While the number is better than Akshay's films like Sarfira, Khel Khel Mein, and Mission Raniganj, it falls short of early predictions, which pegged the opening day figures at around 9 crores, especially considering it was the Good Friday holiday.

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Compared to Akshay's last release Sky Force, which opened at 13.75 crores-largely helped by aggressive self and block bookings-Kesari Chapter 2 has clearly underperformed in terms of pure numbers.

However, the situation may not be as grim. The public response to the courtroom drama has been overwhelmingly positive, and trade experts believe that strong word-of-mouth could lead to healthy growth over the weekend.

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The key test will be the Monday drop-if it holds strong, the film may still emerge as a success.

Set against the backdrop of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, the film explores the legal battle led by C. Sankaran Nair, portrayed by Akshay Kumar. Directed by Karan Singh Tyagi, the film also stars R. Madhavan and Ananya Panday in pivotal roles.

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There are already speculations about when the film will start streaming on OTT. For those interested, the film will be available for streaming on Jio Hotstar after its theatrical run, likely in the second or third week of June.