Shahid Kapoor’s much-anticipated gangster drama, O Romeo, directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, hit theatres on February 13 but failed to generate the buzz expected from the actor-director duo’s previous collaborations. Co-starring Triptii Dimri, Nana Patekar, and Avinash Tiwary, the film faced pre-release controversies, including a legal challenge over its portrayal of a Mumbai gangster, which was ultimately dismissed by the courts.
Advance bookings, which opened two days prior, reported sales of just over 11.8 lakh tickets across 8,900 screens in India, translating to roughly ₹3 crore gross for opening day, a figure considered below par for a film of this scale. Trade analysts now expect a modest ₹7–9 crore net collection on day one, with optimistic projections barely crossing ₹10 crore if positive word-of-mouth kicks in. While this surpasses the opening of Shahid’s last release, Deva, which collected ₹5 crore, it remains less than half of the ₹20 crore day-one haul of his blockbuster Kabir Singh.
Despite the lukewarm commercial expectations, early reviews from special screenings have been encouraging. Filmmaker Homi Adajania praised the film for its “love and gore galore,” applauding Shahid Kapoor’s performance and Triptii Dimri’s “watchable ferocity.” Shahid’s wife, Mira Rajput, also lauded the ensemble cast and Vishal Bhardwaj’s storytelling finesse, highlighting Triptii’s ability to balance innocence and intensity, while complimenting Nana Patekar and Tamannaah Bhatia’s performances.
O Romeo runs for 178 minutes and is inspired by the book Mafia Queens of Mumbai. The film explores obsession, heartbreak, and violent consequences in a turbulent love story. While critics note its strong performances and direction, the mixed pre-release hype and controversies appear to have dampened audience anticipation, making its box office success uncertain.
