The unprecedented times have brought in unprecedented delays and postponements in movie releases. According to reports, Tollywood’s most anticipated pan-India films- RRR and Radhe Shyam now stand indefinitely postponed. An official announcement regarding the same will be made soon. Covid related restrictions and 50% occupancies in most of the north-Indian states have made it impossible for these pan-India projects to recover costs.
Amidst the postponement of these biggies, there is now an opening for Bheemla Nayak and Acharya to come up for Sankranti. Bheemla Nayak was initially supposed to release for Sankranti and Acharya team toyed with the idea for Sankranti release before moving it to 4th February.
Mere one week of work is now remaining on Bheemla Nayak while Acharya just has sound mixing portions to finish. In such a scenario, with an open field, it will be ideal for one of the films to release.
Both the films have an opportunity to come to fo Sankranti now and in case they stay with their release dates, then its a solo Sankranti for Bangarraju.
SS Rajamouli’s magnum opus RRR is a few days away from release. The hype around the movie is massive and the unit is busy promoting the film across the country. For the past few weeks, Rajamouli, Jr NTR, and Ram Charan have been traveling extensively to promote the film.
The film meanwhile has done a solid pre-release business and the rights have been sold for a whopping amount. Below is the updated RRR Andhra Pradesh & Telangana business details.
RRR has done a total of Rs 155.1 crores of business in the Telugu states. The movie is all set to release on January 7th and with the premieres and ticket hikes permitted by the government, the movie is sure to have solid openings all over.
The film has also done tremendous business in the USA. RRR has already crossed the $1.5 million mark with a few unreported and private screening numbers yet to come. The film has established an all-time record premier of Indian cinema with presales only.
2021 has been a year of celebration for Tollywood. Despite the torrid Corona and preceding Lockdown times, Tollywood did something that most other industries couldn’t do. Tollywood delivered blockbusters and superhits in abundance and emerged as one of the most successful industries. A number of Tollywood actors delivered landmark films of their career and marked 2021 as a memorable year indeed.
While this is one side of the coin, it can’t be denied that lockdown and AP governments ticket policies also made a dent in the collections of hugely anticipated movies.
Icon Star Allu Arjun and Superstar Mahesh Babu continued their popularity on Google Trends from 2021 and emerged as the top two in terms of Google searches. Prabhas also continued at the third position just like last year while Chiranjeevi sat steady at no.4. The only new entrant at the top 5 was Jr NTR who replaced Vijay Deverakonda at no.5
Google gives a score to a search term/actor on a scale of 100 based on how many people searched that term/actor over the year. Let’s get into the details.
5. Jr NTR
Jr. NTR entered into the top 5 replacing Vijay Deverakonda from 2020 on the back of RRR hype and promotions. The actor was constantly in news for his spectacular RRR teasers and promotions towards the year-end. The Young Tiger’s well-wishers and fans were also blessed with a number of candid behind the scenes visuals on social media and also along with his family. The Tollywood actor also created a sensation on the small screen and was the talk of the town for his work on Evaru Meelo Koteeswarulu. The sho created many small screen TRP records and was the most successful season of the show. With a number of celebrity guests and multiple endorsements, Jr NTR entered the Google popularity charts with an average search score of 16. This happened despite not having a single release this year. Below is the interest by state chart of Jr NTR.
4. Chiranjeevi
Megastar Chiranjeevi continued from his no.4 position with an average search score of 17. Chiranjeevi’s also didn’t have any releases this year. Megastar continued being on popularity charts through multiple charity works such as setting up Oxygen banks and Covid Crisis Charity during the peak Corona period. Chiranjeevi also maintained his popular Tollywood actor tag through Acharya promotional content such as ‘Laahe Laahe’ lyrical and Acharya teaser that was released towards the year-end. Chiranjeevi also had a series of movie announcements this year keeping his popularity up. Below is the interest by state chart of Megastar Chiranjeevi.
3. Prabhas
Young Rebel Star Prabhas maintained his pan-India popularity through a series of movie announcements and shoots. Prabhas’ is currently busy with multiple pan-India projects. His Radhe Shyam is slated for a release next month while Salaar and Aadipurush will also hit the screens in 2022. Project K and Spirit are two other much-anticipated films that will continue to keep Prabhas in the Tollywood actor popularity charts for the next year as well. Prabhas maintained his third spot for the second continuous year with an average search score of 19. Below is the interest by state chart of Prabhas.
2. Mahesh Babu
Superstar Mahesh Babu, as always continued being one of the most Googled Tollywood actors with ever-increasing popularity. He scored an average search score of 21 this year. Mahesh also didn’t have any release this year but continued on his second spot with constant buzz about Sarkaru Vaari Paata. Mahesh also made appearances on Jr NTR’s Evaru Melo Koteeswarulu and has also shot for Balakrishna’s Unstoppable that kept him in news. His charitable activities during Covid times and treatment of children suffering from chronic ailments kept him in the spotlight throughout the year. Mahesh’s movie announcement with Trivikram and his upcoming project with SS Rajamouli kept him on top of Google popularity charts. Below is the state-wise interest of Mahesh Babu.
1. Allu Arjun
Icon Star Allu Arjun is the only star on the list with a release this year. Pushpa and the buzz around it kept Allu Arjun in constant headlines. Along with that, Allu Arjun was also the special guest at a number of pre-release events. This helped him continue to rule the popularity charts. With Pushpa:2 also set to release soon, Allu Arjun is all set to continue his popularity next year as well. With an average search score of 39, Allu Arjun continued his reign as the most searched Tollywood actor. Below is the interest by state chart of Allu Arjun.
Ajith’s Valimai has now joined the other biggies like RRR and Radhe Shyam and is all set to give a blazing start to the new year. The action-thriller starring Ajith in a cop role will release worldwide on 13th January 2022. Valimai is one of the most eagerly awaited Tamil biggies. Fans’ anticipation has now gone much higher after the trailer release.
The trailer was packed with thrilling chase sequences and high-octane action scenes. Needless to say, the film will provide the much-desired fireworks for Ajith fans.
One of the most awaited films from Kollywood, Valimai has done roaring pre-release business long back. Madurai-based Gopuram films have bought entire TN rights for a whopping Rs 72 crores. This is the highest pre-release business for a movie post-Corona lockdown.
Directed by H Vinoth, Ajith’s Valimai also stars Huma Qureshi and Karthikeya Gummakonda. Yuvan Shankar Raja is scoring the music. Boney Kapoor has produced this action entertainer. This is the second collaboration between Boney and Ajith after the 2019 courtroom drama ‘Nerkonda Parvai’.
The clock is ticking and the countdown has started for the biggest release of 2022. SS Rajamouli’s RRR is all set to hit the screens worldwide on January 7th and the RRR team has indeed planned something special this time around.
Premiere shows have been planned in the Telugu states and they will start from 6 PM on 6th January. Overall 2 2 shows are being planned for these premieres. This will help a great deal in opening collections as well as generating further hype on opening day.
SS Rajamouli’s previous blockbuster Baahubali 2 also followed a similar premiere style and the rest is history. The Baahubali premieres helped a great deal in establishing all-time record-opening collections. However, this time along with the release day euphoria, there’s also the pertaining fear of Covid.
A number of theatres across the country are slashing their occupancies to 50%. Many theatres are also shutting shows after the evening due to the government-mandated evening curfew. In such a situation it needs to be seen if these paid premieres work out or not for SS Rajamouli and team.
As the RRR release date is nearing, the anticipation, as well as tension, is reaching sky high for RRR makers. RRR is undoubtedly the talk of the town and the most awaited pan-India release. There is a massive buzz for the movie and great positive talk in the trade circles as well.
Seeing this positivity, the film’s rights were bought for astronomical sums across territories. However, now the situation has changed. On one hand, we have the looming Covid crisis while on the other, there are the ticket pricing policies of the AP Government. These factors are giving sleepless nights to the RRR makers.
Just in Andhra Pradesh, the business has been revised and decreased by 40-50% because of the new G.O. This amounts to more than Rs 70 crores loss in AP itself. Something similar is happening in Karnataka as well where the distributors are demanding a business revision. Coming to North India, the theatres are slowly moving towards 50% occupancy and in some cases even shutting down. The rising cases in the UK and USA have made the situation gloomy for overseas markets as well.
If we take all these territories and their prevailing conditions into account the loss is expected to be around Rs 200 crores. This is going to be an extremely tough pill to swallow for the RRR makers. We have to wait and see how the makers recover this amount.
Movie: Arjuna Phalguna Rating: 1.5/5 Cast: Sree Vishnu, Amritha Aiyer Director: Tej Marini Produced By: Kalyan Krishna Release Date: 31st December
Sree Vishnu is known for picking unique concepts that bring a certain freshness to the proceedings. The actor’s other releases this year Gaali Sampath and Raja Raja Chora both had unique storytelling and impressive presentations. While these films didn’t set the box-office on fire, Sree Vishnu now has placed high hopes on Arjuna Phalguna. Will the talented actor succeed this time? Lets find out
Story: Arjuna Phalguna follows the story of Sre Vishnu (Arjuna) who along with his friends leads an ordinary life. The bunch of unemployed friends decided to set up a Soda center and are in need of money for the same. In order to procure the money the group undertakes certain illegal ways and are caught in a web of troubles. What happens next and how this decision turns their lives upside down is what the story follows.
Performances: To simply put, there is no noteworthy performance in the film barring that of Sree Vishnu. The actor plays the role of an unemployed youth quite convincingly. Sree Vishnu has played this character multiple times in his career and there is nothing new to showcase for him. The rest of the star cast are mere fillers in the film. The writing and music let the movie down and make the entire presentation predictable as well as dull. The movie’s production values are the only noteworthy technical aspect in the whole.
Analysis: Arjuna Phalguna is a run-of-the-mill story showcasing the challenges of a bunch of youngsters. The movie is filled with forced comedy scenes and cliched subplots that do not work well at all. Sree Vishnu alone has to shoulder the responsibility of the movie. However, with the film lacking direction and sense as a whole, it is impossible for the actor to save the film.
Plus Points:
Sree Vishnu
Production Values
Minus Points:
Forced Comedy
Forced Emotional Scenes
Pointless Plot
Dull Screenplay
Verdict: Sree Vishnu needs to be careful with his script selection and definitely must stay away from run-of-the-mill plots like Arjuna Phalguna. The film lacks any engaging factor and drains the viewers out of attention fast. It would have been a wise decision to release the film directly on OTT. Arjuna Phalguna continues Sree Vishnu’s drought for success in 2021 as well.
Ram Gopal Varma is one person who never minces his words. Be it Twitter or his media interactions, the director always speaks sharply and without any filter. In a recent interview with a TV channel, Varma made some comments that are going viral on social media.
The director was asked about his opinion on the ongoing theatre and ticket crisis in Andhra Pradesh. In his own style, the director compared the AP Government to Corona and criticized the governance and policies that were harming the film industry.
“AP Government and Covid both are same, We can not do anything about Corona or AP government,” stated Ram Gopal Varma.
Varma is currently busy with the promotions of his upcoming feature film ‘Aasha Encounter’. The film is based on the real-life encounters that happened in 2019.
Superstar Mahesh Babu’s Sarkaru Vaari Paata team is planning a massive update for the fans. Post the Sarkaru Vaari Paata blaster that was released on Mahesh’s birthday, there has been no update on the film. However, that all is going to change now.
According to buzz, the team is planning to make the single announcement tomorrow on the occasion of the new year. Reportedly, this Mahesh and Keerthy Suresh starrer’s first single will be out for Pongal.
Incidentally, the film was initially supposed to release for Pongal but later got moved to April 1st. Fans are eagerly waiting for Superstar Mahesh Babu’s Sarkaru Vaari Paata. The hype for the movie is growing day by day especially after Mahesh’s recent statement that the film will have Pokiri vibes and will have a lot of high-octane action sequences and moments for fans.
SS Thaman has completed the work on the movie’s album. This much-awaited Mahesh starrer has a total of 5 songs out of which 2 are mass numbers.
Thaman has confirmed that all the songs have been finished for the movie and that they will be perfectly aligned to the commercial content of the film.
Shyam Singha Roy has got off to a decent start. Both Nani and Sai Pallavi’s performance in the film has received widespread accolades. The movie was released last week amidst great positive buzz and received a very good response from the audience and critics. The film has managed to collect a share of 14crs in its first weekend and a share of 18.03crs worldwide. Still, the film needs to collect 6crs more to achieve its breakeven mark. Here’s area wise Nani’s Shyam Singha Roy 7 Days (1st week) Worldwide Collections.
Nani’s Shyam Singha Roy 7 Days (1st week) Worldwide Collections
Disclaimer:The box office figures are compiled from various sources. The figures can be approximate and TrackTollywood does not make any claims about the authenticity of the data. However they are adequately indicative of the box-office performance of the film(s).
