Yash's KGF: Chapter 1 becomes first Kannada film to get a commercial release in Pakistan

Following it success in Indian box office, KGF: Chapter 1 has become the first Kannada film to be released in Pakistan. The Hindi-dubbed version of KGF hit Pakistan screens on 11 January. Harish Mallya, a film reviewer and one of the organisers of the Bangalore Film Festival, told The News Minute, “The Hindi dubbed version of KGF is being received well across several multiplexes in Lahore and Islamabad. We understand it is doing quite well, although the distributors have not shared exact box office collection.” [caption id=“attachment_5055921” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Yash in KGF. Image via Twitter[/caption] Usually, South Indian films are screened widely in the Gulf countries and hardly see a commercial release in Pakistan. The last notable South Indian film release was  2.0 , starring Rajnikanth and Akshay Kumar. “This is the first Kannada film getting screened in Pakistan officially. Before this, there was a talk about Pawan Kumar’s Lucia being released but eventually, it was restricted only to film festivals,” added Mallya. Released on 21 December in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi, KGF: Chapter 1 is touted to be the most expensive Kannada movie. The movie was released in over 400 theaters in Karnataka and in over 2,400 theatres in India. With a rumored budget of Rs 80 crore, it became the first Kannada movie to earn more than  Rs 200 crore  in box office earnings within two weeks. KGF has created a record by becoming the fourth greatest earner for a dubbed Hindi film in India, after Baahubali, 2.0 and Baahubali 2 . Directed by Prashanth Neel, the film is a period drama that traces the fortunes of a gangster over decades. The film also features Tamannaah Bhatia and Srinidhi Shetty in important roles.