KGF becomes first Kannada film to break into Rs 200 cr club; Njan Prakashan declared blockbuster

Yash’s period magnum-opus KGF has become the first Kannada film to break into the Rs 200 cr club, setting a significant industry record. The box office earnings of KGF has revitalised the spirit of the Kannada film industry and other south Indian filmmakers who are seeking to create a pan-Indian demand for their stories. The heartening fact about KGF’s success is that the lion’s share of the revenue has come from the home state Karnataka, making the victory more substantial and crucial for the team. KGF is the only Kannada film to earn more than Rs 100 crore in Karnataka. Earlier, Baahubali: The Conclusion was the only movie to win that incredible feat. KGF has a running total of Rs 120 crore in Karnataka and is close on the heels of surpassing the record of Baahubali 2 which had amassed Rs 129 crore. [caption id=“attachment_5775911” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Actor Yash in a still from KGF. Image via Twitter/@Siddhar34257480[/caption] By crossing the Rs 100 cr mark in a single state, KGF joins the list of elite films such as Baahubali 2 (Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka), Baahubali 1 (Andhra Pradesh), Rangasthalam (Andhra Pradesh), Enthiran (Tamil Nadu), Mersal (Tamil Nadu), Sarkar (Tamil Nadu) and 2.0 (Tamil Nadu). KGF is currently the tenth highest-grossing south Indian film and may just dethrone Ram Charan-Sukumar’s blockbuster Telugu period drama Rangasthalam soon to occupy the ninth spot. Malayalam film Njan Prakashan, which released on 28 December, headlined by Fahadh Faasil is raking in the moolah at the ticket window. The movie, directed by veteran filmmaker Sathyan Anthikad, has become the third highest Malayalam grosser of 2018 after Kayamkulam Kochunni and Odiyan. In Kerala, the film has grossed nearly Rs 20 crore with a share of Rs 8.9 crore and has been declared a solid blockbuster. Njan Prakashan, which also stars Nikhila Vimal, Sreenivasan, and Anju Kurian in prominent roles, has become the highest-grossing solo film of Fahadh Faasil, besting another 2018 release Varadhan. The rest of the India gross of the movie at Rs 3.5 crore is also Fahadh’s highest. The film has been received well by audiences, and Fahadh has once again hit the bull’s eye with his distinct script sense. The film has garnered a worldwide total of Rs 38 crore, with the running international cumulative at $1.5 million. The UAE-GCC belt alone has contributed nearly $1 million from the foreign theatrical sales, followed by North America at $350K. It led the overseas box-office for the weekend ending 6 January before the Pongal releases take over from today. In Tamil Nadu, Sivakarthikeyan’s Kanaa has grossed nearly Rs 16 crore and has been declared a super-hit at the ticket window. Jayam Ravi’s Adanga Maru has done good business with a Rs 23 crore gross, but the film has just crossed the breakeven point. Kanaa is the most profitable film of the Christmas weekend, which witnessed a clash of nearly five Tamil movies including Dhanush’s Maari 2 and Vijay Sethupathi’s Seethakaathi. Speaking at the success meet of Kanaa, Sivakarthikeyan said that he would share a portion of the profits from the film for the welfare of financially struggling farmers. For Pongal 2019, Tamil Nadu is all set to witness an epic clash at the box-office with Superstar Rajinikanth and Thala Ajith locking horns with each other for the first time with Petta and Viswasam. The pre-release business of Petta is pegged at Rs 130 crore. The movie has to gross nearly Rs 250 crore worldwide to enter the safe zone. The film, directed by Karthik Subbaraj, marks Rajinikanth’s third-biggest pre-release business after 2.0 and Kabali. Ajith’s Viswasam has a great buzz in Tamil Nadu, and the film’s worldwide theatrical rights have been valued at Rs 75 crore. KJR Studios has secured the Tamil Nadu rights for Rs 52 crore and sold the film to individual distributors across the state. The film, directed by Siva, has to breach the Rs 145 crore gross mark worldwide to be a safe venture.