We are just two weeks away from the highly anticipated release of Kalki 2898 AD, with everyone eagerly waiting to see its impact at the box office. Typically, for most big star pan-India films, producers find themselves in a secure position due to pre-release business and other rights. The project’s success or failure mainly affects the director, who can usually move on to their next project without much worry, as seen in several recent cases.
However, Kalki 2898 AD is different, with much riding on both Aswini Dutt and Nag Ashwin. While the film is crucial for Prabhas and other stars, it is equally significant for those behind the scenes. Here are five reasons why Kalki 2898 AD must triumph at the box office:
- Massive Budget: The film is made on a grand scale, with all theatrical rights owned by producer Aswini Dutt. This model involves a huge risk due to the significant investment.
- Multi-Part Film: As a multi-part film with some portions of part two already completed, the success of this film is essential to generate interest in the sequel.
- Touching the Ithihasas: Depicting elements of Ithihasas is a risky endeavor as it can potentially offend religious sentiments if portrayed incorrectly. This is a significant challenge for Nag Ashwin, as seen with Om Raut’s recent controversies surrounding the portrayal of Ramayan.
- Saving Theatres: Tollywood buyers and exhibitors are in dire need of a successful big film to draw audiences back to theaters. The past two months have been challenging due to elections and underperforming smaller films, with substantial investments made for Kalki 2898 AD.
- Prabhas’ Pan-India Success: Following the Baahubali series, Prabhas’ stardom soared, but he has not achieved another pan-India blockbuster since. While Saaho performed well in Hindi and Salaar did decently in Telugu, neither film was a perfect blockbuster across all languages
Rishi