The much-hyped Dhanush starrer ‘Captain Miller’ fails to draw even decent enough openings in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and looks to be a losing proposition. “The decision to release the Telugu version after two weeks was a flawed move,” says a distributor and adds, “Scathing reviews on Tamil version during Pongal and trolls on social media took its toll since Telugu audiences would have lost interest after watching them,” he adds.
He claims that Tamil producers who have put in more than Rs 50 crores on this patriotic action adventure should have released the film simultaneously in Tamil and Telugu, rather than agreeing for postponement. “If they had released the film in Telugu states during Sankranthi, it would have drawn Rs 7 to 8 crore openings on day one riding on Dhanush’s action avatar, but they chose to defer the release and paid a heavy price," he points out.
The film has garnered over R 1 crore plus till date in two states and collections are on the downslide since footfalls are diminishing in theatres in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana states. “It is a kind of lesson for Tamil filmmakers who want to mint money in Telugu states. Either you release the film simultaneously or prefer an OTT release for the Telugu version since adverse reactions from Tamil audience is reaching Telugu audience much faster than you expect and denting the excitement,” he concludes.
