Mumbai (PTI): Theatre and multiplex owners had a reason to smile on Friday with the release of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan's much-awaited film 'Rab Ne Bana di Jodi'.
Cinema halls in the city, that have been bearing a deserted look since the terror attack last month, came alive with some audiences, especially college students, coming in to catch the King Khan's first release of 2008.
'Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi' starring Shah Rukh and newcomer Anoushka Sharma, is a love story offering SRK fans a glimpse of the actor in two distinct shades.
Fans get to see the superstar as the average-looking middle-class man Surinder Sahni and as the typically 'filmi' Raj.
However, the opening was not good as it normally is for a Yash Raj/SRK flick.
The superstar's two films last year 'Om Shanti Om' and 'Chak De India' got a huge box success and also won critical acclaim.
However, trade sources said the nearly three-hour film has opened to average response and mixed reviews.
"The all-India opening is expected to be 60-70 per cent. Considering that this is a Yash Raj film, a hundred percent opening is expected but that has not happened," said Kumar Mohan, Editor of trade magazine 'Complete Cinema'.
"Audiences who saw the film today have liked it and reports are good. We are confident that the movie will pick up during the week," a Cinemax spokesperson said adding the film got an opening of 55-60 per cent.