Indian blockbuster “RRR,” directed by S.S. Rajamouli and starring NTR Jr and Ram Charan, has roared to a mighty INR5 billion ($65.6 million) opening weekend, according to numbers provided to Variety by producer DVV Entertainment.
“RRR” (“Rise Roar Revolt”), a period action drama, debuted in third position at the U.S. box office with a $9.5 million opening weekend and has emerged as one of the top grossing films worldwide during this period.
The film released on March 25 worldwide in the Telugu, Tamil, Hindi and Malayalam languages and collected $29.2 million on its opening day.
Rajamouli’s previous films, “Baahubali: The Beginning” (2015) and “Baahubali 2: The Conclusion” (2017) were also global box office successes and grossed $370 million combined.
Produced on an approximate budget of $52 million by D. V. V. Danayya, “RRR” is a lavish, rambunctious entertainer crammed with eye-popping set-pieces and death-defying stunts. Set in the 1920s, the historical fiction story by Vijayendra Prasad and Rajamouli makes real-life Indian freedom fighters Alluri Sitarama Raju (Ram Charan) and Komaram Bheem (NTR Jr) meet and become fast friends. Their common enemy are the occupying colonial British. The cast also includes Bollywood A-listers Ajay Devgn and Alia Bhatt and British actors Ray Stevenson and Olivia Morris, Irish actor Alison Doody and U.S. actor Edward Sonnenblick.
Part of the film, including the chartbusting “Naatu Naatu” number, featuring NTR Jr and Ram Charan matching steps in perfect sync, was shot in Kyiv. The film’s shoot and release was delayed a number of times by the COVID-19 pandemic. With cinemas across India now reopened to full capacity, audiences are likely to continue thronging to “RRR” much as they did with the “Baahubali” films.