# Akshay Kumar-Saif Ali Khan film Haiwaan flops at box office

2026-09-18T04:22:58+00:00 | Entertainment | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 3 independent outlets

Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan's thriller Haiwaan has disappointed at the box office, collecting Rs 8.75 crore in its first week, according to Pinkvilla. Bollywood Hungama reports a steeper drop, with collections of Rs 66,838 on its second Friday, a 98.62% crash from its first Thursday. The film had an underwhelming opening of Rs 2.79 crore on day one, below the expected Rs 3-4 crore range. Bollywoodlife.com gave the film a 4-star rating, praising the clash between Akshay and Saif as its beating heart, and highlighting strong performances, Priyadarshan's direction, and a good background score. Bollywood Hungama attributed the failure to poor word of mouth and competition from Mirzapur The Movie and Hanuman Ansh. The film, adapted from Priyadarshan's Malayalam hit Oppam, is now unlikely to cross Rs 10 crore lifetime.

## Indian Opinion Analysis

Bollywoodlife.com's glowing review ignores the box office disaster entirely, framing the film as a must-watch thriller with stellar performances. Pinkvilla and Bollywood Hungama, by contrast, lead with the financial failure, providing day-wise breakdowns and attributing the crash to poor word of mouth and competition. The review's omission of audience reception suggests a promotional bent. The film's 98.62% second-Friday drop is among the steepest for a big-star release, signalling that critical praise did not translate into public interest. The second week's figures will confirm if it stabilises or vanishes from theatres.

## Coverage

- bollywoodlife.com (sensationalist) <https://www.bollywoodlife.com/movie-reviews/haiwaan-movie-review-akshay-kumar-and-saif-ali-khan-clash-gives-this-thriller-its-beating-heart-3361812/>
  Leads with a 4-star rating and praise, omitting box office failure entirely.
- pinkvilla.com (neutral report) <https://www.pinkvilla.com/entertainment/box-office/haiwaan-box-office-collections-akshay-kumar-saif-ali-khans-thriller-disappoints-on-first-week-netts-rs-8-75-crore-in-7-days-1405480>
  Straight reporting of first-week box office collections with no editorialising.
- bollywoodhungama.com (neutral report) <https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/box-office-special-features/haiwaan-box-office-shock-from-rs-2-79-crores-on-day-1-to-just-rs-66838-on-day-8/>
  Detailed day-wise breakdown and trade context, no slant.

Tags: Akshay Kumar, Bollywood, Haiwaan, Priyadarshan, Saif Ali Khan
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Cite: https://indianopinion.org/haiwaan-gets-good-reviews-but-earns-only-rs-8-75-crore-in-first-week/#story-in-brief