'World Famous Lover' pre-release business report: Will the Vijay Deverakonda starrer reach breakeven?

Vijay Deverakonda's latest big-screen outing World Famous Lover is slated to hit screens on Friday (February 14, 2020), and this has given the 'Rowdy gang' a reason to rejoice. The film, however, might not have a smooth run at the box office. The romantic-drama's pre-release business report is out. According to various reports, worldwide rights are valued at Rs 30.5 crore. which means it needs to collect nearly Rs 31.2 crore (share) in order to emerge as a 'clean hit'. While the Geetha Govindam hero enjoys a strong fan following, this is not going to be a cakewalk. Here is a look at the challenges facing World Famous Lover.

Vijay Deverakonda's form: In 2017, Vijay Deverakonda became the toast of the town when he delivered a rocking performance in Arjun Reddy, which set the box office on fire. He tasted success with Geetha Govindam as well, which established him as the choice of 'Gen Y'. His subsequent releases (NOTA and Dear Comrade), however, failed to live up to expectations and this took a toll on his standing in the industry. Needless to say, his lacklustre form is likely to affect World Famous Lover's opening day collection.

Unrealistic target: Dear Comrade had collected around Rs 21 crore worldwide despite being promoted rather aggressively. Unlike the Bharath Kamma-helmed biggie, World Famous Lover has not been promoted too well and this indicates it might face difficulties in reaching break-even.

Arjun Reddy hangover: Vijay Deverakonda apparently plays an aggressive casanova in World Famous Lover. While the masses usually love such characters, the problem is that the 30-year-old's look and mannerisms in the movie's trailer have a clear Arjun Reddy hangover and this has diluted the impact big time.

Bad timing: The biggest challenge, however, seems to be the release timing. February is considered to be 'off-season' for Tollywood as films released during this time usually do not do too well at the box office. Biggies like Yatra, NTR Mahanayakudu and Karthi's Dev bit the dust last year, reminding fans of this harsh reality. Similarly, Samantha Akkineni 's Jaanu seems to have under-performed this time around. Given the dull phase, World Famous Lover has a mountain to climb.