Ahead of Junior’s OTT outing, here’s how much Kireeti Reddy’s debut film made in theatres

Junior on OTT: Kireeti Reddy’s debut film was launched in early 2022, but made it to theatres only in mid 2025. A Kannada-Telugu bilingual, only one version of Junior found acceptance among audiences.

Kireeti Reddy in Junior

When debutant Kireeti Reddy began promotions for the release of his launchpad, Junior, he did a select few interviews with Kannada and Telugu media, conversing fluently in both languages and pitching it to both sets of audiences. For Kannada audiences he was a Puneeth Rajkumar fan and for Telugu viewers that became Jr NTR. This, of course, led to questions if Junior was a Kannada original with a Telugu dubbed version or vice versa. In an interview with a Kannada news channel, Kireeti clarified that he’d made a Kannada film.

However, during the theatrical release, the Telugu version was given precedence over Kannada in Bengaluru, in terms of number of shows and timings too. Moreover, audiences felt that the making, by director Radhakrishna Reddy, was meant to cater to Telugu viewers and that reflected in the film’s box office performance. The Kannada version, which was in direct competition with Yuva Rajkumar’s failed to find much of an audience, while it fared far better in Telugu.

Junior fares better in Telugu

On day 1, Junior in Kannada managed Rs 0.2 cr only, while it got to Rs 1.3 cr in Telugu and the first Sunday was Rs 0.4 cr and Rs 1.75 cr respectively, reported Sacnilk. Eventually, after less than a month in theatres, Junior wound up its theatrical run with only Rs 2.2 cr from Kannada and Rs 8.9 cr net from Telugu. The Rs 11 cr net, though, still left the film as a theatrical failure, considering that Junior was, reportedly made at a budget of Rs 25 cr. This, it was said, included a rumoured Rs 2.5 cr pay check for leading lady Sreeleela.

Also read: Junior movie review: Kireeti Reddy makes quite the impression in film that’s not the most original

When the actress was signed up for Junior in 2022, she was still a relative newbie with only a couple of films each in Kannada and Telugu. However, when Junior was delayed, following more than a year’s break as Kireeti nursed an injury, Sreeleela’s stock rose in Telugu. Much of her remuneration is said to have been the cost of having her in the viral Viral Vayyari number, as the actress was not a part of the film’s second half.

Junior has been rumoured to be OTT bound for a while, with multiple dates speculated, but it was recently confirmed that it will be available to stream as of September 22, 2025. The Kannada version has gone to Namma Flix, while Telugu is on aha. The film is also reportedly headed to Amazon Prime Video, but it is not clear if it will be a simultaneous release with the other platforms

FAQs

Q. Who is Kireeti Reddy?

A. Kireeti Reddy is the son of Ballari-based politician and mining baron, Gaali Janardhan Reddy.

Q. Is Junior a hit?

A. Junior is said to have been made at a budget of Rs 25 crore, with trackers estimating that it made around Rs11 cr in theatrical revenue. While the Telugu-Kannada bilingual was not a box office success, Kireeti received praise for his efforts in the film.

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