Ram Charan’s pan-India sports drama Peddi has scored a fantastic opening in Karnataka, demonstrating that the film’s appeal extends well beyond its home Telugu heartland. And the state is known to be very into good commercial movies and produced ₹8.85 crore gross on Day 1, including paid premieres and the official opening day.
Breakdown of Karnataka Collections
According to early box office reports, the Karnataka haul is split as follows:
Premieres (Paid Previews): ₹3.09 crore
Day 1 (Official Opening): ₹5.68 crore.
This brings the total Day 1 gross in Karnataka to an impressive ₹8.85 crore.
The premiere shows, at select multiplexes and single screens in Bengaluru, Mysuru and Mangaluru, were in high demand with many theatres showing full boards to midnight. The paid preview strategy helped the film take advantage of weekend evening momentum, and set the stage for a good opening day.
Karnataka emerging as the key market.
Karnataka in the past has always been a significant secondary market for Telugu cinema and Peddi only confirmed this trend. The state’s contribution of nearly ₹9 crore on Day 1 alone positions it as the second highest grossing region after Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Trade analysts attribute the strong start to Ram Charan’s huge fan base in Bengaluru and around the city and the movie’s sports drama style that would appeal to Kannada viewers, and the lack of major Kannada competition in the opening weekend. And the film was released on more than 350 screens in the state as well to offer wide range of audience access.
Kannada Dubbed Version Performance
A significant portion of the Karnataka collection (around 35%) came from the Kannada dubbed version of Peddi. The makers had planned for a four-language release (Telugu, Hindi, Tamil and Kannada), and the decision has paid rich dividends in the southern neighbouring state. Kannada audiences loved the mass appeal and action scenes, with some centres in North Karnataka getting occupancy of more than 70% on prime shows.
Outlook for the Weekend
As we approach the weekend of Karnataka, Peddi will likely add another ₹10-12 crore gross from the state and could even take its three-day total in Karnataka to ₹20 crore. And the positive word-of-mouth in urban centres, as well as the strong advance bookings for Saturday and Sunday, suggest a sustained run.
For a non-Kannada film to post such numbers on the opening day in Karnataka is no small feat. Peddi has not only opened big— it has become an authentic pan-South blockbuster.
