SouthSide Studio is a Bengaluru film-marketing agency that runs Namma Sandalwood, a network of Kannada-language Instagram film and meme pages. Sacnilk trade estimates put six big Telugu releases at 859 to 1,072 Bengaluru shows in Telugu on opening day; we add a Kannada layer beside your Telugu campaign: memes, reels, captions, Karnataka creators and reviewers, and a live post dashboard. Our pages' own coverage of 31 Telugu films has logged 135 posts and 1.24 crore views.
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Updated · Market facts carry their sources and dates.
Telugu is the mother tongue of about one in seven residents of Bengaluru Urban district, and of more than a fifth of Chikkaballapura and Kolar, two districts on the Andhra Pradesh border. On opening day, trade tracker Sacnilk logged between 859 and 1,072 Telugu-language shows in Bengaluru for six big Telugu releases from 2024 to 2026, against 41 to 88 Kannada-version shows in the four cases where it split them out. Each figure below carries its source and date; money is in Indian rupees.
| Fact | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Telugu mother-tongue speakers, Bengaluru Urban districtOf 96,21,551 residents; third after Kannada (44.47%) and Tamil (15.20%) | 13.99% (13,46,047) | Census of India 2011, C-16 (Karnataka)2011 data |
| Telugu mother-tongue speakers, Bengaluru city (BBMP)Of 84,95,492 people in the municipal corporation area and its outgrowths | 13.73% (11,66,338) | Census of India 2011, C-16 town table (Karnataka)2011 data |
| Telugu mother-tongue share, Chikkaballapura districtDistrict north of Bengaluru on the Andhra Pradesh border | 27.07% | Census of India 2011, C-16 (Karnataka)2011 data |
| Telugu mother-tongue share, Kolar districtSecond only to Kannada (51.51%); the district borders Andhra Pradesh | 22.67% | Census of India 2011, C-16 (Karnataka)2011 data |
| Telugu mother-tongue speakers, KarnatakaOf 6,10,95,297 residents statewide | 5.84% (35,69,400) | Census of India 2011, C-16 (Karnataka)2011 data |
| Telugu films' share of India's box office, 2025Of 13,395 crore rupees gross across all languages; Kannada films took 4% (528 crore) | 18% (2,377 crore rupees) | Ormax Media, The India Box Office Report 20252025 calendar year |
| Pushpa 2 opening day: Bengaluru 2D shows by versionOccupancy 70.8% vs 54.3%; Karnataka day-one gross 16.90 crore rupees (trade estimate) | 1,072 Telugu vs 88 Kannada | Sacnilk (trade tracker)5 Dec 2024 |
| Kalki 2898 AD opening day: Bengaluru shows by version462 Telugu 2D and 585 Telugu 3D shows; Karnataka day-one gross 11.00 crore rupees (trade estimate) | 1,047 Telugu vs 70 Kannada | Sacnilk (trade tracker)27 Jun 2024 |
| The Raja Saab opening day: Kannada version, all IndiaThe same day Bengaluru ran 980 Telugu shows; Karnataka day-one gross 5.50 crore rupees (trade estimate) | 149 shows, 0.10 crore rupees net | Sacnilk (trade tracker)9 Jan 2026 |
Census mother-tongue figures are from 2011 and may have shifted since; show counts, occupancy and collections are trade-tracker estimates as reported by Sacnilk and Ormax, not audited ticket data, and Sacnilk's state gross and language-version net measure different things.
Our pages have covered 31 Telugu films in 135 posts between December 2020 and September 2026, with 1.24 crore recorded views in total. None of these is a registered client campaign; each is our pages' own coverage.
Showing 10 of 31 films: the largest with a recorded figure of 10,000 or more. Older posts, from before Instagram reported views, read near zero. Every film is in the research data.
| Film | Posts | Recorded figure | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dragon Network coverage | 26 | 43.9 lakh views | Dashboard → |
| They Call Him OG Network coverage | 3 | 11.1 lakh views | Dashboard → |
| Eega Network coverage | 4 | 10.9 lakh views | Dashboard → |
| Peddi Network coverage | 6 | 8.8 lakh accounts reached | Dashboard → |
| Nagabandham – The Secret Treasure Network coverage | 8 | 8.3 lakh views | Dashboard → |
| Gummadi Narasaiah Network coverage | 6 | 6.1 lakh views | Dashboard → |
| Jai Hanuman Network coverage | 7 | 5.9 lakh views | Dashboard → |
| Spirit Network coverage | 4 | 4.7 lakh views | Dashboard → |
| Varanasi Network coverage | 1 | 4 lakh views | Dashboard → |
| Hari Hara Veera Mallu Network coverage | 1 | 3.8 lakh views | Dashboard → |
Each figure is the film's headline on its dashboard: views or accounts reached, whichever is larger. Views are lifetime Instagram views at the last refresh and keep rising; reach is counted per post, so it can count one account several times. Neither is ticket sales or a unique audience. For comparison, posts about Kannada films since September 2024 have a median of 86,865 views (4,112 posts); the two sets of films differ, so the medians are not like for like. Method and full data: other-language films on Kannada pages.
For big Telugu releases, the Telugu version carries the Karnataka run. On opening day, trade tracker Sacnilk logged 880 Telugu 2D shows in Bengaluru for Devara: Part 1 against 62 in Kannada (27 September 2024), and 859 against 41 for Game Changer (10 January 2025). For They Call Him OG (25 September 2025), Bengaluru had 1,067 Telugu 2D shows while the Kannada version had 38 shows across India. Across six big Telugu releases from 2024 to 2026, Sacnilk's day-one Karnataka gross ranged from 4.50 crore rupees (Game Changer) to 16.90 crore (Pushpa 2). For Pushpa 2's full run, The Hans India reported 87.50 crore from Karnataka, without naming a tracker or saying whether that figure is gross or net.
The audience is not confined to the city. Census 2011 puts Telugu at 27.07% of Chikkaballapura district and 22.67% of Kolar, and RRR held its Karnataka pre-release event at Agalagurki in Chikkaballapura district on 19 March 2022 (ETV Bharat). Telugu shows also hold on: Mirai still had 251 Telugu 2D shows in Bengaluru on its eleventh day (Sacnilk). Our pages are Kannada-language, so they do not replace the Telugu campaign that reaches these viewers; they add a Kannada one beside it.
Kannada-dubbed versions of big Telugu films have taken modest sums. Sacnilk puts The Raja Saab's Kannada version at 0.10 crore rupees net across India on day one, Mirai's at 0.59 crore net by day 14 and Pushpa 2's at about 7.7 crore net through day 29. Gulte reported that Salaar's Kannada version grossed 5.72 crore in Karnataka in its first eight days, at the time a record for a Kannada-dubbed release in the state.
Modest grosses do not make the Kannada version a side issue. In March 2022, #BoycottRRRinKarnataka trended because RRR's Kannada version had been booked into few theatres, and the Karnataka distributor said it was working to add Kannada screens. Pushpa's Kannada dub had drawn a similar controversy in December 2021, when it played on one Bengaluru screen (The News Minute). Dubbing into Kannada is lawful: in 2015 the Competition Commission of India ruled against film bodies that had blocked dubbed content (SCC Online).
Whether to release a Kannada version is a decision for you and your distributor. Our part is the promotion: Kannada memes, reels and captions for Kannada-speaking audiences that name the version actually playing. A Kannada caption does not mean a Kannada dub exists, and our posts will not suggest one.
Plan Karnataka show times separately from the home-state schedule. For Pushpa 2 on 5 December 2024, the Bengaluru Urban deputy commissioner asked police to cancel shows between midnight and 6:30 am and to act against 42 city theatres (Business Today). The Kannada Film Producers Association had complained, citing a local custom of no release shows before 6 am (News Karnataka). We found no written rule that fixes 6 am, so confirm first-show times with your Karnataka distributor and theatres before bookings open.
Fan events need the same planning. On OG's opening night, Bengaluru's Madivala police registered a case against organisers of a fan celebration outside a theatre after crowds blocked traffic (The Hollywood Reporter India). Gulte has reported activists defacing posters of some Telugu releases at Karnataka theatres because they carried no Kannada text. As of 12 October 2026 we found no prescribed Kannada share for film posters; the 60% Kannada rule in the Kannada language development law covers the name boards of establishments, including a cinema hall's own board. Kannada-first publicity is an audience expectation rather than a legal duty, and it is the part of the campaign we write.
A Telugu film's Karnataka release often has three parties in place before us. Your home-market agency runs the Telugu campaign. A Karnataka distributor holds the state's theatrical rights and settles screens and versions; Sacnilk reported N Cinemas as Pushpa 2's Karnataka distributor and KVN Productions as Kalki 2898 AD's, both in May 2024, and valued Game Changer's Karnataka pre-release theatrical business at about 14 crore rupees. A Karnataka PRO handles the press. We replace none of them, and we coordinate dates with whichever distributor and PRO you appoint.
What we add is the Kannada-language layer on Namma Sandalwood and allied pages: memes, reels and captions written in Kannada for Kannada-speaking audiences, a posting calendar matched to your Karnataka dates, outreach to Karnataka creators and film reviewers, and a live dashboard of every post. We do not dub, subtitle or translate films, distribute them, book theatres, handle censor certification, run paid ads or give legal advice. Our pages publish in Kannada and reach Kannada-speaking audiences, mainly in Karnataka; they are not Telugu pages. Our staff meet clients in Bengaluru. Producers in Hyderabad or elsewhere can brief us by WhatsApp, email or phone, in Telugu or English, and we reply in English or Kannada.
Before you schedule anything, read Karnataka release rules for other-language films (ticket prices, show timings, language versions and publicity rules, dated).
Tell us which versions open in Karnataka and your distributor's dates. We draft a Kannada posting calendar from first look to trailer, write memes, reels and captions that name the right version, and line up Karnataka creators and reviewers. Your approver signs off the calendar and the creative before anything goes live.
Posts point only to shows your distributor has confirmed, in the version that is playing. First-day posts follow Karnataka show times, not the home-state schedule. Through the first weekend we run Kannada reaction posts, creator videos and review roundups, and answer comments on our pages about versions and timings.
Telugu shows in Bengaluru can run into a second week; Mirai still had 251 on day 11. We keep Kannada posts going while the film plays, add the OTT date once it is announced, and hand over the dashboard link with a short wrap report on what ran.
There is no rate card. Cost depends on how many pages and posts the plan uses, the mix of reels and static memes, how many creators and reviewers are involved, how long the campaign runs, and whether one or two language versions need promoting. Send the brief with a budget range if you have one, and we will propose a scope to match.
Settle both with your Karnataka distributor and theatres before bookings open. For Pushpa 2 on 5 December 2024, the Bengaluru Urban deputy commissioner asked police to cancel shows between midnight and 6:30 am, after the Kannada Film Producers Association complained, citing a local custom of no release shows before 6 am; as of 12 October 2026 we found no written rule fixing that hour. On OG's opening night, Madivala police registered a case against organisers of a fan celebration after crowds blocked traffic outside a theatre.
That is your and your distributor's call, and we do not dub films. Trade figures show the Telugu original carries Bengaluru's shows while Kannada versions earn smaller sums. A thin Kannada release has still drawn backlash: a boycott trend for RRR in 2022, and a similar controversy for Pushpa in 2021. Whatever you decide, our posts name the version that is playing.
Our pages publish in Kannada and reach Kannada-speaking audiences, mainly in Karnataka. We have no Telugu pages and do not target Andhra Pradesh or Telangana; your home-market team keeps the Telugu campaign. You can write to us in Telugu or English, and we reply in English or Kannada.
We do not dub, subtitle or translate films, distribute them, book theatres, file for censor certification, run paid ads or give legal advice. We plan and publish Kannada-language promotion, run creator and reviewer outreach in Karnataka, coordinate dates with your distributor and PRO, and report every post.
Share what you know; the rest can be fixed later.
The WhatsApp and email buttons open a draft that you send. Call +91 63627 23785 or write to contact@southsidestudio.in.
Send the title, language versions, Karnataka dates and distributor. We will reply with a Kannada page and creator plan for your brief.