MUMBAI - Aamir Khan's latest film, "3 Idiots," has become thehighest grossing Bollywood movie of all time, with strong showings athome and abroad raising hopes for further cross-over hits for Indianfilms.
The leading actor-producer-director wrote on his blog that boxoffice takings for the coming-of-age comedy had already surpassed thosefor his 2008 hit "Ghajini," which was the previous record holder.
"In less than 10 days 3i has overtaken the ENTIRE business ofGHAJINI!!!! India, Overseas, everywhere!!! And is still going strong,"Khan wrote Monday, describing himself as "fully overwhelmed and totallyhumbled."
India's Business Standard newspaper said Tuesday that "3 Idiots" hadtaken 2.4 billion rupees ($51 million) from the domestic andinternational market since opening on December 25. "Ghajini" took 2.25billion rupees.
Meanwhile www.hollywood.comand Deadline Hollywood, which both track box office takings in theUnited States, said "3 Idiots" has so far made 4.8 million dollarsafter opening in nearly 120 US theaters.
No Bollywood film has crossed the $4-million threshold before.
The film's success has given Bollywood a boost, after adisappointing 2009 marked by a damaging producers' boycott of multiplexcinemas in a row over box office takings, swine flu fears and a stringof big budget flops.
The Business Standard said "3 Idiots" has so far made more moneythan Bollywood's entire ticket receipts in November, which included thehit "Ajab Prem Ki Gazab Kahani" (An Amazing Story Of Strange Love).
Indian box office takings are lower than in Hollywood because of lower ticket prices.
Film critics and industry analysts attributed the success of "3Idiots" not just to Khan's star quality, but also high productionvalues, a sustained marketing campaign and the story's wide appeal.
A public row about how much the film was based on Chetan Bhagat'sbest-seller "Five Point Someone," and a lack of other big-namereleases, may also have helped.
"It's a very well-made film with a message and with a big star. Itbrings back memories of people's experience of the education system inIndia," Taran Adarsh, from bollywoodhungama.com, said of the film'soverseas success.
"If you still have family here I think you identify with it all the more," he told AFP.
Mayank Shekhar, national cultural editor at The Hindustan Timesnewspaper, said the same expatriate Indian "IT crowd" who bought "FivePoint Someone" appear to have flocked to US cinemas, boosting audiences.
"What's equally important is that it's not a preachy film. It's byitself a complete comedy, which is what most mainstream audiences gofor," he said.
A well-constructed combination of a leading star, well-placedsong-and-dance routines and a message gave it "all the elements of aBollywood blockbuster," he added.
US film studios have been eyeing India's popular Hindi-language filmindustry for several years, hoping to tap in to an expanding2.3-billion-dollar market.
Hopes are high that Shahrukh Khan's upcoming film "My Name Is Khan" will match or even eclipse the success of "3 Idiots."
Fox Searchlight, which promoted the Oscar-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire," and other Fox units are handling distribution.
Adarsh said the overseas market is becoming increasingly important for Bollywood.
"The domestic market has traditionally been measured in rupees.Today it's dollars, pounds, dirham, euros and various othercurrencies," he said.
"It's not just the Indian diaspora. It's people in Pakistan,Bangladesh, the Middle East. The success of '3 Idiots' is just the tipof the iceberg."