We are halfway through 2025, and it is déjà vu for Telugu cinema — a largely underwhelming summer once again. Of the 90-odd theatrical releases between January and June, only Sankranthiki Vasthunam, Court, and MAD Squareare clear hits in the trade circuits. A handful — Thandel, Kuberaa, HIT 3, Subham, and Single — drew early interest.
While industry watchers might argue that the success rate has historically hovered around 10–15% of the releases, the middle ground is fast disappearing. Films are either hits or washouts. Show cancellations due to low footfalls even on opening weekends have become common.
Quick OTT turnarounds, weak storytelling, production delays, shifting release dates of big-budget films chasing pan-India success, and persistent piracy are all to blame.
The Sankranti season, usually a box office goldmine, offered a sobering reality check. Game Changer, Shankar’s long-delayed film starring Ram Charan, bombed despite its scale and multilingual push, undone by a stale, formulaic narrative.
Daaku Maharaaj, directed by Bobby Kolli, fared better, continuing Balakrishna’s winning streak. Still, it was not without controversy — its ‘Dabidi dibidi’ track featuring Urvashi Rautela drew flak online.
Collective laughter therapy
It came as little surprise that director Anil Ravipudi and Venkatesh’s Sankranthiki Vasthunam emerged as the season’s winner. After a string of high-voltage action films, audiences welcomed the return of a mid-budget family entertainer. Ravipudi and Venkatesh’s third collaboration — after F2 and F3 — delivered enough laughs to overlook the occasional flat joke or underwhelming VFX. Reportedly made on a ₹50 crore budget, the film is said to have grossed nearly ₹300 crore.
Ironically, both Sankranthiki Vasthunam and Game Changer were produced by Dil Raju, marking a rare week of simultaneous success and failure.
Among February releases, Chandoo Mondeti’s Thandel stood out, drawing attention for reuniting Naga Chaitanya and Sai Pallavi after Love Story, and for its soundtrack by Devi Sri Prasad. Most other titles barely registered.
Holding court
Priyadarshi in ‘Court’
At a time when most films fade after their opening weekend, debut director Ram Jagadeesh’s Court: State vs A Nobody proved that sharp writing and strong performances still hold weight. The courtroom drama, led by Priyadarshi as an underdog lawyer fighting for a wrongly accused teenager, struck a chord. A tender love story between newcomers Harsh Roshan and Sridevi, along with Vijai Bulganin’s evocative score, added to its appeal. With a modest budget under ₹10 crore, the film reportedly earned over ₹50 crore. It also marked a comeback for actor Sivaji, who played the antagonist with conviction.
Weeks later, Sailesh Kolanu’s HIT: The Third Case opened strong, crossing the ₹100 crore mark, with Nani fronting the third instalment of the HIT-verse. While it could not maintain momentum post the first weekend, Nani had reason to celebrate — both Court and HIT 3, produced under his banner, were commercial wins.
May 2024 had seen a near-total blackout in theatres due to elections and the IPL. Hopes were higher for May 2025, with big titles like Hari Hara Veera Mallu and Kingdom initially slated for release. But both were postponed, leaving cinemas once again without the summer footfall they had counted on.
Still, a few smaller titles broke through. Samantha Ruth Prabhu’s debut production Subham, a horror-comedy directed by Praveen Kandregula, stood out for its quirky tone and ensemble cast. Meanwhile, Single, a comedy drama starring Sree Vishnu and Vennela Kishore, became a surprise hit.
Larger dreams, local disconnect
The ensemble cast of ‘MAD Square’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
In the pre-pandemic years, April and May reliably drew family audiences to theatres, with star-led films timed to coincide with school and college vacations. But post Baahubali, and especially after the nationwide success of Pushpa and RRR, producers increasingly pursued big-budget, multilingual projects, often in two parts and headlined by A-list stars. The result: inflated budgets, extended timelines, and a growing disconnect from core Telugu audiences.
After a tepid summer, the industry pinned its hopes on Sekhar Kammula’s Kuberaa. The social thriller, starring Nagarjuna, Dhanush, and Rashmika Mandanna, closed the first half of 2025 on a high. According to the makers, it crossed ₹100 crore in global collections, largely buoyed by strong responses in the Telugu states and overseas markets.
Looking ahead, big-ticket releases like Akhanda 2, Vishwambara, The RajaSaab, Hari Hara Veera Mallu, and Kingdom are slated for the second half of the year. Still, for sustained momentum, the industry will need smaller, content-driven successes — films in the vein of Committee Kurrollu, 35: Chinna Katha Kaadu, and KA, which brought unexpected joy to 2024. Hopeful contenders include The Girlfriend, directed by Rahul Ravindran and starring Rashmika Mandanna, and Telusu Kada, the debut feature by Neeraja Kona.
Published – July 02, 2025 03:29 pm IST