It’s been seven years since Mahesh Babu - Trivikram combination film Athadu (10 August 2005) film was released. It was started off with a divide talk and went on to become a classic. It is a known fact that the producers of Athadu have let their displeasure known about increasing of working days and escalation of budget of film and they blamed mainly the director Trivikram. But, the producers are in profits if you take a long term look. Athadu’s satellite rights period of 7 years is over now and the producers have renewed the satellite rights to MAA TV for a record amount of 3.5 crores. No other Telugu film’s satellite rights were renewed to any TV company to such a staggering amount. That shows the classic nature and repeat value of Athadu. Athadu was also a record breaking hit in overseas among Telugu films. The house set constructed for Athadu is being converted into studio and is being rented out to other film shoots. The construction of the house was budgeted into Athadu butget. But the rent of that house should also be considered as a peripheral revenue of Athadu. Trivikram himself has shot his next film Jalsa in Athadu house and Geeta Arts had to pay one lac a day as location charges to Athadu house. Such is the revenue potential of Athadu film.

If Athadu were not made with such a precision, it wouldn’t have become a classic and would have remained just as another film. The budget went up because of that precision and the classic tag came along. The producers of Athadu have recovered their money long back, but the director Trivikram’s tag of being an expensive director still haunts him!