Ramayana Part One has closed its advance sales window with roughly Rs 143.5 crore in worldwide bookings, according to Pinkvilla’s final pre-release tracking. The Ranbir Kapoor and Yash-starrer split the total almost evenly: Rs 71 crore from domestic circuits and Rs 72.5 crore from overseas.
That makes it the second-biggest advance ever recorded for a Bollywood film. The only film ahead is Dhurandhar: The Revenge, which locked more than Rs 250 crore for its opening weekend. Those two data points frame the business question: the demand is real, but it is not a record, and the film’s release timing is the main reason.
Where the advance came from
Within India, the Hindi version accounted for Rs 57.5 crore gross, or about Rs 48 crore nett. The South dubbed versions brought in around Rs 13.5 crore. The Hindi opening day advance alone was Rs 23.5 crore nett, which Pinkvilla places among the top ten opening-day advances of all time.
- Global advance: Rs 143.5 crore approx
- Domestic: Rs 71 crore; overseas: Rs 72.5 crore
- Hindi advance: Rs 57.5 crore gross (Rs 48 crore nett)
- South dubbed advance: Rs 13.5 crore
These are advance bookings, not reported collections. Pinkvilla’s update is direct that higher figures circulating online often include blocked seats and face-value ticket prices rather than the passes that lower average ticket prices at the box office.
Why pre-Diwali matters
For media planners, the timing is the most important variable. A pre-Diwali release lands in a traditionally low window for Hindi box office, and that suppressed presales even for a title of this scale. Pinkvilla projects a Hindi opening of Rs 55-60 crore nett, with dubbed versions adding about Rs 15 crore nett.
From there, the pattern is expected to be uneven: a drop one day, a jump the next. Monday will be the biggest day of the run because Hindi circuits come back in full force after Diwali festivities. That Monday number, more than the advance, will set the tone for the film’s trajectory.
Overseas: strong US, cooling elsewhere
The United States is the standout market, with around USD 4.40 million in weekend presales so far. That is the second-best Bollywood presales figure ever, trailing only Dhurandhar: The Revenge and more than double the next best performances from Jawan and Pathaan.
Other territories tracked strongly a week ago but have moderated. Pinkvilla says they are now broadly in line with, or in some markets slightly behind, Jawan and Pathaan. The film is still on course for an opening weekend above USD 20 million, though the scale of the production and Sony’s P&A spend likely had the aim closer to USD 25-30 million.
What to track next
- Monday’s Hindi actuals after Diwali
- Whether the US weekend holds above USD 20 million
- Whether advance-to-collections conversion is impacted by passes and blocked seats
For the screen business audience, the lesson is straightforward: presales measure intent, not revenue. Blocked seats, face-value ticket prices and an early Diwali window can all flatter or depress the advance. The real read comes when Monday’s reported collections land.
Source: PINKVILLA
