MUMBAI: All new Bollywood releases – Sachin Kundalkar’s ‘Aiyyaa’ starring Rani Mukerji and South star Prithviraj, Ram Gopal Varma’s ‘Bhoot Returns’ starring Manisha Koirala and J.D. Chakravarthy and S.S. Rajamouli’s ‘Makkhi’ the Hindi remake of his Telugu ‘Eega’ – have all failed to launch with decent collections at the Box Office on their first day.

Out of the three ‘Aiyyaa’ which was the most widely promoted has also performed the best amongst the lot.

However, its opening figures are still quite dull. With a low 20% occupancy, ‘Aiyya’ collected in the range of Rs 16 million (Rs 1.60 crore) net.

For ‘Bhoot Returns’ the response was even poorer with 10% occupancy. With the terrible reviews and comments that have been piled on Ram Gopal Varma, the chances of the film picking up from here are also very bleak.

‘Bhoot Returns’ first day figures are approximately Rs 12.5 million (Rs 1.25 crore) net.

Finally, ‘Makkhi’ being a South blockbuster re-dubbed in Hindi, has found no takers, especially in the Northern circuit of India. With a negligible 5% occupancy, it’s a washout.

For actresses Rani Mukerji and Manisha Koirala, the performance of their films ‘Aiyyaa’ and ‘Bhoot Returns’ respectively, at the box office is of tremendous importance since this is their Bollywood comeback after a sabbatical of sorts.

While there is still some hope for ‘Aiyyaa’ because of the positive feedback on Rani’s unabashed performance, for ‘Bhoot Returns’ it looks like its time to be exorcised.