Kantara Prequel Fails to Break Even in North America

As of November 12, 2025, Rishab Shetty's Kantara Chapter 1 has concluded its theatrical run in North America, falling short of its breakeven target. The prequel, which was released on October 2, 2025, generated good pre-release buzz and saw strong support from the Telugu diaspora in the region.

The film started with a decent $810,000 (including premieres) and maintained momentum in the following days, ultimately crossing the $4 million mark at the North American box office. However, the high price at which the theatrical rights were sold pushed the breakeven target to a whopping $9 million (79.76 crores), which the film failed to achieve. In fact, Kantara Chapter 1 earned $4.735 million, or $4.7 million, which is 47.77% less than the breakeven mark.

Despite the tremendous box office success and goodwill of the original Kantara (2022), the prequel was unable to replicate that level of performance in North America. The film, which was reportedly made on a budget of 125 crores and produced under the banner of Hombale Films, is still running in theaters globally and has earned over 835 crore gross worldwide.