#NBK111: Balakrishna Insisting On This Date, But..

Quite calmly and without making any noise, the shooting of Nandamuri Balakrishna’s next, #NBK111, being directed by Gopichand Malineni, has started. For two months, the team has been working quite hard, heading for terrific progress in terms of the shoot. However, while the film was supposed to hit cinemas during Dasara eve, now the producers, director, and hero are said to be having a different thought on the date.

For Balakrishna, the season of Dasara holidays and the dates around it have always been fruitful. For the very same reason, the hero is said to be insisting on the makers to release the film on the Dasara eve only. However, director Gopichand Malineni is of the opinion that they should release the film on Sankranthi eve, for the revenues to be maximised. While he needs ample time for the film’s VFX to be wrapped, he is also looking forward to another Anil Ravipudi like moment, where even average films make 100s of crores during the mighty Sankranthi season. That’s the period when Telugu audience will be in a huge festive and holiday mood, and making cinema their biggest entertainer.

#NBK11 on the other hand, went through a lot of changes, including the casting, which now has Manchu Manoj playing the role of antagonist. This film would be made in a bigger budget earlier, but after Akhanda 2 didn’t perform as expected, the expected OTT revenue of the movie has reportedly come down, and the budgets slashed, owing to that. Earlier, Gopichand’s other movie, Jaat, also made good money from the box office, but the over-cost during the production made it a minor-loss venture, as per industry insiders.