Bharat box office collection day 1: Salman Khan starrer off to BUMPER start, set for record-breaking EID opening

Bharat box office collection day 1: As expected, Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif starrer Bharat has got off to a bumper start at the box office and is set for a record-breaking EID opening. The Ali Abbas Zafar directorial has opened to over 60 per cent opening in the early morning shows and has been received well by the critics. A good word of mouth and Eid holiday should allow the film to pick up in the late evening shows. "#Bharat off to a BUMPER start at the box office across India. Film opened with 60-65% occupancy in early morning shows. Advance booking for today is HUGE, all set for record breaking EID opening," film trade analyst and critic Sumit Kadel tweeted. 

Earlier Kadel had told Zee Business TV that Bharat has created a huge buzz among fans and is expected to earn over 35 to 40 crore on its release day. "Salman Khan has a huge fan base and the movie is expected to gain massive audience on opening day," he had said. Bharat has released on over 4500 screens in India and is the biggest ever release in UAE too. 

Movie critic and busiess analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted that Bharat is, "Biggest ever release in #UAE - #GCC [121 locations] and #Australia [75+ locations]." He added that it is also the first Salman Khan film to have day-and-date release in Saudi Arabia. The film has released across 70 countries and on more than 1300 screens.

Adarsh gave a positive review to Bharat, calling it a smash-hit. "#OneWordReview...#Bharat: SMASH-HIT. Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️An emotional journey that wins you over... Salman is the lifeline. He’s exceptional... Katrina excels... Ali Abbas Zafar blends humour + emotions wonderfully... Slight trimming needed... Get ready for #Salmania. #BharatReview," he tweeted. 

Bharat will face tough competition from Hollywood offering Dark Phoenix from the X-Men franchise. Earlier releases by Salman during Eid have made opening records and the proof of this are films like Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, Sultan, Tiger Zinda Hai, Ek Tha Tiger and Race 3 that bagged Rs 40.3 crore, Rs 36.5 crore, Rs 34.1 crore, Rs 32.92 crore and Rs 29.1 crore, respectively.

Apart from Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif, Bharat also stars Disha Patani, Tabu, Jackie Shroff and Sunil Grover.