Kannappa Budget vs Box Office Collections: Mythological action-drama Kannappa, which is directed by and features Manchu Vishnu, opened with high expectations and a big aspiration. With special appearances by top heroes like Prabhas, Mohanlal, and Akshay Kumar, the movie was promoted as a pan-India spectacle from a legend. But early box office reports show that it is going to be an uphill battle. Though it opened well in Telugu-speaking states, it fared poorly elsewhere. The question is—is this big-budget film going to earn profits?
Kannappa is said to be among the costliest projects in Telugu cinema with a speculated budget range of ₹200 crore to ₹300 crore. The budget includes:
Visual Effects & Set Design: Premium VFX, high-value production war sequences, and overseas locations for filming, with a focus in New Zealand.
Star Cameos & Cast: Pan-India star power adds to the cost.
Marketing & Promotions: Aggressive multi-language promotions in India.
The producers reportedly made back half their investment through OTT and satellite rights, with estimates of ₹100–₹150 crore received in pre-release offers.
According to Sacnilk, the India net collections are as follows:
On Day 1 (Friday): ₹9.35 crore
By Day 2 (Saturday): ₹7.15 crore (23.53% drop)
The Day 3 (Sunday): ₹7.25 crore
Total 3-Day Nett Collection: ₹23.75 crore
Telugu version: 39.93% Sunday occupancy
Tamil version: 24.1% Sunday occupancy
Other versions (Hindi, Kannada) have been below average.
Also Read: Kannappa Star Cast Remuneration Revealed: From Mohanlal to Prabhas
The Road Ahead
To recover a ₹200–₹300 crore investment, Kannappa must have good weekday business and experience a second-weekend pick-up. The local strength of the movie in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will bring stability, but the lack of pan-India pull will choke theatrical collections. Word-of-mouth and family audience patronage will be key to sustaining its run.
While Kannappa started with brouhaha, its commercial prospects are questionable. Unless collections improve significantly and local support continues to be strong, profitability would be a long and torturous process. For now, Manchu Vishnu’s fantasy film project has reached a crossroads—distracted between hope and box office realities.