Raja Saab Hindi Day 1 BO: Disastrous Despite Block Bookings?

According to trade website BoxOfficeIndia, Prabhas’ The Raja Saab had a very weak opening in the Hindi market, collecting just Rs. 5.25 crore net on its first day. What makes this figure more worrying is that it reportedly includes block bookings, a practice increasingly used to inflate Day 1 numbers. Recent releases such as Dhurandhar, Tu Meri Main Tera Main Tera Tu Meri, Ikkis, and now The Raja Saab have all used this method. While Dhurandhar proved its strength through genuine audience demand and would have succeeded even without such support, The Raja Saab does not appear to be in the same position.

This is Prabhas’ lowest Hindi opening since Radhe Shyam. If block bookings are removed, the real collections are even lower than Radhe Shyam. Given this trend, the film is likely to see a drop on Saturday as well unless numbers are once again boosted artificially.

The situation is noticeably better in South India. Including Thursday previews, the film has collected around Rs. 46 to 48 crores net in the southern states. With previews added, the overall Day 1 total stands at around Rs. 52 crores net in India. While this looks decent on paper, it is still far below expectations when judged by Telugu market standards, especially for a Prabhas film mounted on such a massive scale.

With a reported budget of nearly Rs. 350 crores, a strong performance in Hindi was essential for recovery.

Overseas, the film collected about USD $2.60 million, roughly Rs. 23 crores, on its opening day. This includes $1.70 million from previews, which means Friday’s actual business was extremely poor. The US contributed most of this revenue, but walk-in audiences were limited, raising concerns about sustainability. Telugu films overseas are usually front loaded unless the Hindi version clicks, which has not happened here. The first weekend overseas may end below $5 million, which would be a disastrous outcome for a Prabhas film.

According to Bollywood trade websites, the worldwide opening stands at around Rs. 90 crores gross. In today’s Indian cinema, Rs. 100 crores on Day 1 is considered the benchmark, and The Raja Saab falls short of that mark. Out of nine Telugu films that crossed this benchmark, five belong to Prabhas himself. The only misses are Radhe Shyam and now The Raja Saab. At this level, the conversation is no longer about who crosses Rs. 100 crores, but who does not, and this film clearly falls into that latter category.

The situation for Raja Saab on the second day doesn’t look good and the film is expected to take a massive drop of more than 50% from its first day.