Dacoit, the Telugu-Hindi bilingual action thriller starring Adivi Sesh and Mrunal Thakur, is releasing in theatres today. Despite heavy marketing, the film may not meet its pan-India aspirations at the box office. Early trends indicate an underwhelming start, with only 25k tickets sold on BookMyShow in the two days leading up to its release.
While Dacoit fared better overseas, crossing $100K in advance bookings for paid previews in North America, trade estimates suggest it may not open in double digits at the domestic box office. This would be disappointing for its makers, who are expecting a lower opening than the sleeper hit Anaganaga Oka Raju and the Hindi war drama Ikkis.
Dacoit's relatively slow start means that Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar 2 will remain cinegoers' first choice in theatres for the fourth week in a row. The spy thriller is expected to out-earn Dacoit despite being in its fourth week, having already earned over ₹1000 crore net in India and ₹1650 crore gross worldwide.
The film, directed by Shaneil Deo, stars Adivi Sesh, Mrunal Thakur, and Anurag Kashyap in the lead roles. It was earlier set for a March 19 release but was shifted due to the release of Dhurandhar: The Revenge on the same day.
