“Who is Neem Karoli Baba, the inspiration behind the surprise blockbuster Hanuman Ansh?”, OpIndia, 8 Sep 2026.
“A devotional film made on a reported budget of around ₹2 crore has turned into one of the most surprising box-office success stories of 2026. Vishal Chaturvedi’s Hanuman Ansh, based on the life and spiritual journey of Neem Karoli Baba, started with a limited theatrical release but gradually found a much larger audience.
The film has now crossed the ₹100-crore mark in India and is running strong even in its fifth week. By Day 32, it had collected around ₹132 crore net in India, while its gross collection stood at about ₹156.20 crore. The film’s performance is particularly striking because it began its theatrical journey on 7th August with just 25 screens and an opening collection of only around ₹10 lakh.
From a slow start to a box-office phenomenon
Unlike big-budget releases that usually make most of their money during the opening weekend, Hanuman Ansh took a different route. Its initial weeks were modest, but the film slowly gained attention through word-of-mouth.
The change became clear from its third week. After earning ₹1.08 crore in the first week and around ₹40 lakh in the second week, the film began picking up. It crossed the ₹1-crore mark in a single day during its third week, earning ₹2.50 crore on its third Sunday. It eventually collected ₹10.40 crore in the third week…………”
Read the full article at OpIndia.
