In Hyderabad and parts of Telangana, kite-flying is popular during Sankranthi festival. In coastal Andhra, cockfights and colourful display of culture marks the auspicious occasion. But over the last few decades, box office has united both the Telugu States as movie buffs on either sides of the state borders eagerly look forward to movie releases of top stars. It is a sentiment in the Telugu film industry that movies released during Sankranthi performs well. This year too, there were three big releases, each hitting cinemas with a gap of two days.
The first movie to hit the screens was popular Director Shankar’s Game Changer. The Ram Charan-starrer released on January 10. Made on a massive budget of more than Rs 400 crores, there was huge expectations on the movie given that Ram Charan had amassed a huge following across India post the success of RRR movie.
The movie failed to impress despite it being a political thriller with Ram Charan playing an upright civil servant who wants to change the system. Audience felt that the movie had nothing new to offer as it showed glimpses of what looked like Shankar’s past work. The makers of the movie also landed in a controversy as the collection figures released by them did not go down well with many. Director Ram Gopal Varma also questioned the claims by the movie team which declared the movie a huge success.
The second movie was touted to be a typical mainstream mass entertainer. Actor Balakrishna’s Daaku Maharaaj, produced on a budget of Rs 100 crores, released on January 12. The movie received a positive talk due to its fresh treatment of action scenes and sentiment involved in the storyline. The veteran actor, who is celebrating 50 years in Indian cinema, clearly ousted Shankar and Ram Charan at the box office.
Daaku Maharaaj was also talked about for its background music. The storyline stretches from Chambal valley in Madhya Pradesh to Rayalaseema region in Andhra Pradesh. The movie is still going strong at the box office including in the overseas market.
However, from the trade perspective, Sankranthiki Vasthunnam, a comedy movie which released on August 14 seems to have an edge. Senior actor Venkatesh is one of the most loved stars of family audience given the roles he had essayed in the past. His latest offering is an out-an-out comedy movie which seemed to have clicked well with movie-goers. Director Anil Ravipudi, who had delivered hits in the past with Venkatesh through movies like F2, has paired up again with the actor. Viewers, online and offline, have been praising the makers for churning out hilarious scenes.
Among the three movies, Sankranthiki Vasthunnam is the least expensive as it was made on a budget of just around Rs 50 crores. The movie has been performing well in urban and rural centres and is earning good collections.