The Great Diwali time bomb: Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 and Singham Again yet to open advance booking; screen sharing issue creates ruckus

This Diwali, get ready for some fireworks, as Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 and Singham Again, are getting ready to hit screens on November 1. Interestingly both movies, though not from the same genre, boast of huge ensemble cast, with stars like Ajay Devgn, Vidya Balan, Madhuri Dixit, Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor, Kartik Aaryan and Triptii Dimri joining the mix. However, considering how the festival of Diwali is considered to be a gold mine for movie releases, none of the movies have yet opened their advance bookings, which might affect their respective openings.

Revealing more on the same, a source told us, " The films are still a week away and negotiations are still on over screen sharing. We have heard Rohit (Shetty) wants 60-40, and Bhool Bhulaiyaa is pitching for 50-50 share."
On the other hand, Nitin Datar, President of cinema owners and exhibitors association, said, "Single screens have even more issues, since, unlike multiplexes, they have only 1 screen, and can only run 4 shows per day. Dividing shows (between the two movies) is not permitted in single screens, so whichever movie has the stronger distribution team, gets that particular theatre."
On the other hand, trade expert Girish Wankhede says, “Singham Again,” distributed by PVR Inox Pictures, is expected to dominate the multiplex scene with a projected 60% screen count. This is further bolstered by the allocation of 75% of the shows in single screens to “Singham Again,” which is causing concern for the producers of “Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3,” T-Series. In response to this perceived imbalance, T-Series has approached the Competition Commission of India, arguing that “Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3” deserves a fair share of screenings, ideally a 50-50 split."
He added, "Adding to the complexity, there are rumors that AA Films, the distributor for “Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3,” is negotiating with single-screen exhibitors. They are reportedly offering incentives to secure a more favorable showing for their film, suggesting that if they can achieve a 50% screen share for “Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3,” they might also be able to bring “Pushpa 2” into the mix."
Earlier, in an exclusive interview with ETimes, Kartik Aaryan opened up on the clash, and said, "Yes we have a clash with a big film that has so many stars, and I’m a fan of them. Now both films are coming, and we will have to wait and see the result. I hope both work, and both films releasing is a good thing for the audience, as they have two options to watch . I think the clash was destiny.. I cannot do anything about it."
Talking about the dual pressure on his film, Bhool Bhulaiyaa, he said, "When the first part released, we didn’t have any pressure, the general perception was that no one will watch this film, but the film went on to surpass all expectations.. It was a moment of lot of joy when it happened, and because of that there is pressure, as people are expecting a lot.... so we have gone from no expectation to lot of expectation in just one film.”

Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 released in 2022 and set the box office on fire, it went on to generate almost Rs 185 crore at the box office. Bhushan Kumar, the producer of the film was so happy with the performance of the film, that he gifted a brand new McLaren GT to Kartik, worth Rs 4.72 crore.