Sharadha Narayanan/ENS

Chennai, Jun 12: Dasavathaaram will hit the screens in less than 24 hours in 21 theatres in Chennai for the first time and for over 135 shows in a single day, another record.

Over 120 prints have been distributed in Chennai. Sixteen years ago, when Kamal Haasan’s Devar Magan was released, Chennaiites had four theatres to choose from: Devi, Agasthiya, Udayam and Abirami which screened the movie for, perhaps, five shows a day.

Dasavathaaram will set a record in terms of theatre releases and the number of shows. With 135 shows, by the end of the week, it means over 3 lakh Chennaiites would have watched the movie.

While bookings for movies typically begin three days before its release, tickets for Dasavathaaram have been on sale from Sunday, June 8.

Mayajaal, the multiplex in ECR, has kept up to its earlier announcement of having at least 45 shows of the Kamal-starrer. In Satyam Cinemas, 14 shows of the movie will be held everyday while Inox will hold 10 shows.

The buzz isn't confined to Tamil Nadu. “Dasavathaaram has generated a lot of interest even among North Indians,” says Nambi Rajan of Ganesh Films, the distributors of the movie in Mumbai.

Dasavathaar, the Hindi version of the movie, will be released two weeks later. The movie is also poised for a big opening in Hyderabad, where it is to be released in over 25 theatres. Meanwhile, the animation film Dasavathaar is set for release on June 13.

For the record books, Kamal Haasan will beat the Superstar in release quantum, as Rajini’s Sivaji The Boss was released in 16 theatres here. At over Rs 70 crore, Dasavathaaramit also happens to be the costliest Tamil movie so far.