Kantara Chapter 1’s pre-release business: Rishab Shetty’s much-awaited prequel is already in profit
Kantara Chapter 1 has been made at a budget of around Rs 100-120 cr, which has been recovered from the OTT deal. As figures of other deals trickle in, it’s clear that the makers are in the green
Last Updated: 03.09 PM, Sep 21, 2025
In only 10 days, actor-filmmaker Rishab Shetty’s much-awaited Kantara Chapter 1, the prequel to his successful Kantara (2022), hits theatres. The buzz in industry circles is that Kantara Chapter 1 is expected to be 2025’s Rs 1,000 crore+ film, given that the original had made a little over Rs 400 crore. There is tremendous anticipation around the film – this time around, Rishab had a much bigger budget to play around with, unlike in 2022, when he thought he’d made a big-budget film in under Rs 15 cr. Kantara Chapter 1 has been mounted on a three-figure budget, estimated to be between Rs 100 cr and Rs 120 cr.
Kantara Chapter 1's pre-release business
The makers, though, are already laughing all the way to the bank, as details about the film’s pre-release businesses trickles in. For starters, Kantara Chapter 1’s post-theatrical streaming rights were picked up by Amazon Prime Video in 2024, reportedly for a sum of Rs 125 cr. The original film had made its way to OTT around day 56 of its theatrical release. It remains to be seen if the same will be followed this time too, or if the south versions will be on the platform within a month. The satellite rights of the film are with Zee Network, with reports pegging the deal at Rs 80 cr.
As for the theatrical distribution rights, there’s information only for the Telugu states and Tamil Nadu that’s come in, with the former apparently going for Rs 100 cr (higher than KGF: Chapter 2’s Rs 78 cr and highest for a non-Telugu film), and the latter for Rs 32 cr. Telugu was the third highest box office contributor of Kantara in 2022 (Rs 42.38 cr net), while Tamil was the lowest (Rs 7. 29 cr net). For break-even, the Telugu version will have to gross Rs 170 cr at least.
The figures for the distribution deals for Kerala and the Hindi belt are yet to be made known. Given that the net collection of Kantara was Rs 85 crore for the Hindi version, the rights for the prequel will likely be far higher than that of Telugu. The Malayalam version of Kantara had fared better than the Tamil one at Rs 13.11 cr net. There is an unverified report of a Rs 30 cr for the music as well, putting the current total pre-business at close to Rs 370 cr, which was Kantara’s India gross in 2022.The makers have also entered into several brand associations, the details of which remain unknown.
Kantara Chapter 1 will release in theatres on October 2, 2025. The film is expected to have a massive 2.500+ show paid premiere start on October 1, 2025. The trailer will be released on September 22 at 12.45 pm, with Hrithik Roshan, Sivakarthikeyan, Prabhas and Prithviraj revealing the Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam versions.
FAQs
Q. Are Kantara and Kantara: Chapter 1 the same?
A. No, they are separate films in the same franchise, both written and directed by Rishab Shetty. Kantara released in 2022, while Kantara: Chapter 1 is expected to hit theatres on October 2, 2025. Chapter 1 is the prequel of the original film and is supposedly an exploration of the origin of the Panjurli Daiva, among others.
Q. Whose avatar is Panjurli Daiva?
A. Panjurli Daiva is considered an avatar of Lord Vishnu in his Varaha incarnation. Panjurli, according to folklore, was a wild boar, who was slain by Lord Shiva and then revived to become a divine protector.