Tillu Square success cheers Telugu film trade; no crowds for Goat Life
Non-Telugu films Godzilla x Kong and Crew draw good numbers in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh
Telugu cinema did not have much to celebrate the past two or three weeks.
None of the releases set the box-office on fire and raked in any significant collections, except for the Telugu dubbed version of Malayalam super-hit romantic comedy Premalu.
In this backdrop, Sidhu Jonnalagadda's much-awaited film Tillu Square and the Prithviraj-starrer The Goat Life released last week. The Goat Life (original Malayalam version is titled Aadujeevitham) is not doing so well in the theaters but the good news is that Tillu Square is fetching good collections.
Telugu films score a hit
Tillu Square is a sequel to the big hit romantic comedy DJ Tillu.
Postponed since September last year due to various reasons, Tillu Square finally reached theaters on Friday (March 29). Starring Siddu Jonnalagadda and Anupama Parameswaran, this movie, which had a lot of expectations riding on it, is now being talked about as a super hit.
Despite the IPL season, Tillu Square is going to be a hit, film pundits predict. On the first day itself, the film collected ₹11.2 crore, while the gross collection so far is pegged at ₹23.7 crore.
The film's producer has set a gross target of ₹100 crore but collections are expected to go even beyond. The movie is produced by Suryadevara Nagavanshi under the Sitara Entertainments banner. On March 31, a Sunday, the film attracted more collections.
No show for Goat Life on Telugu screens
Malayalam actor Prithviraj Sukumaran's movie The Goat Life (also landed in theaters on Friday (March 29).
This survival thriller is slated to be another ₹100 crore grosser for Malayalam cinema, which seems to be on a good wicket of late. This movie was also dubbed in Telugu. The makers of the film promoted the film in Hyderabad in a big way. The film was expected to draw crowds also because Prithviraj has a legion of Telugu fans, and more so after Salaar.
However, The Goat Life, which is a super hit in Malayalam, has turned out to be a disaster in Tamil and Telugu.
Kaliyugam Pattanamlo
Another Telugu movie which released last week is Kaliyugam Pattanamlo, a crime thriller starring Vishwa Karthikeya and Ayushi Patel.
Although the makers tried to promote this movie directed by Ramakanth Reddy saying it had emotional drama and thrills in equal measure, cine goers did not bite the bait. The film also did not get any good reviews.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
Godzilla was a huge hit in India. People are flocking to enjoy Adam Wingard’s fifth instalment in the monster-verse, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which released in English and in many other languages last Friday.
Not really a cinematic masterpiece, Godzilla x Kong delivers what fans of this franchise lap up: larger-than-life battles and stunning visual effects. The Telugu version of this movie is also running to packed houses in theatres.
Multi-starrer Crew
Kareena Kapoor Khan, Kriti Sanan and Tabu helm this mad caper of a Hindi film called Crew. Produced by Ekta Kapoor and Riya Kapoor, the film is directed by Lootcase fame Rajesh Krishnan.
This movie, which released on March 29, is receiving a favourable response in theatres. The plot revolves around Tabu, Kareena and Kriti, who work as air hostesses.
Even as the three are grappling with their financial troubles, the airline company they are working for goes under and becomes bankrupt. The owner (ahem!) scoots off abroad, leaving the company and its employees high and dry.
The women decide to steal gold biscuits from a smuggler and their lives go haywire after that. The twists, the comedy and not to forget the glamour quotient provided by the three actors lift the film. Tabu shines in the film, while Kareena Kapoor is at her entertaining best. Punjabi actor Diljiz Dosanjh and Kapil Sharma too play important roles.
(This article was originally published in The Federal Telangana.)