Pradeep Ranganathan’s latest romantic entertainer Dragon has had a steady run at the North American box office, collecting a total of $840,000 (Rs 7 crore approx) in its first week. The film, which features Ranganathan in the titular role alongside Anupama Parameswaran, Kayadu Lohar, George Maryan, K. S. Ravikumar, Gautham Vasudev Menon, and Mysskin, has managed to attract Tamil and Telugu audiences overseas.
On its seventh day, Dragon added $33,500 from 153 locations across North America. The USA remains the biggest market for the film, contributing $690,000to its total earning. The film was also facing heat from Vicky Kushal-Akshaye Khanna and Rashmika Mandanna’s Chhaava which earned over US $ 5 million in the last weeks.
South Indian cinema continues to thrive in North America, with Tamil and Telugu films consistently performing well in the overseas market. Dragon’s strong pre-release buzz and word-of-mouth have played a crucial role in its box office success.
In India as well, Dragon has been making waves as the film crossed Rs 50 crore mark in the first week itself and making it the second biggest Tamil hit of the year. Onn the 8th day it added another Rs 4 crore to its kitty. Thus taking the overall collection of the film to Rs 54.15 crore.
Despite competition from Bollywood and Hollywood releases, Dragon has maintained a solid presence. If the film continues its momentum into the second weekend, it could cross the coveted $1 million mark in North America, solidifying Pradeep Ranganathan’s growing appeal in the overseas market.
Pradeep is known for his romantic and comedy films down south,in fact one of his biggest hit was remade in Hindi but the film sank without a trace. The film was Loveyapa which was remade from Pradeep’s film Love Today and it featured Junaid Khan and Khushi Kapoor.
