Ramayana’s early bookings are 41% Dallas

Advance bookings for the Ranbir Kapoor and Yash-starrer Ramayana have quietly opened at select cinemas in North America, nearly a month before the film’s Diwali opening on November 6. Independent chains are showing early listings, but the full box-office picture is still taking shape.

Where early demand is coming from

The first tracking snapshot gives Dallas 41% of reported bookings, though that share is being driven by a group booking rather than broad walk-up interest. Chicago accounts for 22% and is the only market showing notable movement for opening day so far, while Washington DC contributes 15%.

• Dallas: 41% of reported bookings, largely attributed to a block booking
• Chicago: 22%, the market showing real opening-day movement
• Washington DC: 15% of reported bookings so far

These shares will move. AMC locations and California cinemas have not appeared in listings yet, and IMAX shows are still to open. Because the early screen set is incomplete, the Dallas number says more about who booked first than where Ramayana will finally over-perform. A block booking can tilt a city’s share before general ticket-buyers arrive.

Premium screens matter doubly here. Ramayana has been positioned as a big-screen event, so IMAX could swing the opening-day market share once those shows are added. The same premium audience is exactly who Godzilla Minus Zero is courting with its IMAX billing.

A same-weekend challenger

Ramayana will not have the North American premium audience to itself. Godzilla Minus Zero is due on the same November 6 date, with a Godzilla Day IMAX early-access screening on November 3. The Japanese kaiju sequel is tracking around $25 million for its North American opening weekend, which would more than double the $11.4 million opening of Godzilla Minus One in 2023.

It is being marketed as the first Japanese production shot for IMAX, a hook that may push more viewers into premium formats, the same screens Ramayana will want.

What to watch next

For Hindi film fans in North America, the immediate option is to check independent chains. But don’t judge the demand curve until IMAX and AMC listings go live. Dallas looks like the strongest city on paper, but a group booking makes it a weak early signal. Chicago is the one to watch for genuine opening-day heat. Early advance sales are useful as a temperature check for diaspora audiences, but they gain real weight only once the national chains and premium screens join the listing.

Source: The Times of India