'James' Box Office Day 1: Puneeth Rajkumar's final film receives grand opening in theatres

Veteran Kannada actor Puneeth Rajkumar breathed his last on October 29, 2021, and the news of his untimely demise shocked his fans, followers and the film fraternity, who took to social media to mourn his loss. The actor's final film titled James was recently released on March 17, his birth anniversary and fans lauded the late star for his work. Apart from receiving heaps of praise from the audience and critics, the film also marked a grand opening at the box office and shattered all records of films in Karnataka.

Puneeth Rajkumar's James box office collection

According to film industry tracker and analyst Manobala Vijayabalan, James minted a whopping ₹27.53 cr on its first day of theatrical release. The film has garnered a record-breaking grand opening on its first day in Karnataka theatres. The movie was hailed by fans and critics alike, some of whom called it the best film of Puneeth Rajkumar's career.

Priya Anand, who also plays a pivotal role in the film took to social media to post a picture of herself and the late star facing their backs to the camera. They can be seen walking with their arms around each other and the actor penned down a sweet note for him on the occasion of his birth anniversary. She wrote, "No Longer By My Side… Forever In My Heart ❤️ Happy Birthday My Dearest Appu!"

The much-awaited Chethan Kumar directorial hit the big screens on the occasion of Puneeth Rajkumar's birth anniversary on March 17, Thursday and millions of fans flocked to cinema halls to watch James. Apart from Puneeth Rajkumar, the film also saw Priya Anand, Srikanth R. Sarathkumar, Hareesh Peradi, Au Prabhakar and others in pivotal roles. The movie was released in four languages, and fans can watch James on the big screen in Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu.

'James' review

Fans rushed to theatres as early as 4 AM to catch the first show of the film and referred to it as a 'celebration'. They called it an emotional watch and mentioned it was a 'power-packed' movie. Fans also called it the 'perfect tribute' to the actor as they expressed how much they loved the film.

Image: Instagram/@mr_360_dayanand