Yash Raj Fims (YRF) and Mohit Suri‘s Bollywood love story “Saiyaara” has rewritten box office history, posting record-breaking numbers in India that have transformed newcomers Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda into overnight sensations.
The romantic drama delivered a strong opening day performance on July 18, grossing INR25 crore ($2.9 million) and attracting 9,75,000 footfalls nationwide, according to numbers from YRF.
The stars Ahaan Panday, making his debut, and emerging star Aneet Padda (Prime Video’s “Big Girls Don’t Cry”). Panday stars as Krish Kapoor, a rising musician whose raw talent and ambition set him on a collision course with the realities of the modern music industry. When Krish is introduced to Vaani Batra (Aneet Padda), a gifted and principled songwriter, sparks fly – both creatively and personally. As their partnership deepens, so does their connection, blossoming into a romance that is as passionate as it is complicated.
The film has achieved one of the biggest opening day office performances recorded by a debutant-led project in Indian cinema history and marks the most significant ticket sales for a debut film since 2000’s “Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai,” which launched Hrithik Roshan and Ameesha Patel, and “Refugee,” where Kareena Kapoor bowed alongside Abhishek Bachchan.
For Suri, who previously directed successful romantic dramas including “Aashiqui 2” and “Ek Villain,” ‘Saiyaara’ is his career best opening, while the film becomes the first post-COVID love story to surpass $2 million in a single day. The film is produced by YRF CEO Akshaye Widhani.
Perhaps most remarkably, these figures were generated with only 8,000 screenings nationwide -significantly fewer than the typical 18,000 shows usually needed for such substantial opening numbers. Advance bookings were strong and theater chains reported widespread sold-out performances across major markets.
The success was achieved through an unconventional strategy that kept the lead actors entirely away from public exposure, forgoing interviews, promotional tours, social media content, and influencer partnerships.
International numbers are not available yet.