The long wait finally came to an end on Thursday with “Liger” hitting screens after an intense promotional tour across the country and blitzkrieg.
There is a lot of riding on this Hindi film by lead actor Vijay Devarakonda and co-producer Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions. The past few days have seen the film in the crosshairs of the Bollywood boycott.
For lead actor Vijay Divarkunda, ‘Liger’ is his go-to for Bollywood and All-India audiences. Coming on the heels of southern stars like Prabhas, Allu Arjun, Ram Charan, NTR and Yash, who have made their presence felt in Bollywood, Liger’s success means a lot to a self-made Tollywood star like Vijay.
Initial signs were encouraging enough that the film made a solid entry in the American circuit, much to the encouragement of fans and the film’s cast. The ‘Liger’ Telugu version has been released in 274 locations in America and premieres are already in some theaters in this important overseas market.
The film’s overseas distributors Sarigama Cinemas announced Thursday morning that Liger has already earned over US$4.4 thousand on the back of early morning and US premieres.
“#Liger USAPremiers $441,263 from 274 Locs at 6:50 PM PST,” Sarigama Cinemas tweeted early Thursday morning.
In India, the film is being shown in 3,000 screens, and according to commercial sources, there was a reasonable advance reservation for the release day. But that is to be expected given the hype around the film and Vijay’s fan following in Telugu states.
While critics have appreciated Vijay’s efforts to stand out in his role as a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, they don’t find much off the beaten path in terms of story and script.
A high-profile film journalist based in Hyderabad told IANS that the story line failed to impress because there was nothing new in it. “The lead role in his stuttering role was not good with the fans,” he said.
By being active on social media, ‘Liger’ appears to be floundering at the Telugu box office. The same is likely to be reflected in the pan-India market.
Another alarm signal ringing loudly was the silence of the film team after the early screenings of the day. Compared to his confident stance in the run-up to the film’s release, Vijay Deverakonda looked faint on Thursday. With no celebratory scenes or success talk on social media, the question on people’s minds is: Did Liger lose the plot?
While a clear picture will emerge over the weekend, after working for three years on the film, Vijay Deverakonda and the ‘Liger’ team will be keeping their fingers crossed until then.
The movie ‘Liger’ starring Vijay Devarakonda, Ananya Pandey and Ramya Krishna among others was released on August 25.
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