Ajab Prem Ki... has edge over Jail on first day

Romantic comedy Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani, which stars Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, has sent the box office cash registers ringing, elbowing out Madhur Bhandarkar's Jail on the first day Friday.

Romantic comedy "Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani", which stars Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, has sent the box office cash registers ringing, elbowing out Madhur Bhandarkar's "Jail" on the first day Friday.

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"'Ajab Prem Ki...' has got a terrific initial thanks to the star cast but it will suffer on the content part. While 'Jail' has had a very slow opening...that of only around 20 percent. Shelf life for both movies is only limited till Monday," Joginder Mahajan, a Delhi-based distributor told IANS.

Directed by Rajkumar Santoshi and produced by Ramesh S. Taurani, "Ajab Prem Ki..." also has superstar Salman Khan in a special appearance.

On the other hand, "Jail" has been co-produced by Percept Picture Company and Bhandarkar Entertainment and is the story of a common man who lands up in prison for unknown reasons. Starring Neil Nitin Mukesh and Mugdha Godse in the lead, it also has Manoj Bajpai in a pivotal role.

"'Ajab Prem Ki...' has got a tremendous opening. It is a totally entertaining movie for both classes and masses and a complete family watch with good acting, fast tempo and nice packaging. Audiences are loving it," said a source from Big Cinemas.

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"'Jail', however, deals with serious issues. Though Madhur Bhandarkar has proven his mettle with the film, the box office success of this one is doubtful as a family would think twice before watching it," the source added.

Yogesh Raizada, corporate head, Wave Cinemas, has a different opinion.

"The Ranbir Kapoor-starrer has got an average occupancy of above 80 percent and that is obvious because of the comedy and romance element. But despite a 40 percent start, 'Jail' is very strong on content and is being appreciated a lot by the audiences and critics both," said Raizada.

"Both movies should at least extend for one weekend without fail. 'Jail' will definitely pick up Saturday onwards despite being only for a niche clientele," he added.