Ever since its release on May 9, the number of screens showing Mahanati has been increasing by the day. The film, which was made with a budget of Rs 25 crore, has already recovered its costs and started making a profit. Its overseas collections are over USD 2 million.
The channels seeking satellite rights to the film before its release were only willing to pay a small amount for it, but the makers were smart to turn them all down. “The makers decided not to sell the film’s satellite and digital rights until after it was released. Their plan has worked out well, and now channels are willing to pay huge amounts,” a source says.
The offers have doubled from Rs 11 crore pre-release to Rs 22 crore post-release, but the makers have yet to sell the rights.
“We haven’t sold the satellite rights to anyone, we are still discussing it,” says Swapna Dutt, a producer of the film.
