Maidaan director Amit Sharma talks about the film's box office debacle and the reasons behind it
Maidaan, starring Ajay Devgn, is an unusual film for many reasons. For one, anyone who has watched the film has praised it. And yet, the film was a box office bomb when it released earlier this year. Now, as it is gathering some goodwill courtesy its OTT release and an award win, director Amit Sharma opens up on the film’s complex legacy.
Talking about the lukewarm reaction the film received in theatres when it was released in April, Amit Sharma says, “When the film was released, a lot of people did not watch it. But whoever watched it only praised it. They all appreciated it. I was making rounds of the theatres and I saw the reaction of the public watching it. It was amazing. After it released on OTT, I was flooded with messages and mails. Many said they should have watched it in theatres but at the end of the day, you can’t force people to go to theatres.”
Maidaan was a retelling of the golden era of Indian football, particularly the role of legendary national team coach Syed Abdul Rahim (played by Devgn). The film was made on a budget of over Rs 200 crore but despite positive reviews, underperformed at the box office, earning only Rs 68 crore. The numbers did play on the makers’ mind, Amit confesses. “Of course, it comes in your mind as to why numbers are not increasing when the public is appreciating it and the reaction is positive,” he says candidly, adding, “But I couldn’t find the reason for why the big numbers did not happen.”
However, Amit says that he is happy with how the film turned out. “If you ask me if I was happy with the way the film was made or not, I’d say I was content with that,” he says, elaborating, “People from European countries praising it and comparing it to Hollywood films was a big validation. They all said they had never seen football shown like this in any film, even in the West.” Maidaan is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
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 "Amit Sharma with Ajay Devgn on the sets of Maidaan")
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