Will 'Jai Ho' crack Rs.300 crore code?

Mumbai, Jan 23 (IANS) The stage is set for Salman Khan's "Jai Ho", his first release of the year. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh is confident that it will cross the Rs.300-crore-mark while Amod Mehra says though a bumper opening is assured, reaching Rs.200 crore could be "a Herculean task".

Directed by Salman's brother Sohail, the film that focuses on corruption will hit more than 5,000 screens Friday.

Producer Vashu Bhagnani, who still remembers "the stupendous opening" that his film with Salman "Biwi No.1" got, is confident that "'Jai Ho' would definitely open very well".

"Salman has the full public support. His ardent fan-base would definitely go see the film. It should cross the 300-crore mark specially seeing the number of screens it's being released on," he added.

In the last couple of years, Salman has hardly failed to impress the audiences and as a result most of his films such as "Dabangg", "Ek Tha Tiger" and "Dabangg 2" became blockbusters.

"I saw the film at a trial. Both the pre and post interval halves have that jolt that makes you sit up and watch when you are least expecting any kind of upheaval. That is the USP. Salman's presence is 'ekdum dhamaakedar'," said another trade expert who doesn't want to be named.

"My verdict. It'd be bigger than 'Ek Tha Tiger', but not as big as 'Dabangg'. Eros would find it hard to recover the money they paid Sohail for the film," he added.

Taran Adarsh: "'Jai Ho' should open very, very well, thanks to Salman's star power and also his absence from the screen for an entire year. The craze for the film is building up with each passing day. As far as making Rs.300 crore goes, that would depend entirely on the strength of the content."

Amod Mehra: "As Salman is enjoying such a huge fan-following, a bumper opening is assured. However, the promos and music are dull. Reaching Rs.200 crore may prove to be a Herculean task."

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