Prabhas-starrer Kalki off to a flying start at the box office

Prabhas and Deepika Padukone-starrer Kalki 2898 AD has seen a strong start at the box office, ending the sluggish run seen by the Indian box office for the past few months.

As per a post on social media platform, X, from the producers Vyjayanthi Movies, the epic sci-fi movie has garnered ₹298.5 crore in terms of the gross box-office collections worldwide.

The Telugu movie is directed by Nag Ashwin and produced by C Ashwini Dutt. It was released on Thursday in multiple languages including Hindi. Besides Prabhas and Padukone, the flick features Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Hassan and Disha Patani. It is the first installment in the planned Kalki Cinematic Universe.

As per trade website Sacnilk, the movie is estimated to have earned ₹95.3 crore net collections at the Indian box office on the first day. The gross box-office collections worldwide for the film for the film were pegged at about ₹191.5 crore.

On Friday, its India net box-office collections stood at ₹57.6 crore taking its first two-day net collections to ₹152.9 crore, as per the trade website. 

Huge opening day

Trade analysts said the film is not just doing well at the Indian box office, including the Hindi version, but also in international markets. Producer and film business expert Girish Johar told businessline, “On the whole, the film has got off to a flying start at the box office. It had a huge opening day on a Thursday despite it being a non-holiday. The southern business of film did see some dip on Friday, but we are expecting the film to see very good numbers on Saturday and Sunday. The film is seeing huge traction even in international markets.” He added that the first six months had been very dull for the Indian box office and this movie has brought much relief for the industry.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh, in a post on X, stated that the net box-office collections of the Hindi version of the movie alone are estimated at ₹45.75 crore. “Unstoppable. After packing a solid score on Day 1, #Kalki2898AD posts super-strong number on Day 2,” he added.

Adarsh pointed out that infact the Hindi version’s collections are higher on second day compared to first day, “which clearly indicates that the film has found acceptance.” He said the film may see some impact due to the World Cup final on Saturday but a surge on Sunday should compensate for the shortfall, if any.

The film has been getting accolades from many including Thailavar. On X, superstar Rajinikanth congratulated the film makers and the film crew and said that the film has taken Indian Cinema to a “different level. He added that he was eagerly waiting for the second part of the flick.