Ustaad Bhagat Singh box office collection day 2: Pawan Kalyan film feels heat of Dhurandhar 2, earns ₹44 crore

Ustaad Bhagat Singh box office collection day 2: Apart from Pawan Kalyan, the mass actioner also stars Sreeleela, Raashii Khanna and R. Parthiban.

Ustaad Bhagat Singh box office collection day 2: The Pawan Kalyan-led mass actioner, which hit cinemas on March 19, found itself in a high-stakes box office clash with Ranveer Singh’s much-hyped spy thriller Dhurandhar 2. And the Telugu film appears to have taken a hit amid the massive buzz surrounding Aditya Dhar’s directorial, as reflected in its box-office performance.

Box office collection

Ustaad Bhagat Singh box office collection day 2: Pawan Kalyan's film is an adaptation of Theri.

According to Sacnilk, Ustaad Bhagat Singh collected ₹9.25 crore on day 2 of its release, which also marked its first Friday at the box office. The platform further noted that the film was screened across 3,447 shows, recording an overall occupancy of 36.0 per cent. The overall total collection in India now stands at ₹44.00 crore (nett).

The numbers suggest that the film’s momentum has been dented, with its day 2 collections reflecting the impact of the clash with the Dhurandhar sequel.

In comparison, Dhurandhar 2 recorded an occupancy of around 35 per cent in the region, albeit with a limited release of just 700 shows. According to Sacnilk, the film’s Telugu-dubbed version earned ₹1.30 crore on day 2, while its nationwide collection for the day stood at an impressive ₹80.72 crore. The total collection in India, as mentioned on the trade website, is ₹226.27 crore.

After the makers of Geetu Mohandas and Yash’s Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups announced that their film had been postponed amid the West Asian conflict, Pawan Kalyan-starrer Ustaad Bhagat Singh was moved up to their date to take the slot. The film, initially scheduled for release later this month, was released on March 19, clashing with Aditya Dhar’s Ranveer Singh-starrer Dhurandhar 2.

Directed by Harish Shankar and produced by Mythri Movie Makers, Ustaad Bhagat Singh stars Pawan Kalyan in the titular role. It is a remake of Vijay’s Tamil hit Theri. Before the film's release, in an interview with Gulte, the director addressed the clash with Dhurandhar 2, clarifying that the release date decision was not in his hands.

When asked how he views the box office clash and whether he feels nervous about going head-to-head with Aditya Dhar’s sequel, the filmmaker did not shy away from praising his competitor.

He said, “With all due respect, Aditya Dhar is a superior filmmaker. I watched Uri. He is a very impactful, very influential filmmaker. Having said that, India-wide films should consider Dhurandhar as competition. But we have our Telugu states for the film. Also, they both belong to very different genres. If, in place of Dhurandhar, it was an SRK (Shah Rukh Khan) movie, songs, full entertainer zone, then we would have thought, ‘Oh, it’s similar to our film.’ But Bhagat Singh and Dhurandhar are totally different films.”

Ustaad Bhagat Singh also stars Sreeleela, Raashii Khanna and R. Parthiban.