Production Budget Analysis

The production budget for K.G.F: Chapter 1 (2018) has not been publicly disclosed.

CAST: Yash, Srinidhi Shetty, Ramachandra Raju, Archana Jois, Anant Nag, Vasishta N. Simha DIRECTOR: Prashanth Neel CINEMATOGRAPHY: Bhuvan Gowda MUSIC: Ravi Basrur PRODUCTION: Hombale Films, Vaaraahi Chalana Chitram

Box Office Performance

Theatrical box office data is not publicly available for K.G.F: Chapter 1 (2018). This may indicate a limited release, direct-to-streaming, or a release predating modern box office tracking.

Profitability Assessment

Insufficient publicly available data to assess profitability.

INDUSTRY IMPACT

Franchise: K.G.F: Chapter 1 is part of the K.G.F Collection.

The film was praised by many celebrities across the South Indian film industry. Director Pa. Ranjith praised the team after watching the trailer of the film, while Puneeth Rajkumar and Shah Rukh Khan also appreciated Yash and the filmmakers. Raveena Tandon, Rashmika Mandanna, Ram Gopal Varma, and Sumalatha Ambareesh (wife of late actor Ambareesh) also praised Yash's performance. Tamil actor Vijay, who watched a special screening of the film on 20 January 2019 in Chennai, praised the team for its brilliant filmmaking, and Yash for his performance.

Following the box office performance of the film, on 3 January 2019, the Income Tax Department raided the homes of several film stars and producers from the Kannada industry, including Yash and the film's producer, Vijay Kiragandur, and its actors have also been asked to provide details of Yash's remuneration for the film, shedding light on the fact that the movie's performance was considered to be the reason behind the IT raid.

In a March 2018 interview with IANS, Yash stated that "The success of KGF: Chapter 1 boosted the morale of the Kannada film industry. This success means a lot to all the untapped talent of our industry". K.G.F also established Kannada cinema in the multilingual film market, with the 2019 releases Pailwaan, Kurukshetra, and Avane Srimannarayana being released in multiple languages.

PRODUCTION NOTES

▸ Development

The film's cast consists mostly of completely new faces. The cast members sported rugged looks, given the subject and setting of the film. Yash grew his beard and long hair for his role as Rocky, a slick and a suave person of the 1970s. Bangalore-based model Srinidhi Shetty, a winner of the Miss Supranational 2016, was cast alongside Yash. Srinidhi, a self-confessed fan of Yash, claimed that she had watched his films Drama and Mr. and Mrs. Ramachari, and stated that he is one of the actors to whom she looks forward. In August 2017, Vasishta Simha bagged a pivotal role in the film, while Ramya Krishnan and Nassar were falsely reported to be a part of the film.

In July 2016, the filmmakers kick-started a 15-day schedule in North Karnataka, without Yash, as the actor was shooting for Santhu Straight Forward (2016). The first schedule of the film took place on a huge set, which took more than 35–40 days to construct. The film was slated to take off earlier that year, but was pushed back because of problems surrounding the Kalasa Banduri issue, which meant the team had to cancel its initial shoot schedule plans. The schedule was further complicated by Yash's break from shooting films, in order to focus on his wedding to Radhika Pandit, which was held in Bangalore in December 2016.

▸ Pre-Production

Following the success of Mr. and Mrs. Ramachari (2014), Yash signed for four projects as of March 2015, including one with director Prashanth Neel (of Ugramm fame). The project, KGF, about an ambitious man and his life in the 1970s, was considered to be one of the most expensive films in Kannada cinema. Hombale Films, the production house led by Vijay Kiragandur, bankrolled the project, and one of its production executive Karthik Gowda, stated that "KGF, which is set in the 70s, took over one and a half years of pre-production, because they wanted to ensure they got every single detail right, be it the matchboxes, telephone, or the clothes people wore." The film's director, Prashanth Neel, stated that the film would be launched in April 2016, and the shooting would begin in May 2016. About the rumours of doing KGF as a "Tamil version, with Suriya being roped in, but failing to do so", he stated that it was meant to be a Kannada film.

In December 2020, during the making of its second installment, Prasanth Neel denied rumours of a third installment in the KGF franchise, claiming that the story would conclude in its second part.

▸ Filming & Locations

The film's shooting began on 15 January 2017, after completing the final stages of pre-production. On 25 January 2017, the filmmakers erected huge sets at Badami, to replicate Kolar in the period of 1970–80, thereby filming extensively in the location. The art director Shivakumar recreated the Kolar Gold Fields film set of the 1980s and VFX was used as an extension for the film. Aware that a freak accident happened at the sets of Masti Gudi (2017), claiming the lives of two actors, producer Kirangadur secured an insurance cover for the crew members working on the film. As of 25 June 2017, the project was 50 percent complete, and production had restarted after sets were rebuilt, following their destruction by heavy rains.

As a part of the film's shoot, the filmmakers painted a portion of the Jayalakshmi Vilas Mansion, which is located on the campus of University of Mysore. Some sequences of the movie, which has Yash and Srinidhi Shetty in the lead roles, were also shot at the centenary clock tower located next to the campus. Yash entered the final schedule of the film in April 2018. In May 2018, actors Malavika Avinash and Anant Nag filmed the interview sequence, one of the major scenes in the film's storyline. At the end of the month, Yash had announced that he had completed his portions, and started dubbing for the film. As of May 2018, the filmmakers completed major portions of the film, except one song.

In August 2018, Kajal Aggarwal was reported to shoot for a song sequence, thus marking her debut in Kannada. However, on 9 August, Tamannaah Bhatia was hired for a song number, thus marking her second film appearance in Kannada, after Jaguar (2016).

▸ Music & Score

Ravi Basrur composed the soundtrack album and the film's score, while Tanishk Bagchi remastered the track "Gali Gali" from Tridev (1989) for the film's Hindi version. The audio rights of the film were purchased by Lahari Music in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam for , a record sum for any South Indian film; the Hindi version's audio rights were bought by T-Series.

The track "Salaam Rocky Bhai" served as the lead single from the soundtrack album. It was released in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam on 7 December 2018, along with the full soundtrack album; the album for the Hindi version was released on 9 December 2018. The karaoke versions of the songs were released on 27 December 2018.

The film's score was released in two volumes; the first volume of the original soundtrack was released on 10 September 2019, and the second volume was released on 12 October 2019.

▸ Marketing & Release

The first look of the film was released on 3 May 2017. On 8 January 2018, coinciding with Yash's birthday, a one-minute long introductory teaser, with Ananth Nag narrating, was unveiled by the production team. After responding to a fan's request, Yash announced that the film's trailer would be released in October 2018. Farhan Akhtar shared the first look on 6 November 2018 and a second one on 8 November on the occasion of Diwali. The official trailer of the film was released on 9 November 2018. The trailer crossed more than one million views within an hour of its release.

Special promotions were planned on 4 December in Chennai, and 6 December in Hyderabad. On 9 December 2018, the makers hosted a pre-release event at the JRC Convention Centre in Hyderabad to promote the film's Telugu version. S. S. Rajamouli graced the event as the chief guest. As a part of the film's promotion, an online game, KGF, specially designed for Android mobile phones, was released by Mobi2Fun Private Limited for the Google Play Store, which saw more than 5,000 downloads upon its initial release.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Additional Recognition: ! Year ! Ceremony ! Category ! Recipient(s) ! Result !

!scope="row" rowspan="2" | 2018 Karnataka State Film Awards

!scope="row" rowspan="8" | Zee Kannada Hemmeya Kanndiga Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="2" | 66th National Film Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="11" | 8th SIIMA Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="5"| 66th Filmfare Awards South

CRITICAL RECEPTION

K.G.F: Chapter 1 received positive reviews from critics. While its story plot, cinematography, action sequences, music, narration, direction and cast performances of the ensemble cast received acclaim, critics had mixed comments about the screenplay and editing. However the film's dialogues became famous worldwide, especially Yash and Anant Nag's dialogues.

Reviewing for Deccan Herald, Vivek M. V. felt that the "grandeur" lay in the film's "fantastically gripping story". He praised the film's narration, its "brilliant" editing, and "riveting sequences". Sunayana Suresh of The Times of India gave the film rating of stars out of five, writing that it had a "fast-paced first half ... but the second half and the climax sets up the right premise for the second part of the film." She called the screenplay's "non-linear" fashion the "most interesting part of the film". She commended Yash's performance, in that he "lives his character to the fullest". Troy Ribeiro of News18 echoed her sentiment, writing, "Yash's endurance, strife and sincerity ... get projected as perfunctory" in the context of "tight close-ups and mid-shots the camera stops us from getting emotionally connected to" every actor in the film. He further wrote, "With intense atmospheric lighting, every frame in the film looks aesthetic and natural. Brilliant cinematography and equally challenging action sequences are put together with razor-sharp edits. They give the film a racy pace." Priyanka Sundar of Hindustan Times called the film a "story of greed and redemption" that "burns bright". While praising the "promising" background score, "sharp" editing, and "stunning" visuals, she felt that the screenplay could have been "tighter".

Janani K. of India Today felt the film was "dragged and over-stretched", and gave it a three out of five-star rating.