Who will win the battle: Akshay Kumar’s Mission Mangal or John Abraham’s Batla House?

MUMBAI: This Independence Day is going to be extra special for all the film buffs as two big stars are releasing their respective films. Akshay Kumar is releasing Mission Mangal, while John Abraham is releasing Batla House. With this, the two are locking horns at the box office.

Mission Mangal features an ensemble cast of Akshay, Vidya Balan, Taapsee Pannu, Sonakshi Sinha, Nitya Menen, Kriti Kulhari and Sharman Joshi among others. Directed by Jagan Shakti, the film narrates the tale of India's first successful Mars mission, Mangalyaan. On the other hand, Batla House is a thrilling tale, based on a real-life encounter, which took place a decade ago, on 19 September 2008. Helmed by Nikkhil Advani, the film features John, Mrunal Thakur, Ravi Kishan, Manish Chaudhari and Prakash Raj.

However, this is not the first time both the actors are clashing at the box office. Last year, Akshay's Gold and John's Satyameva Jayate not only released on Independence Day but both worked well at the box office. And this Independence Day, the duo is back with a clash.

In an interview with ETimes, senior trade expert Taran Adarsh gave his expert opinion on the big clash. When asked what is at stake at the box office this Independence Day and how big will be this weekend for Bollywood, he said, “This could be a big weekend for Bollywood because August 15 is a massive holiday. If you look at last year's collections, they were at an all-time high. I am sure that both the films will take a flying start at the box office, but after the opening day numbers, especially after word of mouth spreads, it is only the content that will speak for both the films.”

He was further quizzed which film he thinks will have a better opening day at the box office. “As far as advanced booking is concerned, Mission Mangal is much ahead of Batla House. We'll have to wait and watch as to how the films are, as no one has watched it yet. However, the opening day is going to be huge for both,” Taran answered.

So, which film are you going to watch this Independence Day? Hit the comment section below.