'Shaakuntalam was the biggest failure in my career': Producer Dil Raju

The massive failure of 'Shaakuntalam' resulted in a loss of Rs 22 crore for producer Dil Raju, marking the biggest setback in his 25-year film career. According to Dil Raju, 2017 was the best year in his career, with movies like 'Nenu Local', 'Sathamanam Bhavati', 'Middle Class Abbayi', among others garnering profits. However, 'Shaakuntalam' turned out to be the biggest loss.

The film's first-day collection was dismal and the worst opening for a Samantha film. Made on a budget of Rs 65 crore, the film turned out to be one of the biggest flops in the history of Telugu cinema. Despite being released in Telugu, Hindi, Malayalam, and Tamil languages, the movie collected only Rs 7 crore in its first week of release. The makers had claimed that the budget was over 80 crores, but the total collection was not even 10 crores.

The low-quality VFX and substandard set works for such a big-budget film disappointed the audience. Samantha played Shakuntala in the film, directed by Gunasekhar, while Malayalam actor Dev Mohanan had a key role.