Kushi re-release box office collection Day 2: Pawan Kalyan's cult classic rewrites history!

Pawan Kalyan fans were able to usher in the new year with the special re-release of the cult classic Kushi, which came out in theatres on December 31. The 2001 film, written and directed by S.J. Suryah, has only risen in stature over the past 21 years and the stellar success of the re-release only proves how much it is adored and how well it has aged. 

Kushi stars Pawan Kalyan and Bhumika Chawla in the lead roles with Nassar, Vijayakumar, Sivaji, and others playing important parts in the film. A breezy, romantic comedy, the on-screen chemistry between Kalyan and Chawla, along with Mani Sharma's music and the action choreography, became one of the main highlights of the film.

As per the trade reports, the Kushi re-released version has broken several box office records and is currently well on course to set new benchmarks for re-releases. According to the popular trade website sacnilk.com, Kushi has grossed more than Rs. 3.50 crores in the two Telugu states on the opening day of its release, beating the re-released version of Jalsa in its pursuits. Kushi has reportedly grossed about Rs. 4.10 crores worldwide on Day #1 with the Nizam area alone contributing approximately Rs. 1.65 crores. The film is said to have grossed Rs. 1.52 crores on Day #2 in the Telugu states.

Not very long ago, the Pawan Kalyan-starrer Jalsa was re-released in theatres on September 1, 2022, on the eve of the superstar actor's 51st birthday. The 2008 film is said to have grossed approx. Rs. 2.60 crores in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and managed to collect Rs. 3.20 crores worldwide. 

Previously, the remastered version of the Mahesh Babu starrer Pokiri was released in theatres on August 9, 2022, to mark the actor's 47th birthday. Pokiri re-release is said to have grossed close to Rs. 1.5 crores worldwide. On a similar note, Suresh Krissna's 2002 film Baba, starring superstar Rajinikanth was re-released on December 10 amid tremendous fanfare.

Coming back to Kushi, reports suggest that the makers of the film intend on keeping the film in theatres for a week at the least, with a good chunk of the 're-release' collections expected to be donated to credible charity causes. The 2001 film is the remake of S.J. Suryah's own Tamil film of the same name and both versions were bona fide commercial hits at the time of their release. Reportedly, Suryah had a sequel in mind with Pawan Kalyan which did not materialize due to the latter's political aspirations.