Superstar Rajinikanth’s Lingaa might not have done as well as its investors would have liked, but it seems Kabali is already giving investors reason to smile. The film has raked in Rs 200 crore, before its release!
The film directed by Pa Ranjith and produced by Kalaipuli Thanu of V Creations is the toast of tinsel town.
According to Sreedhar Pillai in The Hindu, the film is likely to do pre-release business of over Rs 200 crore from the sale of distribution rights, endorsement deals and merchandise.
The film’s trailer has touched nearly 20 million views on YouTube and its audio rights have been picked up by Think Music India, according to the news report.
The film’s Karnataka distribution rights, sold to Lingaa ’s producer Rockline Venkatesh, has fetched a record price.
The Telugu dubbing rights of the film has also been finalised for a phenomenal amount.
Two Bollywood distributors have been camping in Chennai for the Hindi dubbing rights. In the overseas market, the film’s France distribution rights alone, have sold for more than double of what other films command in the entire European market.
According to the report, a Hong Kong-based company has offered a huge amount for the Chinese dubbing rights and a simultaneous release in China. Negotiations are at an advanced stage as Bollywood films generally find it difficult to get a China release, and even if they release, it’s usually months after their India release.
The latest trade buzz is that Kabali ’s release has been advanced by a week for a worldwide release on 1 July in four languages – Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, and Malayalam.
The producers of the film say it will be the biggest-ever worldwide release for an Indian film, with the numbers expected to touch 5,000 screens.
But, it is Rajinikanth, who is holidaying in the US, who will take the final call on the release date.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)