Kantara Chapter 1 box office prediction: Can Rishab Shetty-led film recreate magic of 2022 Kantara?

There’s a lot riding on the word-of-mouth publicity from the paid premieres of Rishab Shetty’s much awaited Kantara prequel, Kantara Chapter 1 on the evening of October 1. The film officially opens in theatres across the world on October 2, advance bookings for which were opened days ago. While the response has been encouraging, given that those who liked the original film will line up to watch this one too, there’s no denying that the expectation was for the film to take the box office by storm. That will now depend on whether Rishab is able to vow his audiences a second time, or if he will remain a one-film wonder, given that the trailer had not given people much to be excited about.

Rishab Shetty's Kantara Chapter 1 box office prediction

Kantara Chapter 1 was thought to be the film that would break into the Rs 1,000 crore club this year, a feat that no other film across languages has been able to achieve yet. Vicky Kaushal’s Chhaava (Rs 800 cr) remains the highest grosser, followed by Saiyaara, Coolie, Mahavatar Narsimha and War 2, as the top 5. To make it to that list, Kantara will have to make at least Rs 350 crore and anything more will take it up the order.

Also read: Kantara Chapter 1: Is Rishab Shetty’s Berme Tulunadu’s divine guardian Bermer? Shaneel Gautham explains…

While the 2022 Kantara had a moderate opening day at Rs 1.95 cr only, it must be remembered that it had released in Kannada only and that the dubbed versions in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi came only a week or two later. This time, they are all releasing simultaneously and trackers estimate that the film has registered Rs 21.5 crore, which includes a sizeable chunk of blocked seats (corporate bookings). Without these blocked seats, the day 1 gross stands at Rs 13 cr, with the bulk of the tickets sold in the Kannada version.

In Kannada, the box office figures have been rather dismal for the entire year, with only one film, the comedy Su From So managing to break into the Rs 100 crore club. There is no doubt about Kantara Chapter 1 becoming the highest grossing film of the year in Sandalwood, but what will its standing be on an all-India level? That remains to be seen.

Also read: Kantara Chapter 1 2025: Release date, trailer, plot, cast, budget, OTT partner - all you need to know

FAQs

Q. Where will Kantara Chapter 1 be available after the theatrical run?

A. Amazon Prime Video has acquired the post-theatrical streaming rights of Kantara Chapter 1. The film will drop on the platform on October 30 in the four south languages, while Hindi is expected to be available after 8 weeks.

Q. What is the budget of Kantara Chapter 1?

A. Kantara Chapter 1 has, reportedly, been made at a budget of around Rs 120 cr