On Friday, July 18, Mohit Suri’s gripping romantic drama Saiyaara, which stars Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda, will be released. The trade anticipates a surprise opening. The movie is also being distributed by the producers, Yash Raj Films (YRF), who yesterday told all theaters about the release plan.
“YRF has asked all the cinemas that the shows of Saiyaara should start from 9:30 am onwards,” a source told Bollywood Hungama. “As a result, theaters are unable to provide performances at very early hours. Second, theaters have been told that on July 18, they are only allowed to present six shows.”
“However, just the day of release is covered by this specific instruction. Theaters are free to present as many shows as they choose starting on Saturday, July 19.” The insider went on, “YRF has developed two unique programs to draw in young people. One is well-known: customers can receive a 50% discount on BookMyShow by using the code SAIYAARA.”
“The discount is up to Rs. 200 and is available on a minimum of two tickets. But that’s not all. In order to draw in the college-going demographic, YRF has also instructed the theaters to make the first show of the day, which is at 9:30 am, specially priced.” YRF said that the regular weekend charge should apply to the remaining shows of the day.
“The occupancy will be higher in all shows if there are only six shows in a day,” remarked a trade expert. “India is also a cost-conscious nation. Consequently, the BookMyShow deal will attract customers. Last but not least, many might be persuaded to attend the early concert if morning ticket prices were lower.”
Trade expert also adds, “Actually, the youth will be able to watch the movie at a very low cost if the morning program uses the 50% discount offer. The under-25 demographic used to pack morning broadcasts, but in the post-pandemic era, this trend slowed down in many places. It is hoped that Saiyaara would reverse this tendency.”
In order to draw in audiences, Saiyaara is the second movie in recent times to use unconventional releasing techniques. Aamir Khan’s successful film Sitaare Zameen Par, which came out last month, also adopted several intriguing concepts, such as only four performances between 11:00 and 5:00 pm on the day of release and no shows before 11:00 am.