'Baby John' box office collection Day 1: Varun Dhawan, Wamiqa Gabbi and Keerthy Suresh starrer earns Rs 12 crore

Baby John, released in theaters on Christmas (Wednesday), has opened to mixed reactions from the audience. The movie helmed by Kaleeswaran aka Kalees stars Varun Dhawan, Jackie Shroff, Keerthy Suresh and Wamiqa Gabbi in crucial roles.

The music is composed by S Thaman and the movie is produced under the Jio Studios, Cine1 Studios, Vipin Agnihotri Films and A for Apple Studios. The remake of the Kollywood blockbuster Theri has managed to collect close to Rs 12 crore on its opening day.

With this, the Varun Dhawan-starrer has scripted another lowest opening day as the movie failed to surpass the figures of the Hollywood movie Mufasa: The Lion King (6th Day) Rs 13 crore and Pushpa 2: The Rule (21st Day) Rs 15 crore collections.

According to film critic Kamaal R Khan, Baby John collected nearly Rs 11 crore at the box office. The movie struggled to secure enough single screens, as Allu Arjun’s Pushpa 2: The Rule continued its stronghold.

The movie’s box office future depends on its Day 2 and Day 3 performance, as it is anticipated to gain momentum over the weekend and during New Year celebrations.

Taking to Instagram, Jio Studios wrote, "Babbar Sher vs the Beast? This ChristMASS is bound to be epic, baby! Baby John NOW in cinemas, book your tickets!” (sic)

Earlier, trade analyst Sumit Kadel also gave his prediction on X; he wrote, "Day 1 (Xmas Day): ₹ 11-13 crore nett. If the movie gets positive word of mouth (WOM), the Christmas holiday could boost Day 1 to ₹ 15 crore nett. 5-Day Weekend Estimate: ₹45-55 crore nett, depending on audience feedback." (sic)

The film is gradually garnering positive reviews, and word-of-mouth (WOM) might help it gain momentum. Varun Dhawan's fans were overjoyed to see their idol in a never-before-seen role, celebrating the release with loud cheers and dancing.

Also, the cameo from Salman Khan has erupted the theatres into the stadium. Several visuals showed fans showering love and praise on the makers for bringing this action-packed entertainer.