Radhe Shyam box office collections day 1: Prabhas-Pooja Hegde starrer opens well in Telugu; Hindi version affected

The Prabhas and Pooja Hegde starrer Radhe Shyam did poorly in Hindi on day one, grossing Rs 4.50 crore nett, owing to the fact that the audience in Hindi circuits perceives the film as a dubbed film and, on top of that, it is a romance film. As per reports in Box Office India, the issue is that there is no face value for the multiplex audience, and the genre has nothing to offer the general public.

Despite the success of Bahubali and Saaho, the film's hero, Prabhas, is not a household name in Hindi cinema. However, if the action film is done in a style that appeals to the audience, something can happen, as the genre on a large scale can bring an opening like Saaho. A well-known female lead in Hindi cinema can also aid in familiarising with the film.

The film has performed better in locations where South Asian actors have a larger market, such as Maharashtra, CP Berar, and Odisha, whereas it has failed to perform at all in Delhi, Punjab, or Rajasthan, even with a more Hindi-looking film. 

Gujarat also struggled, with The Kashmir Files outperforming Radhe Shyam in many theatres, which is surprising given that The Kashmir Files is a heavy film, whereas Radhe Shyam is attempting to be in the romantic commercial zone, and Gujarat is a conservative market that dislikes heavy films aimed at adults.

There isn't much hope for the film from here, as the opening day numbers are too low across the board, and it's a broad release, so growth over the weekend will be difficult. It might do better on Sunday, but reports aren't promising, so Sunday might be cut short as well.

In its Telugu version, Radhe Shyam has done exceptionally well in Andhra Pradesh. Prabhas is a prominent name in the state, which provides the film with an advantage, yet the subject may not be suitable for the Andhra Pradesh audience, as it appears to be more of a Hindi love tale than a Telugu mass action film, which works best in that market.

Andhra Pradesh has had three major openings since the pandemic, with Vakeel Saab, Bheemla Nayak, and Pushpa, and this will be the fourth. All of these films grossed around $30 million nett, give or take a few million, and Radhe Shyam should do the same. The film's box office success in Hyderabad was comparable to that of Bheemla Nayaka and Pushpa: The Rise.

The film has better ticket rates in Andhra than films like Pushpa and Bheemla Nayak, which should result in higher earnings in the state, but because it is not a mass-action film, it may not be able to compete with films like Pushpa.

The task for the film is to see what happens after the first day, as the biggest films in Nizam-Andhra have struggled to stay afloat after the lockdown. If Pushpa and Bheemla Nayak have suffered, this may be even more difficult. It might be a big first day for star power, with collections failing after that. Going by the massive figures that Hyderabad is expected to get on day one, it might be a freefall.