7 lakh movie tickets sold, Tenet most watched post lockdown: BookMyShow

BookMyShow, the Mumbai-based movie and entertainment ticket booking platform, recently took a look back and released a report 'Show Off The Year,' stating what kept India entertained in 2020.

According to the report, Christopher Nolan's The Tenet has been the most-watched movie post the lockdown.

With out-of-home entertainment being severely affected by the pandemic, BookMyShow curated experiences across cinema, theatricals, and live events — music concerts and comedy shows — as people moved from big to small screens.

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In a press statement, Founder and CEO Ashish Hemrajani said,

"Ever since COVID-19 affected our lives the way we knew it, we have been adjusting to the changing times... While a complete return to out-of-home entertainment will probably take a few more months, we foresee the future of entertainment to remain strong as people love to socialise and get out. However, we think there is an opportunity for a hybrid model, where both out-of-home and a live experience on-ground may co-exist, and BookMyShow will try and bring the best of both to our consumers in India and across the world.”

Pre-lockdown trends

Before the onset of the pandemic in India, that is, between December 1, 2019, and March 2020 (pre-lockdown), BookMyShow sold 2.1 million movie tickets for a single day (January 12, 2020) show. This is also the highest number of tickets ever sold on the platform in a single day.

Similarly, one million tickets were sold each day for seven consecutive days between January 10 and January 16 this year. BookMyShow's Show Of The Year report suggests that Sunday evenings were the most preferred and busiest movie showtime, as 85 percent of the tickets were bought at that time.

Interestingly, Telegu films grew a whopping 215 percent between January to March, compared to the same quarter in 2019, growing the most amongst regional cinema. Before the implementation of the lockdown, Hyderabad and Mumbai were the top cities to visit the theatres.

Basis the number of tickets sold on BookMyShow, these are the top 10 movies of the year:

• Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior
• Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo
• Sarileru Neekevvaru
• Darbar
• Bheeshma
• Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan
• Baaghi 3
• Street Dancer 3
• Anjaam Pathiraa
• 1917

Baaghi 3 was the last film to be screened before the theatres were shut down for COVID-19 restrictions.

Post-lockdown trends

With the re-opening of cinema theatres post the nationwide lockdown, BookMyShow sold seven lakh tickets between October 16 and December 18. Close to 2800 screens are now operational across the country.

Bengali film Dracula Sir was the first new movie to release post the lockdown. According to the Show Off The Year report, Kolkata and Chennai watched the most number of movies post the lockdown.

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Basis the sale of tickets, these are the most-watched movies post-lockdown:

• Tenet
• Biskoth
• Irandam Kuththu
• Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari
• Dracula Sir