The Telugu horror film Subham, backed by Samantha Ruth Prabhu, made its way to cinemas last week with modest expectations and a unique horror premise. Directed by Praveen Kandregula and starring a relatively fresh cast of Harshith Reddy, Gavireddy Srinivas, Charan Peri, Shriya Kontham, Shravani Lakshmi, Shalini Kondepudi, Vamshidhar Goud the film also featured Samantha herself in a special guest appearance — a move that generated a fair amount of buzz ahead of its release.Reportedly made on a budget of Rs 6 crore, including promotional expenses, Subham was expected to perform decently at the box office, especially given the lack of strong competition. Nani’s Hit 3, which had released the previous week, was already on a downward trend in its second week, seemingly clearing the path for Subham to shine. However, the film’s box office run has so far been underwhelming.The film opened with a modest Rs56 lakh on Day 1, followed by Rs 75 lakh on Day 2 and Rs 88 lakh on Day 3, indicating a slight upward trend over the weekend. Unfortunately, the momentum didn’t sustain through the weekdays. Day 4 and Day 5 each collected Rs 47 lakh , and Day 6 saw a minor dip with Rs 42 lakh. As of now, the film’s total stands at Rs3.55 crore net in the Telugu states.

Despite its lackluster commercial response, Subham has managed to earn a section of positive word of mouth from horror genre enthusiasts and Samantha’s fan base, many of whom have hailed it as a well-made, eerie thriller. However, this appreciation hasn’t translated into ticket sales.It seems difficult for Subham to hold on to cinema halls in the second week. Samantha who is undergoing treatment for her auto-immune disease Mystois is currently working on the latest series backed by Raj Nidimoru and Krishan DK . The show has been titled Rakht Brahamand and also has Ali Fazal, Aditya Roy Kapur, Jaideep Ahlawat and Wamiga Gabbi in the lead.