Shabaash Mithu by Taapsee Pannu continues to perform poorly at the box office. After earning only Rs 40 lakh on the first day, the film earned only Rs 55 lakh on the second day, taking its total to Rs 95 lakh. The film was released alongside Rajkummar Rao and Sanya Malhotra’s Hit: The First Case. While Rajkummar’s film showed promise on the second day, Taapsee’s film continues to falter at the box office. Hit earned a total of around Rs 3 crore after earning a little less than Rs 2 crore on its second day.
Shabaash Mithu sees Taapsee Pannu stepping into the shoes of cricketer Mithali Raj, the former captain of the Indian Women’s Cricket Team. Mithali Raj has a 23-year career in international cricket and has scored over 10,000 runs in ODIs, breaking several records. The film chronicles her journey to become a cricketer against all odds. Taapsee Pannu plays Mithu, a girl who dreams of becoming a cricketer. However, she is ridiculed by everyone for this desire except her coach, played by Vijay Raaz. He sees potential in her and gets her into the girls’ cricket team. However, nothing comes easy for Mithu as she is bullied and mocked. He learns to stand up to mockery and endure society.
The film received mixed reviews and was criticized for its lack of subtlety and nuance. Shubhra Gupta of Indian Express gave the film a rating of 2.5 stars. She wrote in her review, “Taapsee Pannu shines in a film that has no room for nuance. Director Srijit Mukerji ensures that everything is underlined in this sports drama.”
Bollywood has had a rough patch with films this year as several big budget projects like Anek, Samrat Prithviraj and Bachchan Pandey failed to create an impact at the box office. However, films like Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 and The Kashmir Files were some of the few that managed to become blockbusters in the post-pandemic era.
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