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Mumbai: Ashwin Kumar’s ‘Mahavatar Narsimha’ has beaten Disney and Marvel films to become the highest-grossing animated film in India.

The film, which was released on July 25, is set to cross Rs 200 crore in worldwide earnings.

At the grand success meet for the film in Mumbai, the film’s producer and Hombale Films co-founder Chaluve Gowda told Hindustan Times that he was very confident about the film’s success.

“When we saw the footage for the first time, we knew it was not a cartoon for kids. It’s made for grown-ups, too. We wanted to change the perception in India that animated movies are meant for kids. We wanted to take a risk in that aspect. And of course, we believed in the soul, because this is originally an epic Kannada movie that was made 30 years ago. The story was sound, and there was no doubt about the animation, since it was not typical,” Gowda said.

Before ‘Mahavatar Narsimha’, the highest-grossing animated film in India was had been from Hollywood. ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ minted Rs 56 crore gross in India, followed by two Disney/Pixar films, ‘Incredibles 2’ and ‘Frozen 2.’

Vouching that ‘Mahavatar Narsimha’ can compete against the best, Gowda explained, “When we get this kind of a reception, it proves that Indian films have an audience. And even for Disney movies, the artists are all Indians. Yes, we had the resources. The technology was there, but someone just had to take that risk and prove that in India, Indian animation movies will also work.”

He agreed that ‘Mahavatar Narsimha’s success will encourage others to follow suit.

“It will open up a lot of avenues for others to make movies. Earlier, only foreign movies were doing business in India, but when we do this, obviously, the Indian makers will feel confident.”

“A lot of animated movies will come after this, and my only word of advice is that everyone shouldn’t just follow the trend. They have to do it sincerely,” he added, with a word of caution for those who wish to make animated movies.

‘Mahavatar Narsimha’ is the first instalment of Hombale’s animated seven-part Mahavatar Cinematic Universe.

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