Box office: Ravi Teja's 'Eagle' sees dip on day 2
Ravi Teja's much-anticipated Telugu film, Eagle, hit theaters on Friday, facing competition from Lal Salaam and Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya. Nonetheless, on its opening day, Eagle outshone Lal Salaam, earning an estimated Rs. 6.2 crore in India, compared to Aishwaryaa Rajinikanth's directorial, which collected just Rs. 4.3cr. However, Teja's action-packed flick encountered turbulence on Saturday, hinting at potential challenges ahead. Here's a breakdown of the collections.
Why does this story matter?
Eagle is helmed by cinematographer-turned-director Kathik Gattamneni. It revolves around journalist Nalini (Anupama Parameswaran) as she uncovers the truth about Sahadev Varma, aka Eagle (Teja), who turns out to be a deadly professional assassin rather than a cotton farmer, as previously thought. Notably, the film was initially set to be released on January 13, but it was postponed to avoid clashing with Mahesh Babu's Guntur Kaaram.
'Eagle' soars past Rs. 10cr mark
According to Sacnilk, Eagle raked in around Rs. 4.75 crore on Saturday (day two) across all languages, bringing its two-day total to Rs. 10.95cr. The action-thriller saw an overall 32.84% Telugu occupancy rate on Saturday. Simultaneously released in Hindi as Sahadev, the film recorded a 9.02% overall Hindi occupancy, with the highest attendance recorded during night shows at 12.61%.
Meet the cast and crew of 'Eagle'
Bankrolled by People Media Factory, the movie also features Kavya Thapar, Navdeep, Srinivas Avasarala, and Madhubala in pivotal roles. In an interview with The Hindu, Gattamneni revealed drawing inspiration from Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon (1950) for Eagle's narrative style. He highlighted a key difference, stating, "In Rashomon, the audience has to decipher the situation after being presented with different viewpoints." "In our film, [Parameswaran] plays a reporter who listens to all the views and pieces together the puzzle," he added.
'Eagle' to have sequel named 'Eagle: Yuddha Kaanda'
Before Eagle hit theaters, the makers confirmed plans for a sequel titled Eagle: Yuddha Kaanda. Fans took to social media after the film's opening day to share their excitement for the next installment. One fan tweeted, "[Eagle 2] confirmed!! There's a solid lead for the second part of Eagle at the end of Part 1 after the Sahadev Mass Massacre (sic)." Another user chimed in, saying, "Can't wait for Part 2... It is going to get bigger and better (sic)."
