'Had Dhurandhar not been around, had there been no long IPL...': Adivi Sesh wants no speculations on Dacoit's box office

Dacoit, Adivi Sesh's new release, earned ₹22 crore net domestically in its opening weekend, less than what Dhurandhar 2 managed on the same weekend.

Action thriller Dacoit is currently running in theatres. Shaneil Deo’s directorial debut stars Adivi Sesh and Mrunal Thakur in lead roles. The film was set to release on March 19, but was delayed by three weeks to avoid a clash with Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar 2. As expected, Dhurandhar 2 is enjoying a record-breaking run at the box office. Dacoit arrived on April 10, and even as it earned a healthy ₹22 crore net in its opening weekend, it was still beaten by Dhurandhar 2, running in its fourth week.

Adivi Sesh in a still from Dacoit.

Adivi Sesh on Dacoit box office

Many wondered if Dacoit could have been delayed even further. But for Adivi Sesh, all this is a moot point. As he sat down with HT to discuss Dacoit’s box-office performance, we asked him whether Dhurandhar 2 hurt the film? The actor replied, “Honestly, who can say? I mean, had Dhurandhar not been around, had there not been a two-month IPL this time, or had Kantara and Vikram not been released day as Major…” he trails off as he talks about how his previous release, Major, also faced a box office clash with big films and still succeeded.

Sesh added, “But the destiny for this film has been beautifully positive, and I'm just grateful now.”

‘Everything about the film is honest’

As the makers of Dacoit shared posters declaring the film a blockbuster after its ₹40-crore opening weekend (worldwide gross), many wondered if the celebration was premature. Sesh responds, “To them it feels, ‘How can they?’ But at the end of the day, I'll tell you one thing: everything about our film has come from an honest space.”

The actor-writer is thankful for the support his film has received from not just the audiences but also the industry. Filmmaker Allu Aravind and Nani have been vocal supporters of the film even before it released. “For someone like Allu Aravind, Allu Arjun's dad, and Bunny Vasu to say, ‘Hey, we want to talk about the movie, can you give us a stage to do so?’ is a big deal. And they said we don't want to do it in one simple video bite. They came and spoke. And these are just honest things. I don't have that kind of influence to get those kinds of big guys to talk.”

Dacoit, directed by Shaneil Deo, stars Sesh alongside Mrunal Thakur and Anurag Kashyap. The film opened to lukewarm reviews but grossed ₹40 crore worldwide in its opening weekend. It has since added around ₹10 crore in three days.