With Allu Arjun’s ‘Pushpa’ taking the box office by storm, the collections of ‘Akhanda’ might have dropped drastically but one cannot forget the mass bonanza Nandamuri Balakrishna gave to the audience a few weeks back. His action entertainer ‘Akhanda’ which was released on 2nd December amidst huge hype bagged a positive response right from its very first show. It was the first big release post the second lockdown and the entire film industry prayed for it to succeed. As expected, the film turned out to be a hattrick under the combination of Balakrishna and Boyapati Sreenu. The duo which gave blockbusters like ‘Simha’ and ‘Legend’ in the past have reunited once again for ‘Akhanda’ and they delivered big time.
The film was a mass feast to the fans and Balakrishna as Aghora created havoc in theatres. The film got a repeat audience and the first crossed the breakeven mark within the first days. After 18 days of its theatrical run, trade analysts report that the film bagged a share of 76 crores. This is quite huge considering the fact that there were a lot of restrictions in Andhra Pradesh and it was released with low ticket rates.
Within 18 days, ‘Akhanda’ stook as the highest collected film in the vast career of Nandamuri Balakrishna who acted in more than 100 films. Also, this film crossed 1 million in the overseas market which is a rare feat for a complete mass film. A lot of factors contributed to the success of this film. While the powerful presence of Balakrishna and his acting were the biggest strengths of this film, Boyapati’s presentation has to be given a lot of credit. Despite playing it very safe after a disaster like ‘Vinaya Vidheya Rama’, Boyapati showcased Balayya in the best way possible. After that, Thaman is considered the second hero of the film by many due to his thumping background score. He elevated the film to a whole new level and fans went ballistic in the theatres.
Currently, Balakrishna is hosting ‘Unstoppable’ while his next film under Gopichand Malineni’s direction is expected to begin soon. After giving a hattrick, the audience are already expecting another film from the Balayya-Boyapati combo. Let us wait and see when they come together again.