Rishab Shetty’s period action epic Kantara: Chapter 1 continues to make history after one week of release. A prequel to Shetty’s 2022 surprise hit Kantara, the film has not only surpassed the lifetime domestic box office collection of the first part, but also asserted itself as a true-blue pan-India phenomenon where a dubbed version has earned more than the original Kannada version. On Wednesday (day 7), Kantara: Chapter 1 earned Rs 25 crore across all languages in India. While this is the film’s lowest single-day haul yet, it was still enough to push it past a massive new milestone. It was a minor drop from its Tuesday (day 6) collection of Rs 34.25 crore, which registered a marginal rise from its Monday (day 5) earnings of Rs 31.50 crore.
The film opened at Rs 61.85 crore last Thursday, as per industry tracker Sacnilk. At the end of its opening week, the total domestic box office collection of Kantara: Chapter 1 stands at Rs 316 crore. Thus, it has not only breached the Rs 300 crore mark, but also surpassed the lifetime domestic box office earnings of the first part, which amassed Rs 309.64 crore across all languages after a long 10-week run.
However, the first film was only released in Kannada initially. Upon its ground-breaking success and subsequent interest across the nation, the film was released in Hindi, followed by the dubbed Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam versions only two weeks after the initial release.
In the case of Kantara: Chapter 1, it was planned and positioned as a pan-India film right from its inception. That turned out to be quite an effective plan, as it’s the Hindi dubbed version, and not the original Kannada version, that has the biggest share in the pie of Rs 316 crore. In fact, the Hindi dubbed version has crossed the Rs 100 crore mark at the end of the opening week, and currently stands at Rs 102 crore. It’s followed by the native Kannada version, which stands at Rs 98.85 crore, and will cross the Rs 100 crore mark today. However, the other dubbed versions are far behind, with Telugu at Rs 60.90 crore, Tamil at Rs 29.40 crore, and Malayalam at Rs 24.85 crore.
Also Read — Inside the making of Kantara Chapter 1: Cinematographer Arvind S Kashyap on building worlds, facing challenges, and pushing boundaries
In the Hindi market, Kantara: Chapter 1 has earned far more than twice of what the Hindi release — Shashank Khaitan’s romantic comedy Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari — did at Rs 38.75 crore at the end of the opening week. Written, directed, and co-produced by Rishab Shetty, it also stars Jayaram, Rukmini Vasanth, and Bollywood actor Gulshan Devaiah in key roles.
