Amid 'Chhaava's glorious advance bookings the truth behind 'Sky Force's false BO projections revealed

The Bollywood industry is witnessing a revival of big-screen releases, with a surge in ticket sales and high box office projections. Movies are once again drawing audiences to theatres, and the competition among production houses is fierce. However, while official figures indicate massive earnings, questions are being raised about whether these numbers truly reflect the reality. The latest controversy involves alleged manipulation in advance bookings to create an illusion of success.

Veteran trade analyst Komal Nahta recently shed light on a shocking trend being used to inflate box office numbers. According to his findings, the movie Sky Force employed deceptive strategies to boost its reported collections. One of these tactics involved offering partial refunds on ticket bookings. For instance, if a ticket was priced at Rs 300, a refund of Rs 250 was given back to the buyer, meaning they effectively paid only Rs 50. However, the official reports still considered the full Rs 300 per ticket, falsely projecting a much higher collection than what actually reached theatre owners.

This method creates an illusion of packed theatres and soaring revenues while the real earnings tell a different story. The tactic not only misleads audiences but also impacts industry credibility. As per Nahta, this bulk booking and refund strategy allowed Sky Force to report figures of Rs 80 crore when actual earnings were significantly lower, possibly around Rs 40-50 crore.

With Chhaava, starring Vicky Kaushal, Rashmika Mandanna, and Akshaye Khanna, set for release on February 14, speculations have arisen about whether similar techniques are being used to boost its advance booking numbers. Reports suggest that within just 48 hours, over two lakh tickets for Chhaava were sold, signaling a massive opening at the box office. While this indicates a strong audience interest, doubts have surfaced regarding the authenticity of these numbers.