It’s true… four Telugu films have already proudly secured a place in the ₹1000 crore club, making us hold our heads high. Right now, we dominate that club — but all these films were made on massive budgets. That’s why there’s a lot we can learn from Kannada films that are creating national-level waves on limited budgets.
With KGF, our Kannada brothers suddenly made the entire nation turn towards them. Then came Kantara, which once again grabbed everyone’s attention. Made on a ₹16 crore budget, it collected ₹400 crore across India. On half that budget, last month’s Mahavatar Narasimha is racing towards ₹100 crore. And now, Su From So, made on just ₹5–6 crores, is also creating a sensation.
Another key point to note — until the release of Kantara, Mahavatar Narasimha, and Su From So, hardly anyone knew about them. Not a rupee was spent on publicity. All three films earned profits purely through positive word of mouth spread by premieres. These movies have proved that if our films have strong content, there’s no need to spend crores and crores on promotions.
In any case, our Kannada brothers are now dethroning our Malayalam friends — who, until now, held the patent for content-based cinema — and they truly deserve a heartfelt “Hats off!”
— Appaji
