Adah Sharma Beats Alia Bhatt, Kangana Ranaut To Emerge As The New Female Superstar. Here's How

Adah Sharma: The Kerala Story has been embroiled in controversy since its trailer was released. The movie, which stars Adah Sharma in the lead role, hit theatres on May 5 and has emerged as one of the biggest movies of 2023.

The movie, on the other hand, refuses to slow down at the box office, as within 10 days of its release, it entered the coveted 100 crore club on Sunday, May 14. The Kerala Story minted a whopping 23 crore in the domestic market, which is its first single-day highest growth.

Directed by Sudipto Sen, The Kerala Story is now the second highest-grossing Hindi film of 2023, and its overall collection now stands at 136 crores. Despite being immersed in several controversies and facing bans in a few states, the movie's performance in theatres remains unaffected.

Meanwhile, as the movie achieves the milestone, it has managed to overturn the previous female-centric movies and has beaten the records of Alia Bhatt and Kangana Ranaut's movies. Read on to learn how!

As per reports, The Kerala Story has beaten the record for the highest female-centric movie, which was previously held by Alia Bhatt's Raazi and Gangubai Kathiawadi. The two films held the leading positions as the highest-earning female-centric movies in Bollywood. However, the newest release has surpassed their success, according to a report by film critic and trade analyst Joginder Tuteja.

Let's take a look at the figures!

1) Gangubai Kathiawadi

Sanjay Leela Bhansali's biographical drama based on the story of a mafia queen. Alia Bhatt was outstanding as Gangu, and the movie was the highest grossing female-led movie till date until The Kerala Story surprised it. Gangubai Kathiawadi made 129.10 crore. The film was released last year.

2) Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi

Kangana Ranaut's ambitious period drama Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi was released in 2019 and went on to earn 92.19 crore.

3) Raazi

The 2018 Meghna Gulzar directed Raazi was a spy thriller movie in which Alia Bhatt played an Insidna agent. The movie was a super hit and went on to earn 124 cr.

4) Veere Di Wedding

Veere Di Wedding, starring Kareena Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Sawara Bhasker, and Shikha Talsina, was released in 2018. The movie earned 83 crores.

ADAH SHARMA REACTS TO THE KERALA STORY CONTROVERSY

Adah Sharma, in an interview with the Hindustan Times, opened up about the controversy relating to The Kerala Story. She said, "We are spreading a lot of hatred against terrorism. Personally, I think terrorism and bullying are the worst things ever. Also, drugging girls, impregnating them and then ultimately brainwashing them...these are deadly things."

She further added, "The film tells you about people misusing Islam for terrorism to join ISIS (militant groups) camps. So, whoever thinks that film is about Islam is wrong. The Kerala Story is not about religion but about terrorism, which doesn't have a religion. I'm very confident in my religion, so I would never bring someone else's religion down. We all live in a country that shelters all religions, and all of them should be very well respected."