30 crore tickets of this Indian film released 54 years ago were sold in China, ‘Dangal’ could not break the record

At present only ‘Pushpa 2: The Rule’ is ruling the box office. At the same time, Vijay Sethupathi’s ‘Maharaja’ is doing well in China. And is about to reach the Rs 100 crore club. Apart from this, films like Dangal, RRR, Secret Superstar and Andhadhun have also earned crores of rupees. But, the performance of these blockbuster films paled in comparison to the collection of a small budget crime-thriller released 54 years ago. Here we are talking about ‘Caravan’ released in the year 1971. This Indian film was also released in China and it is difficult to replicate what it did there. Jeetendra and Asha Paresh were in important roles in this film. This film directed by Nasir Hussain was a superhit in India. It collected ₹3.6 crore at the box office and became the sixth highest-grossing film of 1971 at the domestic Indian box office. But when it was released in China, it created a stir.

Jeetendra’s film made a record in China

This film was released in China after 8 years and 8.8 crore tickets were sold. Which made it the highest grossing foreign film in China till then. The craze for ‘Caravan’ was such that the film was re-released several times in China, with total viewership reaching 300 million, the highest for any Indian film in a single country. It achieved this position by surpassing the record of ‘Sholay’ in India and the record of ‘Awara’ in Soviet.

The collection of ‘Dangal’ and RRR pales in front of ‘Caravan’.

‘Dangal’ has been considered the biggest Indian hit overseas, earning $238 million from China alone. It sold 4.31 crore tickets in China, which is much less than ‘Caravan’. Similarly, SS Rajamouli’s RRR created history in America and Japan with record-breaking collections. The film had earned around $20 million from both these places, but here it was seen by only 3 million people in total. ‘Pushpa 2: The Rule’, the biggest Indian film in years, has sold 6 crore tickets in India and around 1 crore overseas in its first month. Both these figures do not stand anywhere in front of ‘Caravan’.

‘Caravan’ is the highest grossing film

‘Caravan’, a crime-thriller, was inspired by ‘Girl on the Run’ (1953). It featured actors like Jeetendra, Asha Parekh, Aruna Irani, Mehmood Jr. and Helen. The movie was known for its chartbuster songs – ‘Chadhti Jawaani’, ‘Piya Tu Ab To Aa Jaa’, ‘Dilbar Dil Se Pyaare’ and ‘Kitna Pyaara Vaada’. ‘Caravan’ grossed Rs 35 crore worldwide, becoming one of the highest-grossing Indian films of the 70s and 80s.