Rs 325 cr in 3 days: Baahubali 2 is now the highest opening Indian film

In coming days, the movie is set to break even more records with its business still holding steady

It released to perhaps the most hype seen by an Indian movie in a long time, and it did not disappoint. S S Rajmouli's Baahubali 2: The Conclusion opened with Rs 121 crore collection (previous/early estimates were Rs 125 crore) and continued its good run at the cinemas over the weekend, netting Rs 320-325 crore over the first three days of release.

At Rs 320-325 crore, Baahubali 2 is now the highest opening Indian film, beating Bollywood blockbusters and its predecessor Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) by a huge margin. The highest opening weekend collection by a Bollywood film so far is by Sultan (2016) at Rs 180 crore. However, the movie was released mid-week and hence enjoyed a five-day opening weekend. If one were to consider the Fri-Sun opening weekend period, Baahublali 2 has left Sultan far behind as estimates peg the opening weekend collection for the Hindi dub version only at Rs 128 crore (net after tax).

In the coming days, the movie is set to break even more records. Already the most widely distributed Indian film ever at 6,500 screens, the film's business seemed to be holding steady on Monday, leading trade pundits to estimate a 30 per cent or less drop in collection on the first day of the week. The fact that Monday, May 1 was a holiday for many office and educational institutions on account of Labour Day and/or Maharashtra Day (in that state) will also work in the favour of the magnum opus.

As things stand, Baahubali 2 is no doubt the most successful Indian movie ever. It is already the highest grossing Hindi dub version of a regional film and by the looks of it, is ready to pull a Jungle Book, by being in the top three movies of the year for the Bollywood genre (Hindi language). Last year, Disney's Jungle Book made a whopping Rs 190 crore at the box office, becoming the most successful Hollywood film to release in India, and also the third highest collector of the year.

There is also almost no doubt now that Baahubali 2 will surpass the first part's lifetime global gross collection of Rs 650 crore. Early reports suggest that the international performance of the film (it was released in 2,500 screens ex-India) is close to Rs 120 crore over the weekend. This takes the worldwide gross for Baahubali 2 in the opening weekend to Rs 540 crore approximately, meaning it is inching closer to the predecessor's lifetime worldwide gross at a fast part. It is currently on number 7 in the list of the highest collecting films from India (gross worldwide).