The year 2024 is upon us and it will bring a host of new film releases, ranging from small to big. Some of the mega budget Indian films up for release this year are truly enormous in scale, dwarfing even the biggest releases from the last few years. Among them is the most expensive Indian film ever made, which trade pundits are hoping, can set new box office records.
India’s most expensive film of 2024
Nag Ashwin’s Kalki 2898 AD, formerly referred to as Project K, is the most expensive Indian film set to release in 2024. As per trade pundit Manobala Vijayabalan, the film has a budget of Rs 600 crore, which is a sum more than the combined budgets of recent hits Salaar (Rs 270 crore), Animal (Rs 100 crore), and Dunki (Rs 140 crore). In fact, the scale of Kalki 2898 AD is even bigger than Brahmastra (Rs 400 crore) and Baahubali (Rs 250 crore) among other films.
Some sources say that Kalki 2898 AD is the most expensive Indian film ever made, ahead of Adipurush and RRR even, both of which are said to have budgets of Rs 550 crore each. However, there are other sources that put Adipurush’s budget at Rs 700 crore, which means that Kalki 2898 AD may be at the second spot. However, Adipurush’s final budget includes the marketing costs, and Kalki 2898 AD may just beat it when it releases later this year.
Can Kalki 2898 AD beat RRR and Baahubali’s box office records?
Kalki 2898 AD is billed as a pan-India film that stars Prabhas, Deepika Padukone, Kamal Haasan, and Amitabh Bachchan in lead roles, along with a strong ensemble cast. The film is loaded with state-of-the-arts VFX and CGI effects. Given its scale and star cast, it is easily the most anticipated film of 2024. Trade pundits are anticipating it will set new box office records, particularly after Prabhas’ return to form with Salaar. The film is expected to set new collection records in the Telugu market and do good business in the Hindi and Tamil markets too. This means it will have a chance at surpassing ths Rs 1300 crore gross of RRR and Rs 1600 crore gross of Baahubali 2 if all things go well.
Trade experts predict the film will most certainly register one of the biggest openings in Indian cinema history but beyond that, all depends on how it is received and how good the word of mouth is. Kalki 2898 AD does not have a release date as of now but Nag Ashwin has revealed that the trailer will be launched on March 31, giving the film a potential summer release.
