Raja Shivaji Box Office: Riteish Deshmukh’s Marathi Epic Is Marching Towards History — But Can It Touch Rs 100 Crore?

There’s something deeply personal about Raja Shivaji — a Marathi film, made in the Maratha Empire’s own language, telling the story of its very founder. And while the numbers are solid, the bigger question now is whether Riteish Deshmukh’s passion project can etch its name into the record books.

Raja Shivaji : The 2nd Monday Report

Raja Shivaji added Rs 2.50 crore on its 2nd Monday, registering a 43% drop from the previous Friday. While that drop from its 1st Monday is around 65%, the film’s 2nd week cumulative has already reached Rs 21.25 crore in four days, with the week expected to close around Rs 28 crore.

The Rs 100 Crore Dream — And What It Would Mean

This is where it gets exciting for Marathi cinema fans. The film is expected to cross the Rs 85 crore mark imminently and wrap its 2nd week around Rs 89–90 crore, putting the historic Rs 100 crore target firmly within reach in Week 3.

Crossing Rs 100 crore would be a first for Marathi cinema — the previous all-time best being Sairat and Baipan Bhari Deva at around Rs 90 crore each, both of which drew almost exclusively from Maharashtra with no Hindi-dubbed version. Raja Shivaji, by contrast, carries a Hindi-dubbed version and has built meaningful business outside the state — giving it a structural edge its predecessors never had.

The Elephant in the Room

Let’s be real though. There’s a sense the film could have aimed even higher. The yardstick for a story about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj — the founder and leader of the Maratha Empire — was always going to be films like Tanhaji (which grossed around Rs 175 crore in Maharashtra alone in 2020, or over Rs 250 crore in today’s adjusted terms) and Chhaava, which collected over Rs 300 crore. Raja Shivaji is now no longer in contention to match those heights.

It’s a film that did well — just not the phenomenon many had hoped for, given the weight of the subject matter and the passion Riteish Deshmukh poured into it.

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