Aamir Khan’s return to the big screen has struck the right chord with audiences. After a modest opening on Friday, Sitaare Zameen Par saw a significant jump in box-office collections on Saturday, earning an estimated Rs 21.5 crore nett in India, nearly double its opening day figure of Rs 10.7 crore nett.

According to industry data-tracking portal Sacnilk, the two-day total of the R.S. Prasanna-directed comedy drama now stands at Rs 32.2 crore nett.

This marks a crucial bounce-back for Aamir, whose last theatrical outing, Laal Singh Chaddha (2022), had managed to earn Rs 18.96 crore nett over its first two days.

Billed as a spiritual successor to Aamir’s 2007 hit Taare Zameen Par, the new film follows the story of Gulshan (played by Aamir), a temperamental basketball coach sentenced to community service after a brush with the cops. He finds himself reluctantly coaching a team of neurodivergent individuals, only to be transformed by their resilience.

Genelia Deshmukh plays Sunita, Gulshan’s wife. The film also stars Dolly Ahluwalia, Gurpal Singh, Brijendra Kala, and Ankita Sehgal. Sitaare Zameen Par also marks the acting debut for Aroush Datta, Gopi Krishnan Varma, Vedant Sharmaa and Naman Mishra.

Meanwhile, Dhanush-starrer Kuberaa is holding its own at the box office. The Sekhar Kammula-directed thriller has earned Rs 30.75 crore nett in two days, with Saturday contributing Rs 16 crore nett. The crime thriller also features Nagarjuna, Rashmika Mandanna and Jim Sarbh in key roles.

On the other hand, Akshay Kumar-starrer comedy flick Housefull 5 has earned Rs 179.39 crore nett in India at the end of 16 days of theatrical run.