Telugu film Akhanda 2 collected Rs. 33 crore approx on its opening day in India. This includes Rs. 9 crore from previews on Thursday night. The film grossed another USD 850K (Rs. 7.50 crore) internationally, giving it a Rs. 40 crore worldwide opening day. The film was originally scheduled for release last week, but due to legal issues, it had to be postponed a week. The postponement might have taken some business away, though not much.
On its face value, these are good numbers for the cast involved, ranking amongst the highest for the lead Nandamuri Balakrishna. They are better than his previous film, Daaku Maharaj, which collected Rs. 26 crore on its opening day earlier this year. However, this isn’t a standalone film but a sequel to a highly appreciated film. Accordingly, the costs involved are also higher than a regular NBK film. Therefore, considering the brand value of the original film, the expectations were considerably higher, and the film hasn’t really delivered on those.
Akhanda 2 performed well across the Telugu states. Nizam had a record first day for an NBK film, surpassing Veera Simha Reddy. Andhra Pradesh could have done better, especially Ceded districts, where not just the original was a huge blockbuster but NBK films generally fare strongly. Elsewhere, Karnataka did well, but surprisingly, Tamil Nadu put quite decent numbers nearing the crore mark. There was a Hindi dubbed version, but it was a non-starter, with hardly any collections.
Looking ahead, the immediate task at hand for the film will be to hold well today and then make good gains over the weekend. However, the initial response to the film seems to be mixed, and given the front-loaded nature of this type of film, things could be difficult in that regard.
The Territorial Breakdown for First Day Box Office Collections of Akhanda 2 is as follows:
Area
Gross
AP/TS
Rs. 28.00 cr.
Nizam
Rs. 10.00 cr.
Ceded
Rs. 6.00 cr.
Andhra
Rs. 12.00 cr.
Karnataka
Rs. 3.25 cr.
Tamil Nadu
Rs. 1.00 cr.
Rest of India
Rs. 0.50 cr.
INDIA
Rs. 32.75 cr.
North America
USD 575,000
Rest of World
USD 275,000
OVERSEAS
USD 850,000
WORLDWIDE
Rs. 40.25 cr.
