Can James Cameron’s film enter the ‘Long Runner’ zone in India?

Avatar Fire and Ash Box Office Collection Day 11: James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash has reached a significant milestone in its box-office saga in India. After the report of Day 11 collections, the most important question for the trade experts and cinema owners is not regarding the opening noise anymore, but about the film’s staying power. Is it possible for the movie to change its role in the Indian market from a high initial ticket seller to a long-term player?

Avatar Fire and Ash box office collection day 11

Avatar: Fire and Ash experienced a predictable decrease on its second Monday, as per the projections made by Sacnilk. This slowdown is often the case with major Hollywood movies, particularly after the fan-driven, premium formats and weekend footfalls’ initial rush has drained. More importantly, the film did not crash sharply, which means that people’s interest hasn’t disappeared so quickly. Avatar 3 collected Rs 4.75 crore on its 11th day, taking the net total in India to Rs 142.65 crore.

From event film to the word-of-mouth phase

The very first week of Fire and Ash mainly relied on its visual effects and high IMAX formats, 3D formats, and franchise loyalty as its major selling points. Nevertheless, the numbers on Day 11 hint that the movie is already moving to a phase of public talking about it, where the common viewers are the ones who will be making the decision about the experience being nice or worth visiting the theatre on a weekday.

This particular stage is extremely important for a Hollywood picture in India, where the number of viewers during weekdays is traditionally lower than that of domestic releases.

The ‘Long Runner’ criteria

For Avatar: Fire and Ash to reach the long-time runner territory, three elements must come together: Controlled fall in weekday sales, increase in weekend sales in the 3rd and 4th weeks and constant high-quality screen presence.

Up to now, the movie checks off at least two of these criteria. The big theatre chains are still keeping IMAX and 3D screenings, and the cinemas are optimistic about the weekend turning around.

Competition factor works in Avatar’s favour

One more advantage for Fire and Ash is that there is no huge Hollywood release putting its screen count in immediate danger. Even though Indian movies are the main ones to take the box office, Avatar still has its own specific audience that is not easily influenced by the local releases.

This space could actually make the film run longer than ever.