Emergency Box Office Day 5: Kangana’s Film Trails Behind Jigra

Kangana Ranaut's latest film, Emergency, has faced challenges at the box office despite outperforming her previous releases like Tejas and Dhaakad. The political drama, released on January 17, has collected Rs 12.4 crore in five days, falling significantly short of Alia Bhatt's Jigra, which earned Rs 22.45 crore in its opening week.

Emergency opened with Rs 2.5 crore on its first day and showed improvement over the weekend. However, collections dropped sharply on Monday, with earnings declining by 75 per cent to Rs 1.05 crore. On Tuesday, the film managed Rs 1 crore nett, according to industry tracker Sacnilk.

In comparison, Jigra, directed by Vasan Bala, also experienced a steep decline after its first Monday. The film's performance, however, remains notably stronger than Emergency. Jigra has been the subject of controversy, with Divya Khossla Kumar, wife of T-Series head Bhushan Kumar, accusing Alia Bhatt of manipulating the film's box office figures. Kangana Ranaut has previously criticized Alia and made indirect remarks about the industry’s treatment of women-centric films, stating, “When you sabotage female-driven films, they fail—even when you produce them yourself.”

On Tuesday, Emergency recorded a nationwide occupancy of 7.09 per cent across 2,398 shows. The film, directed by Kangana herself, faces stiff competition from Azaad, another new release featuring Aaman Devgan and Rasha Thadani. Directed by Abhishek Kapoor, Azaad has also struggled, earning Rs 5.75 crore in its first five days, with Tuesday’s collections at Rs 55 lakh, according to Sacnilk data.

Emergency features Kangana Ranaut in the role of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, marking her debut as a solo director. The ensemble cast includes Mahima Choudhary, Shreyas Talpade, Anupam Kher, Milind Soman, and the late Satish Kaushik. The film, produced under Kangana’s Manikarnika Films banner, was first announced in 2022.