Chiru, NBK, Nag, Venkatesh: No Festivals, No Box Office?

Senior Telugu Stars Target Festival Date

Chiranjeevi, Balakrishna, Nagarjuna and Venkatesh have ruled Telugu cinema for decades. They have survived changing trends, competition from younger heroes and several shifts in audience tastes. Even today, they continue to star in relatively BIG films and deliver box-office successes. However, a pattern is becoming difficult to ignore. Most of their upcoming films are being planned around festival and holiday weekends.

Venkatesh‘s Aadarsha Kutumbam offers an interesting example. The film was initially planned for the Dasara season but eventually arrived towards the end of October. Without the festival advantage, it opened to a poor response and disastrous collections. This has once again raised questions about how much holiday periods contribute to the opening business of senior heroes.

Venkatesh is now preparing for his next film, January 12 Vidudala, directed by Anil Ravipudi. The makers are working hard to release it on January 12, 2027, during Sankranthi and are unwilling to miss the date at any cost.

Balakrishna is following a similar approach. His previous film Akhanda 2 arrived in December and failed at the box office. Now, Dada is targeting December 24 to take advantage of the Christmas holidays. Even after his knee surgery delayed the shoot, Balakrishna is reportedly against postponing the film beyond the planned date unless it can make it to Sankranthi.

Chiranjeevi has also found success during festival seasons. Waltair Veerayya and Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu benefited from their Sankranthi releases. His non-festival releases like Godfather, Bholaa Shankar and Acharya, on the other hand, flopped badly. Naturally, the makers are keen to bring Kaaka to theatres during the Sankranthi season again, despite rumors of a delay.

Nagarjuna is also targeting December 24 for King 100, his landmark 100th film. With solo-hero successes becoming rare for him in recent years, the Christmas window is an important opportunity.

The question is whether these stars are choosing festivals because their films naturally suit those periods or because they have become increasingly dependent on holiday openings. Festival releases offer more footfalls and better opening prospects. However, they cannot guarantee success. They can help decent content become a hit, but they cannot turn a poor film into a success.

Perhaps the bigger challenge for senior stars is to prove that their films can attract audiences on ordinary weekends too. A star’s market should ideally extend beyond the festival calendar.