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The ambitious re-release of the Baahubali saga, titled ‘Baahubali: The Epic,’ failed to ignite the box office with the fiery intensity expected from the blockbuster franchise. Despite premiering on October 31, 2025, to commemorate the film’s tenth anniversary, the combined, nearly four-hour-long version of the S.S. Rajamouli directorial has demonstrated a noticeable underperformance when weighed against the franchise’s massive legacy.
Collection Figures and Audience Fatigue
In its initial four days, Baahubali: The Epic managed to secure a respectable global gross of approximately ₹40 crore. However, trade analysts pointed to a critical warning sign that indicated waning public interest: the film’s Sunday collection reportedly dipped below its Friday opening-day figures. For any major theatrical release, a collection decrease from Friday to Sunday is considered a poor trend.
Specifically, the film’s net collection in India showed a progressive decline after a promising start:
Key Factors Behind the Subdued Response
Trade pundits have outlined several reasons why this cinematic experiment, despite the massive brand recall of Baahubali, struggled to attract audiences in large numbers:
- Extreme Runtime: The most significant deterrent was the film’s extraordinary 3-hour and 44-minute runtime. Experts suggested that post-pandemic viewing habits favor shorter movies, and asking audiences to commit nearly four hours for a re-release proved too demanding.
- Over-Exposure of Content: Both parts of the Baahubali series have been extensively broadcast on television and streamed across digital platforms since their original releases. This widespread availability meant the novelty factor was entirely absent, diminishing the urgency for viewers to see the films again on the big screen.
- Insufficient Marketing: The makers appeared to rely solely on the strength of the Baahubali brand. According to analysts, the lack of a substantial promotional campaign failed to create the necessary buzz and urgency required to successfully relaunch a decade-old film, even one as iconic as this.
While ₹40 crore is a solid number for a typical re-release, the failure of a movie of this scale to maintain momentum, particularly on a crucial weekend day like Sunday, confirms that even monumental franchises have a commercial limit when novelty and runtime work against them.
