Telugu film "Masala", featuring Venkatesh, Ram, Anjali and Shazahn Padamsee, had a good opening at the box office on Friday, earning ₹8.5 crore, according to Box Office Capsule.
The film was reportedly made on a budget of ₹35 crore and was released in 600 theatres across Andhra Pradesh.
Directed by K. Vijaya Bhaskar, "Masala" is a remake of Bollywood hit "Bol Bachchan" which had Abhishek Bachchan and Ajay Devgn in the lead roles. Venkatesh portrays the role played by Ajay, while Ram takes up Abhishek's role in the remake.
The film received mixed feedback from critics but managed to make a good opening on Friday. Some critics were of the opinion that the film is fun to watch, if one leaves logic behind, while others think it's a photocopy of the Hindi version.
The story revolves around Balaram (Venkatesh), a kind-hearted village head, and Raheem (Ram). The latter gets a job offer from the former by impersonating himself as Ram. However, the village head, who cannot stand liars, finds out that his employee lied to him. What happens next forms the rest of the story.
"Masala" is Venkatesh's third film with Vijaya Bhaskar. Their previous films - "Nuvvu Naku Nachav" and "Malliswari" - were big hits and the latest release could follow suit if the opening collection was anything to go by. Produced by Daggubati Suresh Babu and Sravanthi Ravi Kishore, the film also features actors like Jaya Prakash Reddy, Brahmanandam, Kovai Sarala, MS Narayana, Ali and Posani Krishna Murali in important roles.
