Venkatesh's Telugu film Guru has got good opening and made a decent collection at the US box office ($36,278) on its first day. The movie has even slowed down the business of Pawan Kalyan's Katamarayudu.
Before its release, Guru had good hype and promotion, which created a huge demand for its theatrical rights. BlueSky Cinemas acquired its overseas distribution rights for a record price and book around 90 screens for its grand release in North America. The film became the biggest solo release for Venkatesh.
The Venkatesh and Ritika Singh starrer was premiered in several screens across the country on Thursday (March 30) night and it received very good response in the paid preview shows. Guru collected $21,901 at the US box office in the premieres and became the biggest opener for the Victory actor in the country.
The Sudha Kongara Prasad-directed sports drama received a positive talk from the audience and the word-of-mouth publicity boosted its business on Friday (March 31). Taran Adarsh tweeted: "Telugu film #Guru debuts at No 24 at USA BO... Thu previews $ 21,901, Fri $ 36,278. Total: $ 58,179 [₹ 37.70 lakhs]. @Rentrak."
On other hand, the screen count of Katamarayudu, which was released in over 250 screens in the US on March 24, was reduced by nearly 50 per cent by the new release in its second week. The positive talk for Guru made it the second choice for many viewers in the county. These factors resulted in over 90 per cent decline in its business on its second Friday, when compared to its first day business.
Katamarayudu has collected $11,300 from around 125 screens at the US box office on its second Friday, taking its eight-day gross total to $1,106,351 (Rs 7.17 crore). Adarsh tweeted: "Telugu film #Katamarayudu - USA - Week 2: Fri $ 11,300. Total: $ 1,106,351 [₹ 7.17 cr]. @Rentrak."
However, the overseas theatrical rights of Katamarayudu were sold for a whopping price and the movie was expected to cross $2.5 million mark to meet the expectations of its distributors. But looking at the current pace of collection, it seems the movie would not be able to cross even the halfway mark.
