Hyderabad: Samantha Ruth Prabhu starrer movie Shaakuntalam, which is based on Kalidasa's play Abhijnanashakuntalam, was released in theatres on Friday with mixed reviews. According to a film industry tracker, the mythological drama directed by Gunasekhar did not draw big crowds on its opening day and earned Rs 5 crore across all languages.
In the Telugu states, Shaakuntalam had an overall of 32.60% occupancy rate. Samantha plays the lead character of Shakuntala in the movie, and Dev Mohan portrays the role of Dushyanta, the ruler of the Puru Dynasty. Shaakuntalam must now step up the pace during the weekend in order to maintain a consistent run in the movie theatres for the upcoming week.
Samantha's previous movie Yashoda started off with about Rs 3 crore and ended its first weekend run with Rs 10 crore nett at the box office. The movie made about Rs 20 crore in India throughout the course of its whole run. Shaakunatalam's future seems more promising in comparison to that.
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Shaakuntalam appears to have been produced on a sizable budget based on the look of its trailer. The movie also features an ensemble cast including Mohan Babu, Allu Arha, Aditi Balan, Gautami, Sachin Khedekar, and Ananya Nagalla.
Earlier, filmmakers Raj and DK, who are currently helming the Indian version of the spy thriller series Citadel starring Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Varun Dhawan, wrote down a note praising Shaakuntalam. The director duo, who watched the movie, took to their social media handle and heaped praise on Samantha.
