Rahul and Meenamma continued their glory run at express speed with a little help from a lungi brigade.

On the seventh day since its release, Chennai Express collected more money and had more shows than Independence Day release Once Upon Ay Time in Mumbaai Dobaara.

The sequel to Once Upon ay Time in Mumbai (2010), starring Akshay Kumar and Sonakshi Sinha, opened well. But it was not a scratch on the Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone-starrer, which has already raked in more than Rs 100 crore. (See graphics)

It had a helping hand from the Cinepolis staff, all of whom were wearing lungi and kurta on Thursday. “The decision was taken by the management keeping with the spirit of Independence Day,” said Cinepolis manager Abhishek Ranjan. “Chennai Express is doing well. The management decided that the staff should have a traditional look on August 15.”

The move paid off as a number of people bought tickets for Chennai Express after seeing them. Sandeep Vats was one of them. The Patliputra Colony resident had come to see Once Upon ay Time in Mumbai Dobaara with his friends on Thursday. “But we decided to catch a show of Chennai Express instead,” he said.

Asked what prompted him to change his mind, Vats said: “Look at the staff, they are all wearing lungi! Isn’t it amazing?”

Cinema owners, too, are happy with the audiences response. “The Express is travelling at the maximum speed. It wouldn’t be a surprise if it reaches the Rs 300 crore station,” said Regent owner Suman Kumar Sinha. All shows of Chennai Express were houseful on Friday as well.