Box office collection: Manushi Chhillar-Varun Tej's 'Operation Valentine' shows improvement
Shakti Pratap Singh Hada's directorial debut, Operation Valentine, a bilingual aerial action drama, hit theaters on Friday. It marked Telugu actor Varun Tej's Bollywood debut, while Manushi Chhillar co-starred alongside him. While the film was met with a lukewarm response on Friday, the weekend factor came into play on Saturday, with Operation Valentine showing noticeable improvement in box office collections.
Looking at film in numbers
Inspired by the events of 2019's Pulwama attack and Balakote airstrike—India's first-ever airstrike on Pakistan since 1971—the film opened at Rs. 1.5cr. On Saturday, it raked in Rs. 2.25cr (early estimates) and had an overall Hindi occupancy of 10.55%, while the Telugu occupancy stood at 18.38%. The action drama is pitted against Dune 2, Laapataa Ladies, and Kaagaz 2, among others.
Meet the team behind 'Operation Valentine'
Operation Valentine has been co-written by Singh Hada, Aamir Nahid Khan, and Siddharth Raj Kumar. The film is backed by Sony Pictures International Productions, which previously produced Adivi Sesh starrer Major (2022). It is also jointly produced by Sandeep Mudda's Renaissance Pictures, God Bless Entertainment, and Nandakumar Abbineni. Earlier, there were rumors about its alleged similarities to Fighter (2024), but OV's team refuted them.
How Chhillar prepared for tough role
In the movie, Chhillar essayed an Indian Air Force (IAF) radar officer. To prepare for her character, she said she had to learn the basics of "the structure of the Air Force." "I had to understand what a radar officer is supposed to do, basic things like body language, the tonality of your voice, and how to give a certain command," said the actor.
Quick look at Chhillar's and Tej's careers
Chhillar—crowned Miss World in 2017—debuted in films with the 2022 historical period drama Samrat Prithviraj. Then, she was seen in The Great Indian Family (2023) and will next have a release in the form of Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. Tej, on the other hand, is known for Telugu movies such as Kanche, Fidaa, and Gaddalakonda Ganesh. He is Ram Charan and Allu Arjun's cousin.
