Mumbai: Shahid Kapoor and filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj reunited for the fourth time with O’ Romeo, a violent romantic drama set in the gritty world of Mumbai’s underworld. Co-starring Triptii Dimri, the film finally made it to theatres this Friday, with a great level of curiosity and expectations. With the announced creative collaboration between Shahid and Vishal and the unusual genre blending of romance and action, the opening day performance was anxiously anticipated by both trade pundits and moviegoers.
Early trade tracker Sacnilk estimates that O’ Romeo received about Rs 8.25 crore nett on its initial day in the Indian box office. The film was able to record a decent opening but it just missed the mark of making it to the double-digit club. The numbers suggest a cautious start, though not a disappointing one, especially considering the current competitive theatrical environment.
Moderate Start with Stronger Night Shows
On Day 1, O’ Romeo recorded an overall Hindi occupancy of 14.86 percent across its nationwide release. The movie started off with occupancy of 8.63 percent, in the morning shows, which slowly increased to 12.17 percent, in the afternoon. Evening shows recorded a small increase of 13.66 percent, and a significant increase of 24.97 percent in the night shows.
This upward trend towards the end of the day indicates growing interest through positive word of mouth and stronger turnout from urban audiences. The film played across 4,800 shows in India, reflecting a wide release strategy.
Regional wise, the greatest circuit was in Delhi-NCR in show count with 1,220 shows and occupancy of 14.25 percent. Mumbai was second with 808 shows and higher occupancy of 19 percent indicating comparatively good traction in metro cities. These statistics suggest that urban centres can contribute to the weekend development of the film significantly.
Better Than Recent Shahid Kapoor Openers
Although O’ Romeo did not deliver a blockbuster opening, it has comfortably outperformed several of Shahid Kapoor’s recent releases. His previous movie Deva had earned 5.5 crore on its initial day, whereas the Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Ultja Jiya earned 6.7 crore. Sports drama Jersey that has been the weakest post-pandemic opener had collected Rs 3.2 crore by Shahid.
In contrast, O’ Romeo shows a healthier start and ranks among Shahid’s better opening-day performances in recent years. However, it still falls well short of his career-high opener, Kabir Singh, which had stormed the box office with a massive Rs 20.21 crore on Day 1.
Strong Cast and Emotional Backdrop
Apart from Shahid Kapoor and Triptii Dimri, O’ Romeo has a strong supporting cast with Nana Patekar, Avinash Tiwary, Vikrant Massey, and Tamannaah Bhatia playing key roles in the film. Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment produces the film, which guarantees high production values and scale.
Ahead of the film’s release, Vishal Bhardwaj shared an emotional note on Instagram, expressing his deep connection with the project. He disclosed the fact that O’ Romeo made him understand the great emotional scope he possesses towards love and violence, and gives us an insight into the highly charged subjects addressed in the movie.
Weekend Outlook
With decent night-show occupancy and positive curiosity around its intense narrative, O’ Romeo is expected to see an upward trend over the weekend. Strong word of mouth, particularly in the metro cities, would aid the film to get decent figures within the next few days. Although the opening could be small, the Shahid Kapoor and Vishal Bhardwaj partnership still has the possibility of rising gradually in the theaters.
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