Endhiran sets a new record in AP

Rajnikanth, Aishwarya Rai starrer Endhiran has set a new record in Andhra Pradesh. Directed by Shankar, the film has been produced by Kalanithi Maran on Sun Pictures banner. After days of intense speculation about who would buy the Telugu rights, the story has had a happy ending. The theatrical rights for the Telugu version of the film titled Robo have been clinched by Chadalavada Srinivasa Rao of Tirumala Tirupati Venkateswara Films for a whopping sum of Rs 30 crores. It’s a new record for any dubbed film and has raised many eyebrows in the film industry. Chadalavada Srinivasa Rao has been distributing several Telugu and Hollywood films for quite sometime now.

When asked about the record deal, he said, “I hold firm belief in the power of Shankar and his magic with the celluloid. At present, Rajini, Aishwarya and Shankar are considered the prime film personalities in the country. All the films of Shankar are blockbusters so far. The same belief prompted me to get the film for Telugu audience for this hefty price.” The film is going to be released in across 600 theatres in AP alone this September. The extensive marketing and promotion of the film will begin shortly and the distributors has pinned his hopes on huge opening collections to recover his investment.

Till now, some prominent producers and production houses had bid upto Rs 26 crores for the theatrical rights; however Sun Pictures has managed to sell the theatrical rights for Rs 30 crores. It remains to be seen how far this big gamble pays off. Rathnavelu is the cinematographer and A R Rahman has composed the music. Anthony is the editor, while Resul Pookutty is the Sound engineer. The audio of this film was released in Hyderabad on August 6.