First kannada hit of the year

Maleyali Joteyali has been declared a hit and will now release in the US and the UK. An ecstatic Ganesh now readies for his second home production.

Maleyali Joteyali is the first film in 2010 to be declared a hit. The film is in its fifth week and Ganesh says he is ‘safe’. “I was worried for the first ten days. But after that there was no cause for concern. As a producer I am safe,” the actor said. His wife Shilpa is the official producer of the film.

The unexpected bonanza is the success of the film in north Karnataka. “The expectation from north Karnataka was low after the recent floods. But to our surprise the returns are three times more than what we expected. Even in a small centre like Banahatti, the film is running in its fifth week,” Ganesh said.

So buoyed is Ganesh that he has already begun working on his second home production. “Only script work is going on which should be done by March. It’s likely the film will be launched in June or July,” he said. Before that Ganesh’s Ullasa Utsaha will release; his Yeno Ontara is under production. He will act in HR Rehaman’s new film before his second home production starts.

However the cherry on the cake is the fact that Maleyali Joteyali is being released in USA, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand and Germany in two weeks. After that the worldwide distributors Bevin Exports will release the films in the UK, Hong Kong and Dubai. Joel P of Bevin Exports says that Maleyali Joteyali will see one of the biggest releases overseas for any Kannada film. Ganesh’s Mungaru Male is the highest grossing Kannada film overseas. It had made Rs 36 lakh in the US alone. Maleyali Joteyali is expected to do business close to Rs 20 lakh.