Filmmakers can be very prolific. Alfred Hitchcock was known to churn out films in just a few months before moving on to the next one. This meant that quite often, he head two or more releases in a year. In India too, there have been directors who have achieved this. But very few have managed to have two films releasing on the same day, clashing with each other. This one maverick achieved that in 2005 but not to desired results.
The director who released two films on same day
Priyadarshan, the master filmmaker who gas delivered classics in both Hindi and Malayalam, is one of India’s most prolific filmmakers, and also one of the most diverse. The director has, time and again, experimented with genres. In 2005, he did just that with back-to-back films that coincidentally hit the screens together. The first was slapstick comedy Garam Masala starring Akshay Kumar and John Abraham. A remake of his 1985 Malayalam comedy Boeing Boeing, Garam Masala was released on November 2, 2005. The same weekend, another Hindi film of a big star hit the screens. That was Kyon Ki, which starred Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, and Jackie Shroff. This too was directed by Priyadarshan and was again a remake of his Malayalam film Thalavattam which in turn was inspired by the 1975 movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
The box office fate of Garam Masala and Kyon Ki
Garam Masala was the more low profile of the two films given that it was a comedy and had a lower budget. But it was eventually more successful at the box office. Made on a budget of Rs 17 crore, Garam Masala minted Rs 64 crore worldwide, ending up as the fourth highest grossing Indian film of the year. Only No Entry, Bunty Aur Babli, and Salaam Namaste were ahead of it. Kyon Ki, on the other hand, grossed only Rs 23 crore on a Rs 21-crore budget, an underwhelming figure for a star of Salman’s stature. The star’s other releases of the year – No Entry and Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya – grossed Rs 95 crore and Rs 47 crore respectively.
Trade experts argued that Garam Masala worked because of Akshay and Paresh Rawal’s comic timing as well as the masterful way in which Priyadarshan weaved the chaotic comedy. However, in Kyon Ki’s case, the tragedy did not suit the style of Salman’s acting. Even though the star had delivered a hit like Tere Naam just two years prior, the tone of the two films was very different, which the audience reportedly found jarring.
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