Ram Charan’s much-anticipated film Game Changer hit theaters worldwide on January 10, 2025, with expectations of becoming the first major blockbuster of the year. However, it is facing stiff competition from Allu Arjun’s Pushpa 2: The Rule, which has outperformed it at the box office.
According to a report by the Indian Express on Monday, the film’s performance over the weekend has left both the makers and fans disheartened. Game Changer had a strong opening on Friday, grossing Rs 51 crore, but experienced a significant decline on Saturday, earning only Rs 21.6 crore.
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The downward trend continued on Sunday, with the film bringing in Rs 17 crore, resulting in total domestic nett collections of Rs 89.6 crore.
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This decline can be attributed to a combination of mixed reviews from critics and audiences, as well as the release of Nandamuri Balakrishna’s Daaku Maharaaj, which is the second major release for the Sankranthi festival in 2025. Despite these challenges, there is still hope for the Dil Raju production, which stars Ram Charan and Kiara Advani in lead roles, as the long holiday weekend may provide an opportunity for recovery.
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While the makers initially announced that Game Changer grossed Rs 186 crore at the global box office on its opening day, they have not updated these figures since. It is estimated that the film could reach a total of Rs 250-300 crore by the end of the opening weekend.Notably, the occupancy rates on Day 2 (31.19%) and Day 3 (29%) were relatively consistent, indicating that the entry of Daaku Maharaaj and the sharing of screens have impacted Game Changer’s collections.
It is also important to highlight that the most significant drops in revenue were observed in the Telugu version of the film, while the Hindi and Tamil versions have shown more stability. In fact, the Hindi collections increased on Sunday, earning Rs 7.7 crore compared to Rs 7.5 crore on Friday and Rs 7.3 crore on Saturday. This suggests that Game Changer has garnered support in the Hindi-speaking regions, while the Telugu version has faced a wave of negative reception.
Game Changer, which opened with Rs 41.25 crore for its Telugu version, only managed to collect Rs 20.5 crore over the subsequent two days, contributing to its underwhelming performance. With Sankrantiki Vasthunnaam, a film starring Venkatesh and directed by Anil Ravipudi, set to release on January 14, and Daaku Maharaaj having opened with Rs 22.5 crore on Sunday, it remains to be seen how Game Changer will fare by the end of the Sankranthi week.
