Kantara Chapter 1 rules global box office, overtakes Taylor Swift, DiCaprio hits

Dubai: Rishab Shetty’s Kantara Chapter 1 has become the highest-grossing film in the world this week, outperforming releases by Taylor Swift and Leonardo DiCaprio according to trade sources.

In its first seven days, the Kannada-language epic has earned an estimated Rs3.79 billion ($42 million) in India. Trade analysts project that by the end of its first extended week on Thursday, the film's domestic collections could reach approximately $45 million (Rs4 billion). Adding another $8 million (Rs670 million) from overseas markets, Kantara Chapter 1’s worldwide total stands at around $53 million — or nearly Rs4.7 billion in just one week.

The feat allows Rishab Shetty’s film to overtake Taylor Swift’s event-style concert movie The Official Release Party of a Showgirl, which earned $50 million globally during its limited weekend run tied to the launch of her new album. Since it was a three-day theatrical release, Swift’s box-office tally remained static after Monday.

Kantara Chapter 1 has also left behind Paul Thomas Anderson’s Leonardo DiCaprio-starrer One Battle After Another, which managed around $40 million worldwide in its second week, as well as the re-released Avatar: The Way of Water, which earned under $10 million in the same period.

Rooted in coastal Karnataka folklore, Kantara Chapter 1 combines myth, faith, and raw emotion to deliver a cinematic spectacle that has connected with audiences far beyond India. Its phenomenal first-week showing reinforces the global rise of regional Indian cinema — proving that authentic storytelling can triumph over Hollywood’s biggest names.