March 22 — Actor Akshay Kumar’s latest film, Kesari, has had a stellar opening at the box office. The war epic made Rs 21 crore on its first day, making it the biggest opener of the year in India. The figure is especially impressive considering it released on Holi.
Rathi expected director Anurag Singh’s film to be among Akshay’s highest grossers and said, “The movie has generated tremendous buzz and the kind of feedback coming from the screenings that have happened is terrific. Besides, it is about an event that makes every Indian proud and want them to know what happened more than 100 years ago. Akshay Kumar is one of the biggest superstars we have in the industry. I think it has the potential to be his highest grosser till date.”
The film is based on the Battle of Saragarhi when 21 Sikh soldiers of the British Indian Army fought against 10,000 Afghan tribesmen in September 1897.