After a 14-month hiatus following King of Kotha, actor Dulquer Salmaan returns with a bang in Lucky Baskhar, directed by Venky Atluri. Released during Diwali on Thursday, the period crime thriller has gained rave reviews, achieving a strong start even amidst competition from big releases like Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, Singham Again, and Amaran.
Box Office Performance
On day one, Lucky Baskhar recorded an impressive ₹6.6 crore net in India, with an additional ₹90 lakh from Wednesday previews, totaling ₹7.5 crore in domestic earnings, per early estimates from Sacnilk. The Telugu version contributed ₹4.4 crore, while the Malayalam, Tamil, and Kannada versions added ₹1.8 crore, ₹40 lakh, and ₹10 lakh, respectively. In comparison, King of Kotha had garnered ₹8.05 crore on its opening day.
Occupancy Rates Across Markets
The film’s performance in the Telugu market showed promising trends with an overall occupancy rate of 38.43%—starting at 29.52% in the morning and peaking at 48.24% in the afternoon, followed by a dip in the evening but recovering to 43.13% at night. In the Tamil market, it saw a higher occupancy of 54.95%, with 45.87% in Malayalam and 20.17% in Kannada. Kerala, in particular, recorded ₹1.54 crore with 94,375 admissions across 764 shows, achieving an occupancy rate of 44.75%, according to What The Fuss.
Critical Reception
Critic Avinash Ramachandran from SCREEN praised Lucky Baskhar, noting, “Venky Atluri spins a fascinating tale involving banking and scams, and Dulquer Salmaan ensures everything sails smoothly despite hitting a few road bumps.”
With positive word of mouth and favorable box office numbers, Lucky Baskhar is expected to see growth through its opening weekend, making for a solid comeback for Dulquer Salmaan.