Haiwaan hit theatres on Friday, September 11, and the early word is not kind. Trade estimates put the film's opening day collection at around Rs 2.5-3 crore, a modest number for a film carrying two big names and a director with Priyadarshan's track record.

The film is a Hindi remake of Oppam, the 2016 Malayalam thriller built around Mohanlal. This version swaps him for Saif Ali Khan in the lead, with Akshay Kumar in a smaller part. Free Press Journal, which put out the Day 1 estimate, noted that advance bookings hadn't been strong going in, and pre-release buzz stayed flat right up to release.

Mixed reviews haven't helped. Free Press Journal's own critic gave it three stars, calling it watchable but familiar to anyone who's already seen Oppam. "If you have watched Oppam, then you might feel the film offers nothing new apart from a few new scenes and different actors," the review said, adding that newcomers to the story would likely walk out satisfied, and that Saif's fans and "Akkians" both get something out of it despite Akshay's limited screen time.

The budget is where things get complicated. The makers haven't confirmed a figure, but reports circulating put production costs at Rs 100-115 crore. Against that, a Rs 3 crore opening day looks rough by any measure, remake or not.

There's a wrinkle, though. According to reports cited by Free Press Journal, Haiwaan has already recovered close to 70% of its budget through non-theatrical rights, meaning satellite and streaming deals struck before release. That claim hasn't been officially confirmed by the production, so treat it as unverified for now. If it holds up, it changes the math on what counts as a flop and what doesn't. Theatrical numbers alone would suggest trouble. A pre-sold safety net would mean the makers aren't sweating a slow Friday the way they might have a decade ago.

Night show footfalls could still move the needle upward before the day closes out, per early trade chatter, so the Rs 2.5-3 crore figure isn't final. What happens over the weekend is really the more telling number. A film with mixed reviews and soft advance bookings either finds legs on word of mouth through Saturday and Sunday, or it doesn't, and Monday's numbers usually tell that story fast.

For now, Haiwaan sits in that familiar space: not a disaster, not a hit, just a Friday that didn't go the way anyone wanted. Whether the weekend changes that picture is the only question worth watching right now.