Box office: Despite criticism, 'Adipurush' enters Rs. 200 club
What's the story
The much-awaited film Adipurush, helmed by Om Raut, was released in the theaters on Friday. However, it opened to poor reviews, with many criticizing its dialogues.
Despite a negative response from the audience and critics alike, it had an impressive start at the box office. On Saturday, its worldwide collections reportedly crossed Rs. 200 crore.
Adipurush is a retelling of the mythological epic Ramayana.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Adipurush is said to be one of the most expensive films made in Indian cinema. It is reportedly made on a budget of over Rs. 500 crore.
As per reports, a majority of the movie's budget was spent on its VFX. However, upon its release, the makers were heavily criticized and trolled for the visual effects as well as its dialogues.
Box office day 2
'Adipurush' rakes in Rs. 200 crore
Adipurush opened to Rs. 140 (worldwide) on the day of release. On Saturday, it went on to collect another Rs. 65 crore (domestic). With this, the film has entered the Rs. 200 crore on the second day of its release.
Within two days, its Hindi collections at the domestic box office stood at Rs. 37 crore followed by Rs. 26 crore (gross) in Telugu.
Controversies
Chhattisgarh governemtn may ban 'Adipusuh'
Meanwhile, Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel on Saturday said that the Congress-led state government may consider banning the movie in the theaters over public demand.
Criticizing the film, he also attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over its silence on the controversies revolving around Adipurush.
Baghel further said that the choice of words for the film's dialogues was "objectionable and of low-level."
In his defense
Manoj Muntashir defends Adipurush; claims it isn't 'Ramayan's adaptation
Writer-lyricist Manoj Muntashir has been heavily trolled for the film's dialogues. In a media interview, he defended the movie (and the dialogues), claiming that the Om Raut directorial is not an adaptation of Ramayana but is only inspired by it.
Speaking to Aaj Tak, Muntashir claimed that makers knew since the beginning that they were only inspired by Ramayana but haven't made an adaptation.
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'Adipurush's Dashrath on 'Sita is India's daughter' controversy
The screening of Adipurush's shows in Nepal was halted on the day of its release due to a dialogue that referred to Sita as India's daughter.
Reacting to this, actor Krishna Kotian, who played Dashrath, told NewsBytes in an exclusive interview, "It is set in a period when I think it was Akhand Bharat; I don't know if Nepal existed then."