Yami Gautam’s mythological thriller Nayyi Navelli grew on its second day at the Indian box office, collecting an estimated ₹4.00 crore on Saturday after a ₹3.25 crore opening. That takes its two-day total to ₹7.25 crore by 10 pm, according to trade figures cited by Hindustan Times.
The Saturday report gives the film something more useful than a big opening number: evidence that the audience did not walk away after a mixed critical reception. Nayyi Navelli drew praise for Yami Gautam’s lead performance, but reviewers were far less kind to the writing and execution. A second-day rise of roughly 23% suggests that ticket buyers were still finding it.
Saturday’s count
- Friday opening: ₹3.25 crore
- Saturday: ₹4.00 crore
- Two-day total: ₹7.25 crore by 10 pm
- Saturday shows: 5,945
The film also stayed ahead of Rajkummar Rao’s Prahaar during the holiday weekend, the report said, making it the first choice for a section of the theatrical audience. That positioning is not about scale; it is about being the default pick when two Hindi releases share screens.
Why day two matters
In a genre film built on a high-concept premise, the risk is a front-loaded first day followed by a steep drop. The plot—a picture-perfect bride who may be a daayan, suspected by her brother-in-law—is easy to sell in a trailer, but hard to sustain if the screenplay disappoints. The Hindustan Times review captured that gap in a single phrase:
“mistakes excess for entertainment and confusion for complexity.”
A Saturday hold does not erase that criticism, but it does show the premise still has pull.
For a film that arrived with mixed reviews, this is the right question to track. Box office watchers often read a Saturday improvement, even a modest one, as stronger evidence of audience pull than a larger first day that collapses.
Directed by Balaji Mohan and produced by Aanand L Rai and Himanshu Sharma, with music by G V Prakash Kumar, Nayyi Navelli has the names to attract an up-market, content-curious audience. What remains unclear is whether that audience will return after the mixed word of mouth.
The Sunday test
Sunday is now the clearest indicator. If the film holds or grows again, it enters the weekdays with a genuine base and can argue that it is a word-of-mouth play rather than a niche mythological fantasy. If Saturday was the peak, the conversation shifts to whether the opening weekend is enough to justify the film’s wide release. For now, the numbers say the audience has not left the theatre; the question is whether it brings more people on day three.
Source: Hindustan Times
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