Kantara Chapter 1 Day 1 Box Office: Rishab Shetty’s Film Roars Past ₹60 Crore

The mystical world of coastal Karnataka has once again roared onto the global stage, as Rishab Shetty’s highly anticipated prequel, Kantara: A Legend – Chapter 1, delivered a colossal performance at the box office on its opening day, smashing predictions and setting new benchmarks for Kannada cinema.

According to early industry estimates, the mythological period drama has reportedly crossed the phenomenal ₹60 crore (net) mark in India on its very first day of release, October 2nd. This gargantuan figure not only places the film among the top opening day grossers of 2025 across all Indian cinema but also significantly outpaces its predecessor, the 2022 sleeper-hit Kantara, by a margin of over 1400%.

A Triumph Against Predictions

The staggering Day 1 collection is a powerful testament to the massive goodwill and pan-India appeal built by the Kantara franchise. While advance bookings for the film, a prequel tracing the origins of the Daiva worship and the relationship between man and nature, were initially described as slow compared to other major tentpole releases of the year, the on-the-day ‘spot booking’ and sheer momentum created by positive word-of-mouth following the premiere shows propelled its earnings to an unexpected zenith.

Early reports indicated lukewarm turnouts for morning shows, but occupancy surged dramatically through the afternoon and evening shows, particularly in the core Kannada, Telugu, and Tamil-speaking regions.

Pan-India Domination: Hindi Belt Contributes Heavily

The film’s success was truly pan-Indian, with its dubbed versions contributing substantially to the total haul. The Hindi version, in particular, demonstrated exceptional performance, estimated to have collected between ₹19 crore to ₹21 crore (net) on its opening day. This makes Kantara Chapter 1 the second-largest opening for a Kannada film in the Hindi market, trailing only the record-breaking KGF: Chapter 2. The success underscores the growing trend of Southern Indian cinema connecting deeply with audiences across Northern and Western India.

Kantara Chapter 1 has immediately jumped ahead of several major 2025 releases, including the opening day numbers of films like Saiyaara and Chhaava, and is currently racing towards the first-day collection of Rajinikanth’s Coolie (₹65 crore), proving Rishab Shetty’s directorial and acting prowess is a major draw for the festive Dusshera holiday crowd.

Critical and Celebrity Acclaim

The film, which delves into the ancient roots of the Bhuta Kola ritual, has been met with near-universal acclaim from critics and audiences alike. Many have lauded Shetty for excelling both as a writer-director and a lead actor, creating an even more visually grand and spiritually immersive experience than the original.

The film has received an outpouring of congratulations from the industry, with Telugu superstar Jr NTR praising Shetty for pulling off the “unthinkable” by excelling in both roles, and Prabhas calling the film “brilliant” and a potential “biggest blockbuster of the year.”

Produced by Hombale Films, which previously backed the K.G.F. franchise, Kantara Chapter 1 stars Rishab Shetty alongside Rukmini Vasanth, Jayaram, and Gulshan Devaiah. With a modest budget of approximately ₹125 crore for a film of this scale, the massive opening day collection puts the film in a commanding position for a highly profitable extended holiday weekend run. Box office analysts are now keenly watching to see if the film can maintain this momentum and further solidify the pan-India dominance of Kannada cinema.