes the importance of the Gulf region for South Indian films, contributing almost 40% of their overseas revenue.

Despite the setback, there is hope for the future.

 Akshay Kumar's Bhooth Bangla, set for release on April 10, could be the first Bollywood film to benefit from the current situation. Other films like Ustaad Bhagat Singh and Drishyam 3 are also seen as potential hits, although there are concerns that political tensions might affect their release schedules.