Shobu Yarlagadda's claim might come as a huge surprise to many.
Keyur Seta
SS Rajamouli's Baahubali: The Beginning (2015), the first part of the Baahubali saga, had created a frenzy across the country. Though a Telugu film, it was widely appreciated outside South India as well. So much, in fact, that there is a high degree of anticipation for the second and final part of the film, Baahubali: The Conclusion, which will be released on 28 April.
The first film reportedly made a theatrical collection of almost Rs300 crore across India. Despite this, Shobu Yarlagadda, one of the film's producers, claimed that it made no profit.
People were taken aback by the claim which was made during the launch of the second part's trailer today. Asked about the profit earned by the first film, Yarlagadda said, “The first part didn’t make any money. This much I can tell you.”
But he has high hopes of the second part. "We will make a lot of money in the second one, which will compensate for what we didn’t make in the first part,” he said.
The producer hinted that the huge budget of the two films was the reason for the lack of a profit. “The budget of both parts together is in the region of Rs450 crore,” he explained.
Like Yarlagadda, everyone associated with Baahubali must be hoping that the high degree of excitement around the sequel results in at least a decent profit.
