The Paradise Box Office Day 1: Nani Gets Career-Best Opening With Rs 76 Cr

Written By: Entertainment Desk

Sep 25, 2026 12:03 IST ⓘ

Nani scored the biggest opening of his career with ‘The Paradise’.

Actor Nani has officially registered the biggest opening of his career. Despite carrying an 'A' certificate from the CBFC and facing mixed reviews, his latest mass action entertainer, ‘The Paradise’, has stormed the global box office. Relying on heavy pre-release ticket sales and Wednesday paid previews, the Srikanth Odela-directed film took a rocking start. According to trade tracker Sacnilk, the film's worldwide gross currently sits at Rs 76.90 crore. Domestically, the film hauled in massive numbers, fuelled almost entirely by its original Telugu version.

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Sacnilk reported an India nett collection reaching up to Rs 46.25 crore across an estimated 9,732 to 10,632 shows, translating to a domestic gross of Rs 54.90 crore.

A significant chunk of this success came from Day 0 paid previews, which brought in Rs 13.95 crore gross (with Andhra Pradesh and Telangana contributing a whopping Rs 11 crore). On Thursday, its official release day, it added Rs 40.95 crore gross. The regional breakdown for the total India gross is dominated by the AP/TS region at Rs 42.50 crore, followed by Karnataka (Rs 6.05 crore), Rest of India (Rs 3.33 crore), Tamil Nadu (Rs 2.55 crore), and Kerala (Rs 0.47 crore). Hyderabad alone saw advance sales of over Rs 7.40 crore. However, the film's pan-India aspirations failed to fire; the Hindi and Tamil dubbed versions collectively contributed under Rs 4 crore nett.

Internationally, the film collected approximately USD 2 million (around Rs 20 to Rs 22 crore) through previews and Day 1. North American premieres alone fetched an impressive USD 1.11 million via overseas distributor Prathyangira Cinemas.

The Rs 75 crore-plus start catapults ‘The Paradise’ into the top-40 openings of all time for Indian films. It managed to edge past the Day 1 numbers of all-time blockbusters like ‘Baahubali: The Beginning’ (Rs 73 crore) and ‘War’ (Rs 74 crore), placing it just behind the recent Hindi hit ‘Stree 2’ (Rs 80 crore). However, ‘The Paradise’ beating them should be taken with a pinch of salt, as these films’ inflation-adjusted openings would easily exceed Rs 100 crore.

Within Nani's own filmography, it effectively doubles his previous bests. ‘HIT: The Third Case’ was his prior record holder (around Rs 40 crore worldwide), while his previous Srikanth Odela collaboration, ‘Dasara’, opened to Rs 36.28 crore globally. It also completely dwarfed ‘Saripodhaa Sanivaaram’ (Rs 19.34 crore).

However, when compared to the absolute zenith of Tollywood, Nani’s biggest opener still trails. Prabhas' ‘The Raja Saab’ holds a towering Rs 100.20 crore worldwide opening (across 16,470 shows), and Ram Charan's ‘Peddi’ opened at Rs 110.49 crore. Nani did, however, comfortably surpass Chiranjeevi's ‘Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu’, which earned Rs 37.1 crore worldwide on its first day.

Set in 1980s Secunderabad, ‘The Paradise’ follows the marginalized Savaari tribe from a fictional place called Paradise. The tribe fights for legal recognition from the government while battling the oppression of a feudal lord. Nani steps into what he described as the most physically demanding role of his career as Jadal Zamana.

He faces off against the primary antagonist Shikanja Maalik, played by Mohan Babu, alongside Raghav Juyal as his son Vikram Maalik, and Kayadu Lohar as Subbu. Produced by Sudhakar Cherukuri and Ishan Saksena under SLV Cinemas and IVY Entertainment, the ensemble also features Sonali Kulkarni, Sampath Raj, Sampoornesh Babu, and Keerthy Suresh in a special appearance. The technical crew boasts music by Anirudh Ravichander, cinematography by CH Sai, and editing by Naveen Nooli.