The mid-week Wednesday release of Salman Khan's Sultan is expected to add more colour to the Eid festivities.
The Yash Raj Films movie will be released in 5,000 screens across the country. The film has been dubbed in Tamil and Telugu.
Overseas, Sultan will be released across 1,000-plus screens, again among the widest releases from Bollywood.
Trade pundits are hopeful about the film's prospects and there are a number of things going for it.
For one, Bollywood has, for the past few weeks, seen a dearth of releases that appeal across demographics.
While Udta Punjab attracted controversy, it was also seen as an inclusive film.
With Sultan releasing on a major holiday, analysts hope to find true festive cheer at the box office.
Suniel Wadhwa, independent distributor and box office analyst, says, "The first half of 2016 was a tough time for the box office, but the second half of 2016 will be starting with Sultan. The film has very good prospects as it has seen massive advance booking across India in multiplexes and single screens alike."
"This leads to me to believe Sultan will have the biggest opening day for a Salman Khan film, beating last year's Prem Ratan Dhan Payo."
Wadhwa adds the film has already sold around 125,000 tickets at PVR and 90,000 tickets at Inox (varying price points throughout the day) in advance bookings.
Releasing on a holiday in the middle of the week will give the film more mileage at the box office, with an almost five-day opening window, instead of the usual three.
Analysts put the opening day figure at Rs 35 crore to Rs 40 crore. Even single screens have shows starting at Rs 180 to Rs 200 on release, compared to Rs 120 to Rs 140 or so for other films.
While there may be a change in the date Eid falls on, the collections will remain in the mid-to-high Rs 30-crore range, given that most educational institutions have already declared July 6 as a holiday.
The change in date may actually strengthen the overall first weekend (Wednesday to Sunday) collections, as Thursday and Friday may see more surge.
Shaaminder Malik, independent exhibitor and trade analyst, says the anticipation for the movie is very high among multiplex owners and single-screen operators.
"Salman Khan has a very strong movie hall pull, especially in the north. Releasing on/around Eid may mean a slow start for the morning shows as a large part of the movie-going audience may be busy with prayers and such. But after 1 pm, the movie halls should be packed."
"After a long time, we are seeing strong advance bookings for a film. The lead pair is fresh and looks good together and Salman's fan following is strong as ever, despite recent controversies," he says.
What may however, go against the film, says Malik, is the length. "At two hours and 51 minutes, the film is long. It not only means that the audiences will have to spend a good three-and-a-half hours at the cinema hall, but also means that fewer shows will be programmed per day."
Wadhwa adds that controversies can be a double-edged sword. If the content is not found up-to-mark, the film may suffer.
However, early trends suggest that the opening day will see strong collections, thanks to advance bookings and anticipation.
Exhibitors and analysts alike are banking on Khan to deliver another Eid hit, making it a hat-trick for him after Kick in 2014 and Bajrangi Bhaijaan in 2015.
