Rare dry spell for Tollywood

The recently concluded Sankranthi festival season brought a steady flow of releases to Telugu cinemas, though not quite as many as initially planned. Trade circles had expected as many as seven films to arrive in theatres during the festive window, including two dubbed releases. However, the dubbed films were eventually dropped from the lineup, leaving five Telugu films to battle it out at the box office. Among them, three films managed to register encouraging numbers and emerged as commercial successes.

With the festive holiday advantage now behind them, collections for these Sankranthi releases have naturally begun to slow down. This post-festival dip is a familiar trend, as weekday footfalls reduce and audience attention shifts. Still, these films continue to hold a strong grip on theatres, largely due to an unexpected lull in fresh releases.

In a surprising development, this week has turned out to be the first week of 2026 with no new Telugu theatrical release. Typically, Tollywood sees at least one new film hitting the big screens every Friday, making this gap highly unusual. Adding to the surprise, even Telugu-dubbed Kollywood films have chosen to stay away from cinemas. Titles like Parasakthi, which could have capitalised on the open release window, have deferred their theatrical outings for reasons best known to the makers.

As a result, the Sankranthi releases continue to dominate screens across the Telugu states, enjoying extended runs despite the gradual drop in collections. For exhibitors, this has provided temporary breathing space, but for audiences eager for fresh theatrical content, options remain limited this week.

Movie lovers looking for something new are now turning to OTT platforms, which have become the primary source of fresh entertainment in the absence of new theatrical releases. The coming weeks will reveal whether this brief pause encourages filmmakers to rethink release strategies or simply serves as a rare anomaly in Tollywood’s usually packed calendar.