Dhanush's 'Vaathi' Flies High, Kartik Aaryan's 'Shehzada' Struggles (Box Office Report)

Dhanush's Vaathi clashed with Kartik Aaryan's Shehzada at the box office this Friday. According to trade buzz, Vaathi got a flying start while Shehzada struggled to make a mark. Directed by Venky Atluri, the Dhanush-starrer is a bilingual released as Sir in Telugu.

Early estimates report the film's opening day collection to be around Rs 16 crore with Rs 7 crore from Tamil Nadu alone. Vaathi is a social drama in which Dhanush portrays the role of a math teacher who fights against injustice and corruption in the education system. The film shares a detailed insight into the privatisation of the education system.

"@dhanushkraja 's scores his biggest Telugu grosser with #SIRMovie as it surpasses his previous best #RaghuvaranBTech 's lifetime share," trade analyst Ramesh Bala posted. The film also stars Samyuktha, Sai Kumar, Tanikella Bharani, Samuthirakani, Thotapalli Madhu, Narra Srinivas, Pammi Sai, Hyper Aadi, Sha Ra, Aadukalam Naren, Ilavarasu, Rajendran, Hareesh Peradi, and Praveena in prominent roles.

On the other hand, Shehzada is a remake of the superhit Telugu film Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo which had Allu Arjun playing the lead role. As per the industry trackers, Shehzada's first-day collection stands at Rs 7 crore (early estimates) with just 14.5% occupancy. Considering the negative reviews, it looks like the film has a tough road ahead.