Telugu star Ravi Teja is returning to the big screen this weekend with Mass Jathara, his most ambitious film in a while. The film is being deemed pivotal for the veteran actor’s career as his last few films have failed miserably at the box office, and he can use a win now. However, early trends indicate that Mass Jathara has an uphill battle to climb if it wants to avoid the same fate as Ravi’s other recent releases.

Mass Jathara advance booking

Written and directed by Bhanu Bhogavarapu, Mass Jathara is an action entertainer banking on Ravi Teja’s stardom. Given that, the film should ideally show impressive box office collections and advance booking figures. However, according to Sacnilk, just hours before the film’s release, the advance booking figures are yet to cross ₹1 crore. As of 1 PM on Friday, the film has collected ₹61 lakh from advance booking for its opening day. However, that is largely because the film is releasing on Friday evening instead of morning, and has fewer shows available.

Mass Jathara box office prediction

Yet, this evening release means that Mass Jathara will struggle with opening day collections as most theatres will be able to run only 2 or 3 shows, instead of the usual 5 for big stars’ movies. Trade pundits are estimating that the film may open at around ₹2-3 crore net in India on Friday. This is less than Ravi Teja’s previous release, Mr Bachchan, which hauled ₹3.45 crore on its opening day last year. Given that Mr Bachchan only managed ₹13 crore in its lifetime and was the star’s biggest flop, these are not encouraging signs for Mass Jathara.

Trade experts, however, caution against writing Mass Jathara off completely. The true extent of the film’s power to stay alive at the box office will be visible only on Saturday, when it gets more shows across the Telugu states. But even then, it faces stiff competition from the re-released Baahubali: The Epic, which is breaking box office records for re-released films.

All about Mass Jathara

Apart from Ravi Teja, Mass Jathara also stars Sreeleela and Nitish Nirmal in pivotal roles. The film is produced by Sithara Entertainments, Fortune Four Cinemas, and Srikara Studios.