'Cake' takes a big bite of box office share

SCREENGRAB

KARACHI: Not even a week into the release of Cake and the film is making waves already, running successfully to packed cinemas in Karachi, Islamabad and Lahore, stated a press release.

On the first weekend, multiplexes such as Nueplex, Cinepax and Atrium Cinemas in Karachi and Cineplex Centaurus in Islamabad had sold out shows for three consecutive days.

Cake opened to a weekend business of Rs30 million from Pakistan and selected international territories too. Given the word-of-mouth nature of the film, coupled with unanimously positive reviews from The Guardian and multiple local publications, the film is expected to hold strong in the coming days.

The biggest win of all for director Asim Abbasi and the star cast of Aamina Sheikh, Sanam Saeed and Adnan Malik, is having audiences coming out of cinemas with raving reviews.

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Some are calling Cake “authentic, impressive and worth watching.” Others confidently state, “This is just what Pakistani cinema needs,” adding Cake is “an emotional rollercoaster.”

With much appreciation for the art direction, cinematography, script and direction, the film has just the right ingredients to make it a success. It also helps to firmly position Pakistani cinema on a global platform.

The Cake cast has been going around Karachi cinemas and making surprise visits at different theatres to hear the audience reactions’ first hand.

Talking about the film’s response, Asim said, “We are overwhelmed by all the love and praises. This is exactly where we wanted to be. We have audience members who are deeply touched by our narrative and we have given Pakistani Cinema what we set out to give it – diversity.”

Echoing Asim’s sentiments, producer Zulfiqar Bukhari said, “The response to Cake proves that Pakistan is ready for intelligent narratives executed to international standards. We wanted to showcase the power of authentic storytelling and bring fresh, new voices in cinema to the forefront.”

The success of the opening week has led to a clamour for the film across the world wherever there is a Pakistani diaspora. Having left its mark on the audiences in the UK, Australia and the Middle East, Cake is set to be screened across North America from April 13, 2018.

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