Director Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s much-awaited and controversial magnum opus Padmaavat finally released on  Thursday at the box office. The period drama has faced many hurdles right from its announcement to its production process. While earlier the historical film was slated to hit the screens on December 1 last year but due to protests, the makers shifted its release date to January 25. The film released on Republic day eve and is enjoying a good run at the box office. On its first day, the film has earned Rs 19 Crore, making it Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s highest opener ever. (Also read: Padmaavat: 5 reasons why Ranveer Singh deserves all the awards for his act as Alauddin Khilji in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s visual extravaganza)

Our Trade experts had predicted that Padmaavatwil earn around Rs 25 to Rs 30 crore on its opening day and Rs 100 plus crore in its extended opening weekend. But due to the protests, the film lost out a lot of money. The film was not screened at many states which hampered its total collections. Trade is of the opinion that had there been no commotion, the first day numbers could have been more than Rs 30 crore. Looking at director Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s previous ventures, Ram-Leela had recorded his biggest opener with the collections of Rs 16 crore followed by Bajirao Mastani which raked in Rs 12.80 crore. The latter film’s opening was affected due to clash with Shah Rukh Khan’s Dilwale. Now Padmaavat has become his biggest opener.

Here are the opening day collections of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s last films

Padmaavat – Rs 19 crore

Goliyon Ki Rasleela… Ram-Leela – Rs 16 crore

Bajirao Mastani – Rs 12.80 crore

Guzaarish – Rs 4 crore

Saawariya – Rs 3 crore

Devdas – Rs 2.19 crore

Featuring Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone and Shahid Kapoor in lead roles, Padmaavat is produced under the banners of Viacom 18 and Sanjay Leela Bhansali Productions. The film is made on the lavish budget of Rs 180 crore and later on the makers spend Rs 20 crore more to convert the film in the IMAX and 3D format. While the film is expected to create new benchmarks at the box office, do you think it will cross the Rs 200 crore mark? Share your thoughts in the comment below.