Jun 13, 2026 12:47pm IST
Horror Fever Grips the Box Office: ‘Obsession,’ ‘Haunted 3D’ and ‘Backrooms’ Dominate Friday
Is horror the new flavor at the Indian box office? Horror films “Obsession”, “Backrooms” and “Haunted 3D: Echoes of the Past” have collectively contributed ₹6.75 crore net on Friday, outperforming new films from other genres and drawing more footfall to cinemas.
Vikram Bhatt's “Haunted 3D: Echoes of the Past” has pleasantly surprised everyone with its solid opening of ₹2.55 crore net. No one saw that coming as the film carried minimal pre-release buzz, lacked a star-driven cast, and was released on a limited number of screens. The film has emerged as the biggest opener of this week, outperforming the comparatively bigger new films such as Imtiaz Ali’s “Main Vaapas Aaunga,” Kangana Ranaut’s “Bharat Bhhagya Viddhaata” and Manoj Bajpayee’s “Governor.”
The franchise factor might have helped drive the pre-release buzz — the film is a sequel to the 2011 box office hit, “Haunted 3D” — but the opening cannot be solely attributed to the nostalgia factor, considering the original film doesn’t carry the kind of enduring cult status that typically generates strong anticipation for a sequel. It has definitely emerged as a case study for Hindi cinema.
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“Haunted 3D” has performed particularly well in single-screen theatres, with territories like Delhi-UP, Bihar, CP/CI and West Bengal, showing exceptional business. Distributors and exhibitors are surprised by the occupancy levels in theatres and have added more shows of the film starting Saturday. If the film manages to sustain its momentum and emerge as a commercial success, it could help revive the Hindi horror genre.
Meanwhile, “Obsession” continues its extraordinary theatrical run in India. After registering a remarkable 75% increase in its second week compared to the opening frame, the Curry Barker-directed psychological horror is now gearing up for another big weekend. The film collected ₹3.35 crore net on its third Friday, recording even better occupancy than its second Friday, underscoring its sustained demand among audiences.
With the total collection of ₹52.85 crore net so far, “Obsession” has now become the fourth highest grossing Hollywood horror in India and is set to climb to 2nd place by the end of this weekend, surpassing the lifetime of “The Conjuring 2” (₹61.78 cr) and “Final Destination Blood Lines (₹63.18 cr). The film is surely on course to become the all-time biggest Hollywood horror in India, surpassing “The Conjuring Last Rites,” which collected ₹83.40 crore net last year.
Another YouTuber-directed horror film, “Backrooms,” released in India on Friday after its sensational global run. The film opened to a respectable ₹85 lakhs on Friday and is expected to witness significant growth over the weekend. The release of “Scary Movie” was canceled due to screen-allocation issues.
Figures are taken from RecoBee.
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