Who is the first true superstar from Tollywood at the Telugu USA box office? Well, it’s none other than Sekhar Kammula.
Way back, he made Dollar Dreams and immediately struck a chord with Telugu audiences overseas. Then came Anand, which ran for many days with full houses.
Following that, Godavari became a blockbuster in the USA, even though it didn’t perform as well in India. Later, Life is Beautiful, despite being a flop domestically, did surprisingly well in the US market.
Except for Anamika — a remake of Kahaani starring Nayanthara — almost all of Sekhar Kammula’s films earned both collections and respect at the US box office.
But now, the same Sekhar Kammula seems to be struggling to create buzz in the USA with the advance bookings of Kubera.
The main reason appears to be the generational shift — new-age filmmakers have taken the spotlight. Additionally, his long gaps between films tend to kill the momentum of his fame.
Well, the word "superstar" is officially associated with Mahesh Babu, and his fans might raise objections. That’s true — but even Mahesh Babu truly gained a strong foothold in the USA market only after Sekhar Kammula.
It was only after Athadu and Pokiri that Mahesh Babu’s stardom began to rise in the US at a significant level.
All said and done, Kuberaa is set to release in a day, and it remains to be seen whether the content will click with the audience and lead to strong collections, even if the initial openings aren’t impressive.
