Hari Hara Veera Mallu, Pawan Kalyan's highly anticipated period action epic, saw a sharp decline in box office receipts following a huge opening day of Rs 34.75 crore.
Data from industry tracker Sacnilk shows that the movie made just Rs 8 crore net on Day 2 (Friday), a sharp 77% decline. With Rs 12.75 crore from preview screenings, the film's two-day domestic total revenue now stands at Rs 55.50 crore.
Despite high expectations, occupancy declines
On its second day, the Telugu-language historical drama had a moderate overall occupancy rate of 24.42%. Starting at 17.75%, morning shows increased slightly throughout the day to 20.17% in the afternoon, 27.21% in the evening, and 32.53% at night screenings. With 45.25% regional occupancy, Mahbubnagar was in first place, followed by Warangal (31.50%) and Hyderabad (28.75%).
Even though Hari Hara Veera Mallu has been released in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada, it still does best in Telugu-speaking areas and has little traction in other markets because of few screenings.
Box Office Pressure, Budget, and Reaction
Expectations were extremely high for the film, which was made on a huge Rs 300 crore budget and was postponed for years. Fans and industry analysts, however, are disappointed by the sharp decline on the second day.
This pattern is similar to other Pawan Kalyan films, such as Vakeel Saab (2021), which had an opening of Rs 40 crore and a closing of Rs 109 crore; Bro (2023), which started at Rs 30 crore but ended up making Rs 83 crore; and Bheemla Nayak (2022), which opened at Rs 37.15 crore and ended up making Rs 112 crore.
The pressure was increased by the expectation that Hari Hara Veera Mallu would boost the Telugu box office, which had been struggling since Pushpa 2's explosive 2024 success. Despite starting better than Hari Hara Veera Mallu, Shankar's Game Changer, starring Ram Charan, another big release this year, also failed, earning Rs 72.6 crore in two days and a final domestic total of Rs 131.17 crore.
Criticism and Controversy
Both critics and viewers have given the movie mixed to negative reviews, pointing to its poor execution and unimpressive storytelling. It has caused controversy as well. The movie was denounced by the Marxist Communist Party of India for allegedly inciting anti-Muslim sentiment.
The film's depiction of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and the jizya tax levied on Hindus, which the filmmakers have presented as a representation of religious tyranny, are the main sources of the controversy.
On the day of the movie's release, Pawan Kalyan, who plays the title role, wrote a statement supporting the plot: "Historians have long softened the brutality of the Jizya tax, a punitive levy imposed by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb on Hindus for practicing their faith. By revealing the erasure of Hindu suffering and the theft of India's wealth, such as that of the Kohinoor, Hari Hara Veera Mallu bravely exposes this injustice.
Prospects for the Future
The movie might find it difficult to hold its own at the box office in the days ahead, as preliminary reports indicate that word-of-mouth momentum is weak. Given its high production costs, Hari Hara Veera Mallu runs the risk of not breaking even unless it experiences a notable increase over the weekend or holiday season.
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