Race Gurram Gets the Zing Right

It seems like the golden age of Telugu film audio market is back. Fewer than a month after the audio rights of Mahesh Babu's 1 Nenokkadine were snapped up for Rs 1-crore plus, Allu Arjun's new film Race Gurram has surprised the industry by commanding Rs 75 lakh. Though it has not broken 1 Nenokkadine's record, it is still the second highest ever for a Telugu film. Though Allu Arjun has announced that the rights for the audio have been sold at Rs 54 lakh, sources indicate it is "much more". Apart from the payment to the film-makers, the rights' buyer is also spending money on promotion of the film, say the sources. Incidentally, it is Bangalore-based Lahari Audio that has snapped up both the films.

Confirming the development, Lahari's Tulsiram Naidu said, "It is true that Race Gurram has been picked up for a big amount. I cannot reveal the exact price, but it is one of the highest ever paid for a Telugu film." The film has music by S Thaman. "Thaman is one of the best-known composers in Telugu now and we are confident that this film's music will set new records," says Naidu.

The success of 1 Nenokkadine too has prompted Lahari to buy Race Gurram's rights. Says he: "The music of I Nenokkadine is a huge success on every platform, especially YouTube where every teaser has crossed one million views in just four days of release , beating even Salman Khan's Jai Ho." The physical sales is now here near this number. The digital sales, including downloads, caller tunes and ring tones, is doing really well, says he.