Late last year, when Sandeep Reddy Vanga unveiled the first look of his upcoming film Spirit on his lead actor Prabhas’ birthday, the title card caught everyone’s attention. Instead of Rebel Star, how Prabhas is usually introduced in promotional materials, the promo called him ‘India’s biggest superstar’. While it was in line with Vanga’s on-the-nose promotional approach for his films, the tag did start a debate, with fans of everyone from Shah Rukh Khan to Rajinikanth taking offence.
But just how inaccurate would it be to call Prabhas India’s biggest superstar, if at all? The answer lies in your definition of a superstar and what decides one is bigger than the other. But if box office draw and mass appeal are the biggest indicators, then this Darling has the strongest claim to that tag in the current ‘pan-India’ climate.
Winner of clashes
The term superstar was first used for Rajesh Khanna in Indian cinema in the late 1960s, and then retroactively applied to the likes of Dilip Kumar, MG Ramachandran, and NT Rama Rao, to name a few. Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Chiranjeevi, and Rajinikanth are a few others who have staked a claim to be referred to as India’s biggest stars at various points in time. All of them had two things in common: they consistently churned out successful films at the box office, and their pull among the masses was unparalleled.
In that regard, Prabhas is right up there with the best, if not ahead of them. In 2023, his film Salaar released alongside Shah Rukh Khan and Rajkumar Hirani’s first collaboration, Dunki. And even as both films earned mixed reviews, Salaar not just registered a higher opening but had a better lifetime run. To outdo SRK at the box office is no mean feat.
The phenomenal box office run
Before Baahubali, Prabhas was a popular star, but his fame extended only to the Telugu audience. The Rajamouli blockbuster turned him into a national star, or a ‘pan-India’ star, as they say nowadays. Since Baahubali, Prabhas’ five films – including the two that did not work at the box office – have earned over ₹2600 crore at the box office. Add Baahubali, and the number goes to ₹5000 crore in 10 years. No other Indian actors, including the three Khans or Rajinikanth and Vijay, have these high numbers.
What is staggering is that Prabhas has ensured a ₹100-crore worldwide day 1 for all his previous five films. Whether the films succeed or not ultimately depends on several factors, including the film’s quality and word of mouth, but the opening is always about the star. The fact that Prabhas managed to see Salaar earn ₹90 crore in India and over ₹150 crore worldwide on its opening day, just months after the Adipurush debacle, speaks volumes about his stardom.
How Prabhas outdoes even the Khans
The Raja Saab is Prabhas’ return to family entertainment. The film sees a more pre-Baahubali Prabhas that does comedy, romance, and is more sensitive than the macho Prabhas we have seen over the last decade. Naturally, since it is not a mass entertainer, it is expected to open lower than the likes of Kalki 2898 AD and Salaar. Yet, these ‘low’ numbers are higher than what superstars from other industries manage for their biggest films. The Raja Saab’s projected domestic opening of ₹65 crore is higher than the career-best openings of Shah Rukh Khan ( ₹64 crore with Jawan), Ranbir Kapoor ( ₹63 crore with Animal), Vijay ( ₹64.80 crore with Leo), Rajinikanth ( ₹50 crore with Jailer), and Salman Khan ( ₹43 crore with Tiger 3). And after all this, it won’t even be among Prabhas’ top 5 openings of all time. Clearly, no other star in the country draws the audience quite like Prabhas.
The advantage Prabhas has over the Khans, Rajni, and Vijay is his pan-India appeal. Baahubali built that for him, and after a few hiccups (namely Radhe Shyam, Saaho, and Adipurush), he built on it through Salaar and Kalki. His films get good starts and do decent numbers in the Hindi belt. The only other South stars to have managed that of late are Allu Arjun and Yash with the Pushpa and KGF film series, respectively. These two stars are best poised to challenge Prabhas with their pan-India appeal. Yash has a chance with Toxic and Ramayana this year, before Allu Arjun guns for box office glory with his film with Atlee. But till then, their pan-India stardom lies untested, having worked only once so far.
Prabhas is a few years ahead of them. For now, he stands alone, as the only true pan-India star around. The only name that can challenge him is not an actor, but the filmmaker who made him – SS Rajamouli.
