Finally! The film industry is celebrating a success. The smiles are back. The phenomenal start of JUDWAA-2 has brought cheer and sunshine in this gloomy scenario. Just when a section of the industry was feeling it's end of the road for wholesome entertainers [which the audience relished in 1980s and 1990s], the pan India success of JUDWAA-2 clearly proves that well-made entertainers will always find acceptance. This genre can never go out of fashion!
Indeed, the holiday period has given impetus to the business of JUDWAA-2, but a tiny section of film buffs [on my social media pages] attribute the smashing business to the holiday period mainly. I beg to differ. If one goes by this logic, why didn't the holidays boost the business of TUBELIGHT and JAB HARRY MET SEJAL? Wasn't TUBELIGHT released during the Eid festivities? Didn't the makers of JAB HARRY MET SEJAL target the Independence Day and Raksha Bandhan holidays? Did these two films smash records on holidays? Or did the holidays change the fate of these two films?
I've learnt one fact over the decades and the skeptics must gulp this fact too: If the content is liked by the audience, it can withstand any opponent or opposition. If not, even the holiday period cannot save a bad film from falling flat on its face. Additionally, star power alone, or merely one factor, cannot lure viewers in hordes. Star power can pull the audience in the initial shows only. The content does the talking subsequently. Most importantly, a film ought to work in its entirety to rake in big bucks.
In one of my tweets, highlighting the grand business of JUDWAA-2, I pointed out that Studios/film-makers need to make films that hold pan India appeal, not merely target a handful of metros and select multiplexes. Sure, we need to think out of the box, but it's the big numbers and soaked-in-entertainment movies that drive the industry. It's the big numbers that plays a vital part in the survival of the distribution and exhibition sectors. The overall health of the film industry is dependent on big bucks.
Coming back to JUDWAA-2, Varun Dhawan takes a giant leap with this one. His track record is enviable, but the acceptance by the audience in mass pockets, metros and mini-metros indicates that he is far ahead of his contemporaries today. Every actor has to deliver numbers and Varun has managed it consistently.
David Dhawan has stuck to what he knows best -- entertainment-driven films -- and that's one of the prime reasons for his long and successful innings. He has never deviated, except once, I guess. A film he made 27 years ago, SWARG [1990], is still fresh in my memory. Even though David has delivered bigger hits than SWARG, I rank it as his best attempt as a storyteller. With JUDWAA-2, David proves that he knows the pulse of the common man, besides stressing on the fact that laughter is the best medicine even today.
For Sajid Nadiadwala, JUDWAA-2 is yet another feather in his already populated and decorated cap. Let me share an interesting trivia. When the prolific producer announced JUDWAA with Salman Khan two decades ago, a section of the industry was of the opinion that he was taking a big risk then. Govinda and David Dhawan were an unbreakable and unbeatable combination. In fact, I had compared this team as the worthy successor to Amitabh-Manmohan Desai in one of the editorials I had penned then. The question uppermost on everyone's mind was, will Salman carry off the dual roles with aplomb in JUDWAA, the first collaboration of Salman and David together? Will David recreate the magic with Salman?
The same question was raised now: Will Varun step into Salman's shoes effortlessly? Yes, Salman did then [JUDWAA] and so has Varun Dhawan today [JUDWAA-2].
