Box office: 'Hanu-Man' continues its momentum; 'Guntur Kaaram' in freefall
January offered plenty of options to film enthusiasts. For those who love the homegrown genre of masala, there was Guntur Kaaram and Captain Miller, and the ones yearning for some spectacular aerial action were greeted with Fighter. With a release each by Mahesh Babu, Mohanlal, Dhanush, and Nagarjuna, this was an important month for the box office. Here's how the recent releases are performing.
'Fighter'
Headlined by Hrithik Roshan, Deepika Padukone, and Anil Kapoor, Siddharth Anand's Fighter was released on January 25 to mostly positive reviews. It had a great opening weekend but failed to continue the momentum thereafter. On Thursday, it collected about Rs. 5.75cr (early estimates), which has now taken its total collection to Rs. 146.25cr. It's Anand's third project with Roshan after Bang Bang! and War.
'Hanu-Man'
Hanu-Man has emerged to be the first choice of moviegoers out of all the Indian films released on Sankranti this year (Guntur Kaaram, Ayaalan, Captain Miller, Merry Christmas). On Thursday, it made Rs. 1.55cr (early estimates), and its total haul now stands at an impressive Rs. 180.35cr. Directed by Prasanth Varma, it will soon spawn a sequel titled JaiHanuman. Teja Sajja leads the ensemble.
'Malaikottai Vaaliban'
Mohanlal's Malaikottai Vaaliban may have his acting chops on full display, but the film has been rejected by the audience. Both critics and audiences have labeled it dragged and overlong, and the film has not been able to mint money. On Thursday, it made Rs. 44L (early estimates), taking its total to Rs. 12.89cr. It's directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery (Nanpakal Nerathu Mayakkam).
'Guntur Kaaram'
Babu's action-drama Guntur Kaaram has been in a downward spiral for the past few days, though its overall performance has been decent. On Thursday, it collected made Rs. 33L (early estimates), and its total earnings stand at Rs. 124.29cr. The supporting cast includes Sreeleela, Meenakshi Chaudhary, Easwari Rao, Sunil, Ramya Krishnan, Jagapathi Babu, and Prakash Raj, among others. Trivikram Srinivas has directed it.
'Ayalaan'
Sivakarthikeyan's sci-fi film Ayalaan—directed by R Ravikumar—minted Rs. 27L (early estimates) on Thursday, and overall, its total collections are Rs. 48.83cr. The makers have also announced its sequel Ayalaan 2. The supporting cast includes Rakul Preet Singh, Sharad Kelkar, and Isha Koppikar, among others. The ambitious project had collected Rs. 3.45cr on its first day and Rs. 34.7cr in its first week.
