India’s ‘Munjya’ Enters Top 10 Hindi Openers of 2024

Maddock Films, a prominent production house in India, has struck gold with their latest release, “Munjya,” featuring a CGI actor in the lead role. The film, which hit theaters on June 7, stars Abhay Verma, Sharvari Wagh, Mona Singh, Suhas Joshi, and S Sathyaraj alongside the CGI character. It has garnered impressive numbers, raking in $2.3 million in India and nearly $3 million globally over its opening weekend. This groundbreaking film marks India’s first venture with a CGI actor in a leading role, with the titular character, Munjya, being a supernatural creature brought to life through cutting-edge special effects.

“Munjya” kicked off its box office journey with a strong start, earning close to $600,000 on its opening day. The momentum continued to build, with collections doubling on the second day, resulting in a two-day total of $1.6 million. In India alone, the film amassed $550,000 on its opening day, soaring to $1.3 million by the end of the weekend.

Despite the lackluster performance of Hindi films this year, “Munjya” has managed to secure a spot in the top ten films with the best opening weekend of 2024. Claiming the seventh spot, it follows behind hits like “Fighter” starring Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone, “Shaitaan” featuring Ajay Devgn and R Madhavan, “Crew” with Tabu and Kareena Kapoor Khan, “Bade Miyan Chote Miyan” starring Tiger Shroff and Akshay Kumar, “Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya” with Shahid Kapoor and Kriti Sanon, and “Article 370” starring Yami Gautam. “Munjya” surpassed “Yodha” and “Mr. & Mrs. Mahi” to claim its spot in the top ten.

This film is the latest addition to producer Dinesh Vijan’s universe of horror-comedies, following the success of “Stree” in 2018, “Roohi” in 2021, and “Bhediya” in 2022. Directed by Aditya Sarpotdar, “Munjya” is based on a popular folklore from the Konkan region of Maharashtra. The story revolves around the concept of “Munjya,” spirits of Brahmin boys who die before a crucial ritual is performed after their sacred thread ceremony. Sarpotdar, who hails from the Konkan region, was drawn to the project due to his personal connection to the folklore and his desire to share these captivating stories with a wider audience.

In addition to “Munjya,” other films continue to make waves at the box office, such as Rajkummar Rao’s rom-com “Mr. & Mrs. Mahi,” which has garnered nearly $4 million, and “Srikanth,” which has collected almost $7 million after a month in theaters.