Sankranthi @ US BO: All Time Record, But…

This Sankranti season was a largely rewarding one for the Telugu films at the United States box office. Most of these films were brilliantly at the ticket counters, but there was still unused potential that might have gone more in the favour of the investors if there was better planning.

The 2026 Sankranthi season in North America delivered a record breaking result for Telugu cinema in terms of total collections, but it also highlighted several missed opportunities.

The cumulative gross of all Telugu releases during the festive window is expected to close at around 8.5 million dollars, making it the highest Sankranthi total ever in the region. While this number looks impressive on the surface, a closer look at individual film performance tells a different story.

Despite the strong overall figure, none of the releases managed to perform up to their full potential. Most films fell short of pre release expectations, leaving distributors and exhibitors disappointed.

One of the main reasons behind this underperformance was the decision to go for odd day releases. These release dates created major challenges in planning shows and allocating screens effectively across theaters. Uneven show counts and heavy competition between multiple Telugu films further diluted the audience turnout.

Adding to these issues, severe weather conditions during the second weekend had a clear impact on footfalls, especially in key overseas markets. This prevented films from gaining momentum when they needed it the most.

The 2026 Sankranthi box office result serves as an important lesson. For Sankranthi 2027, producers and distributors must plan release dates carefully, manage competition better, and keep overseas business expectations realistic to avoid repeating the same mistakes.