Vijay Deverakonda’s ‘Liger’ may ride high on Telugu film wave

Given the existing popularity of the dubbed versions of Telugu films like Pushpa and RRR in the Hindi-speaking belt, theatres are hoping Karan Johar’s latest film Liger that releases this weekend can build on the wave.

Starring young, popular Telugu actor Vijay Deverakonda, the film will release in Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam apart from Telugu. Deverakonda is known to north Indian audiences for his controversial romantic drama Arjun Reddy, that is available in both Hindi and Telugu on streaming services.

Media consulting firm Ormax estimates that the action film will gross Rs. 22.2 crore on its first day across all languages. Overall, the producers need to manage a share of Rs. 90 crore from theatres worldwide for the film to be considered a hit, according to trade website Andhra Box Office.

To achieve such numbers, Deverakonda has been touring the country for promotions especially in small north Indian towns over the past few weeks. Though his popularity in the southern belts is a given, trade experts hope the action film will appeal youth and fetch over Rs. 10 crore in the northern belt on day one. Advance bookings for the film are especially promising in south India with most shows on day one sold out.

“Theatre owners are pretty confident that this is one film that should open big, especially in the south but also in the north where the trailer has been loved. The overall package is pretty appealing, with lots of action and an aggressive male lead who is already known,” said Atul Mohan, editor of trade magazine Complete Cinema. Mohan said Deverakonda’s film Arjun Reddy has been discovered and watched by young Hindi-speaking audiences on OTT, ensuring he already commands a fan base in north India. The Dharma brand and ground-level marketing with the team visiting states like Punjab, Gujarat and Bihar over the past few weeks has helped further.

Like another Telugu star Allu Arjun, who recently saw a massive hit in the Hindi market with Pushpa, Deverakonda is organically popular with the youth, Vishek Chauhan, a Bihar-based exhibitor said. Moreover, Liger director Puri Jagannadh who has delivered hits such as Pokiri, Temper and iSmart Shankar in Telugu cinema, is known for mass-market, commercially viable storytelling.

“The film needs to make you laugh, cry, clap, whistle and have a good time. Audiences are not looking for experimental fare because they don’t have the time to take risks when they’re purchasing Rs. 2000 tickets for a family of four,” Chauhan said.

Yet not all southern films are a hit in the Hindi belt and Vikram, Valimai and Beast were a no go. Additionally, the past few days have also seen calls for boycott of the film on social media thanks to Johar’s involvement and after a clip from director Jagannadh’s old film iSmart Shankar surfaced which has been accused of romanticising sexual assault.

But cinema owners who believe audiences have a mind of their own, remain optimistic. “We’re definitely bullish on Liger because like KGF, it looks like something that would be worth people’s time and money. People in small towns are looking for films they can watch to have a good time with the family and Bollywood that has taken completely to biopics and bold themes, has left us with no option,” said Pranav Garg, managing director of Maya Palace, a two-screen cinema in Muzaffarnagar.

Garg expects Deverakonda to follow in the footsteps of Prabhas who rose to fame in the Hindi belt after the Baahubali franchise and now sees all his films dubbed in multiple languages.