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Box Office: Radhe Shyam is a flop in Hindi, but it’s too early to write off the Prabhas phenomenon
Radhe Shyam went wrong on several fronts – ranging from the budget to the positioning – putting an unprecedented theatrical pressure. Read detailed box office report.
The Prabhas and Pooja Hegde fronted Radhe Shyam has been a disappointment in the Hindi belts as the film has clocked Rs 9 crore in two days. While the release was wide, lack of interest in the audience has resulted in showcasing going down by the day for this epic love story. The reports also are not encouraging, which means curtains down for the film on the weekdays. The lifetime collections of Radhe Shyam in Hindi would be under Rs 25 crore, suggesting a major flop for the makers.
A film like Radhe Shyam never seemed to be something that would set the box office on fire, though there was a certain section of trade expecting big returns from it for varied reasons. The Rs 9 crore biz in two days has come solely due to the presence of Prabhas, as without him, the same film would have ended up with collections under Rs 1 crore in Hindi belts. While Prabhas is a known face in Hindi belts, it’s time for him to take up good subjects to utilize the market potential. He needs to stop working with friends and family for emotional reasons and take up subjects that justify the platform he has got post Bahubali.
Both Saaho and Radhe Shyam suffered from substandard content, taking a dent on his goodwill after Bahubali. While Saaho managed to put up a respectable total due to varied factors including the peak of his popularity post Bahubali, there is no denying the fact that audience talk was surely on the negative side. While a section of trade is quick to write off Prabhas, one must realise that his next two releases – Salaar and Adipurush – are sure to take a solid start at the box-office even in the Hindi belts. There is a chatter about Pan Indian cinema as well, and it’s time for all to realise that one should go multi-lingual only if the story warrants that treatment. Constant influx of Pan India would kill the vibe of this term. The next to Prabhas films are in the zone that warrant a national release in multiple languages.
The larger-than-life space of cinema backed up with his Bahubali image will be two major pluses riding these spectacles. Saaho and Radhe Shyam were wrong decisions by Prabhas as follow up to Bahubali, and the biggest of the stars need the right subject to go ballistic at the ticket window. Of course, opening could have been better, but again, Prabhas was two film old before the release of Radhe Shyam, and it’s just the undue and unfair expectation that is resulting in the sense of big disappointment.
Radhe Shyam went wrong on several fronts – ranging from the budget to the positioning – putting an unprecedented theatrical pressure. Probably a simplistic story telling devoid of commercial trappings to accommodate the image and national reach would have been a more honest approach to the film.
While Radhe Shyam is a major flop, it’s time for Prabhas to be a little careful with his choices as he is a known face across Hindi belts, and it doesn’t take long for the image to be tarnished. The trade has put unrealistic pressure on the actor, but realistically, he is just three films old for the Hindi speaking audience and the journey has just begun for him. Let the guy breathe and carve his own path rather than already being pitted against the ones who have worked for 25 to 30 years to reach the stature in Hindi belts. Hopefully, Salaar and Adipurush will be the films that bring back the audience to witness the dominance of Prabhas, putting him on the road of rise again.
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