Most films that open to Rs 1.15 crore on day one do not make it to a second weekend. ‘Main Vaapas Aaunga’ did something different. The Partition-era romance directed by Imtiaz Ali has quietly become one of the more talked-about box office stories of the year, driven almost entirely by the audience.
Main Vaapas Aaunga was released on June 12, 2026. It received critical acclaim, with 92% of critics’ reviews on Rotten Tomatoes being positive. But the numbers at the box office told a different story on day one.
The film earned Rs 1.15 crore net on its opening day. By the end of the first week, it had collected Rs 12.25 crore net domestically. Those are not the numbers of a film building momentum. Or so it seemed.
The second week changed everything. The film collected Rs 4.35 crore on its second Saturday, a jump of nearly 129% over the previous day. The second Sunday brought in Rs 5.75 crore. By its 11th day, the total India net collection stood at approximately Rs 26.75 crore.
The growing buzz around the film has even resulted in additional shows being added in Mumbai, reflecting the increasing audience demand.
What Imtiaz Ali said
Director Imtiaz Ali has been watching this unfold from inside the theatres himself. He spoke to PTI about what he has been experiencing.
“I am overwhelmed by the response to Main Vaapas Aaunga. I find myself going to cinema theatres and just gazing at the faces of the audience and seeing the film through their eyes. I have been to six cities already and am planning to go to more,” he said.
On the bigger picture, Imtiaz did not hold back. “Ultimately, janata janardan hai. We always try to predict people, put them into categories and socio-economic classes, and we try to make strategies to predict how people are going to react to a brand or a film, but I think people largely understand cinema. We should actually learn from them how to make a film and how to market films,” he added.
The trade steps in
It was not just audiences. The exhibition and distribution community also played a role in giving the film room to breathe.
Imtiaz credited the trade, calling them the first line of contact with the audience. “In this journey, I have realised the amazing connection between audience and exhibitors, the theatre halls and the distributors, what we call trade and who we usually are scared off as filmmakers. It has been a divine connection for Main Vaapas Aaunga. The community of exhibitors, theatre owners and distributors and so many people from the trade have stepped and supported Main Vaapas Aaunga as though it is their film. The community of distributors and exhibitors has started shows at unlikely times at so many theatres because of the audience demand,” he said.