MUMBAI: Sherlock Holmes opened to a hectic and crowded weekend at the muliplex.
Attracting an estimated $24.9 million for its opening day, the film starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law, led the pack.
The PG-13 rated movie, directed by Guy Ritchie, opened in 3,626 locations.
Entering its eighth day of release Fox‘s Avatar was close behind. The 3D space tale logged in an additional $23.6 million as it crossed the $150 million mark.
The film benefitted from premium ticket prices although it also had to contend with playing on fewer screens -- 3,456 locales - and has a running time that is more than one half longer that Sherlock.
By the weekend, the two films were seen battling it out for the top spot.
Meanwhile, Fox‘s Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel settled securely into the third spot. The PG-rated family fare took in $14.3 million in 3,700 locations.
In the process, it appeared to lure the kids away from Disney‘s The Princess and the Frog, as it began its third weekend of wide release, dropped to eighth place for the day as it took in $2 million.
Aiming to lure in older women, Universal‘s It‘s Complicated settled for the fourth place when it grossed $7.2 million in 2,886 locations.
That was in line with a recent Streep vehicle like August‘s "Julie & Julia," which opened to a first-day gross of $6.5 million and bettered the first-day opening figure of Meyer‘s 2003 "Something‘s Gotta Give," which opened to $5.3 million.
After three weekends, Paramount‘s Up in the Air collected $3.7 million for the day.
Warner‘s The Blind Side that began its sixth weekend, was following Up‘s heels, though. The Sandra Bullock-starrer, which is also demonstrating some awards potential, was in sixth place, picking up $3.4 million as it crossed the $175 million mark domestically.
The Weinstein Co.‘s musical Nine that didn‘t have quite as many moviegoers whistling its tunes found itself in seventh place collecting $2.1 million.
Sony‘s Did You Hear About the Morgans? ranked ninth as it began its second weekend with a daily total of $ 1.6 million.
And in the tenth spot was Warner‘s South African-set Invictus directed by Clint Eastwood that pulled in $1.3 million bringing its cumulative domestic gross to just over $20 million.
