With the rise of OTT, expectations for big-screen films have risen to another level, leading to the failure of several films, even those featuring big stars. The same seems to be the case for The Kareena Kapoor Khan and Prithviraj Sukumaran-starrer Daayra, recently released. The film’s underwhelming run raises questions about what went wrong despite its star power.
The Meghna Gulzar-directed investigative drama has become a major box-office disaster, failing to connect with audiences despite its promising cast and crime-thriller premise, as reflected in its box-office numbers.
Here is why the film failed to make its mark at the box office
Low Pre-Release Buzz: The film generated little pre-release buzz and limited audience awareness, directly affecting its collections, with a meager ₹1.00 crore on its first day, released on September 18, 2026.
Weak Word-of-Mouth: Despite picking up a topic that is talked about every day, the film’s negative to decent reviews hurt its image and attracted less audience interest.
Poor Storyline: As an investigative crime drama with a serious, purpose-driven narrative, the movie had a limited theatrical scope that failed to draw wide mainstream footfalls.
Strong Box Office Competition: The film was released clashing with Kunal Kemmu’s film Vibe, which is still running despite its below-average performance. But the wave of Hanuman Ansh and Mirzapur: The Movie has strongly affected the response, leaving no way out.
Declining Trend: Despite attempts to sustain momentum via promotional offers like BOGO (Buy One Get One), the film witnessed a declining trend and crashed by over 60–70% on its first Monday, failing to cross the ₹10 crore net mark in its opening days.
The “OTT Watch” Label: Audiences don’t prefer to spend money on every new film; rather, they wait for it to arrive on OTT, given the film’s serious, gritty police procedural narrative that audiences have labeled as “OTT content.”
Daayra has turned out to be a big disappointment, with ₹6.90 crore net India collection and ₹10.41 crore gross worldwide, as per media reports.
