5 South Indian superstars and their unsuccessful Bollywood debuts
Telugu actor Sreenivas Bellamkonda made his Hindi debut with Chatrapathi on Friday. A remake of SS Rajamouli's 2005 film of the same name, it crashed at the box office on its opening day, marking an unsuccessful start for Bellamkonda in Hindi cinema. Meanwhile, let's take a look at other South Indian superstars who failed with their Bollywood debuts as well.
Ram Charan
Oscar-winning film RRR made him a pan-India star, but did you know that Ram Charan made his Hindi debut way back in 2013 with Zanjeer? The film, which also featured Priyanka Chopra Jonas in the lead and Sanjay Dutt in a pivotal role, received negative reviews. It turned out to be a failure with the audience as well as at the box office.
Suriya
Actor Suriya has become a nationwide sensation since Soorarai Pottru (2020) was released. The actor also won a National Film Award for the movie, which is being remade in Hindi with Akshay Kumar in the lead. His Bollywood debut came with Ram Gopal Varma's Rakta Charitra 2 in 2010. Interestingly, it also marked his Telugu film debut but tanked at the box office.
Naga Chaitanya
Unfortunately, Naga Chaitanya's Hindi debut film Laal Singh Chaddha (2022) was also unsuccessful at the box office. The movie did get good reviews, and so did Chaitanya for his acting, but owing to controversies and the boycott Bollywood trend, it couldn't perform well at the ticket windows. And therefore, Chaitanya also had an unsuccessful start in Hindi cinema with the Advait Chandan directorial.
Vijay Deverakonda
Vijay Deverakonda made his Hindi debut with the 2022 film Liger, which also featured Ananya Panday. Co-produced by Karan Johar's Dharma Productions, Liger was also surrounded by multiple controversies. It, too, was a victim of the boycott trend. But it isn't only the box office numbers that made the film unsuccessful as it also failed to click with the critics, receiving negative reviews.
Vikram
Vikram, also fondly known as Chiyaan Vikram, has been part of two Hindi movies: Raavan and David. He made his Bollywood debut with Raavan in 2010, which co-starred Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan. It was directed by Mani Ratnam. The film's opening day box office collection was considered "below expectations"; it was eventually declared a flop.