As we know that the South Indian film industry is roaring like never before over the past few years. While the hangover of movies like Pushpa, RRR, and KGF 2 still remains fresh with Kantara dominating overall India, another movie from outside Bollywood is making history at BO Office and among moviegoers.
We are talking about Daman, an Odia biographical social drama film. Directed by Debi Prasad Lenka and Vishal Maurya, Daman stands for Durugama Anchala re Malaria Nikrakarana, which means Malaria Eradication in Inaccessible Areas in English.
The film has proved the potential of the Odia film industry, which was suffering a catastrophe as theatre owners showed no interest in releasing Odia movies due to Odia audiences turning away from watching regional movies.
Daman has come as a boon to Ollywood and without much promotion, the film is making as well as creating many records with word of mouth. The film was released theatrically on November 4 and has been rocking the theatres in Odisha since then. CM Naveen Patnaik has seen the film, praised and declared tax-free.
Story & Reviews
The film stars actor Babushaan Mohanty in the lead role as Dr. Siddharth Mohanty, with Dipanwit Dashmohapatra playing a pharmacist named Ravindra Muduli. Vaibhav Gohli and Udit Bhanu has also played crucial roles in the film.
Presented by JP Motion Pictures Presents in association with Mentis Films and set in 2015 in Odisha, the film is based on the real-life accounts of Dr. Omhar Hota, who saved hundreds of lives in Malkangiri on his real-life mission between 2015 and 2018.
It portrays a doctor’s relentless fight against superstitions and struggles to make tribal people aware of facts about malaria. The film has music by Gaurav Anand.
Daman Declared Tax-Free in Odisha
CM Naveen Patnaik declared the film tax-free in the state, he said that the film will have an impact on strengthening service attitudes among healthcare professionals and Govt. employees.
And latest we learn that the special screenings for the Government Officers at District and Sub-District levels are being held by the Odisha Govt. The collectors of the respective districts have been requested to arrange special screenings in their nearby cinemas.
Review – #Daman 4.5*/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🌟
“Cinematic Masterpiece”
For me #Daman is Inspirational at the same time a very hard hitting film, low in budget but massive in terms of Overall Impact… Yes it will be in Race for Oscars…Well Done Ollywood #DamanReview #OdiaFilm #Odisha pic.twitter.com/vxtPCVPpIo
— Rohit Jaiswal (@rohitjswl01) November 14, 2022
Rarely has an #Odia movie managed to make an impression, but #DAMaN is truly spectacular. It sets a new benchmark, and marks an epochal shift in Odia moviemaking – fresh idea, beautiful cinematography, and soulful songs.
So glad that we could watch it in Noida. Go watch! pic.twitter.com/Le2YvwYekM
— Pratik Prasenjit | ପ୍ରତୀକ ପ୍ରସନ୍ନଜିତ (@pratikprasenjit) November 12, 2022
This is the future of odia film industry…just ignore the 5% but enjoying the 95% of the film with zero regards….hats off to team DAMaN#DAMaN@babushaansai pic.twitter.com/xix1H7ZLnr
— ପଦିଆ (@padiagauda) November 7, 2022
Appreciating Team #Daman for this masterpiece. It gave oxygen to dying odia cine industry. It was housefull shows in BLR
Personally it took me to my koraput days when I used to go MV-79, Balimela, Chitrakonda used to meet innocent tribal people with their lovely tribal language. pic.twitter.com/iMichEDYsk
— Debiprasad (@AskLipun) November 12, 2022
Odia movie #Daman review #BabushaanMohanty #DamanReview pic.twitter.com/dSSa64IM9i
— Filmi Indian (@filmi_indian) November 14, 2022
A movie which creat goosebumps.
A movie which full with emotions.
A movie with the real fact.
A movie which describes the reality.
A movie with perfect story.
A movie with a true odia spirit.
A movie which takes up our tradition & culture.#DAMAN @babushaansai you nailed it💞👍 pic.twitter.com/rnQXsqgqrn
— Akankshya Avilipsa (@AAvilipsa) November 5, 2022
Box- Office Reports
The film, produced by Deependra Samal, collected Rs. 35,000 on Day 1, Rs. 85,000 on Day 2, and around Rs. 1 to 1.3 lakh on Day 3. The total budget of the film is estimated to be around Rs. 95 lakh to Rs. 1 crore.
The film, which was released in only 43 cinema halls on its opening day, is creating havoc at BO, and now amid the increasing demands, it has also been released in the North Market in six cities, including Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, and Raipur, for a week in single screens and multiplexes, considering the interests of Odias living in these cities.
Due to the strong word of mouth, the demand for its Hindi dubbed version has also increased, and the makers are planning to release the dubbed version in Hindi. It is good to learn that Hindi audiences will soon witness such masterpieces in their nearby cinema halls. Despite in limited theatres, film has crossed 2 Cr mark, now Hindi release can add magical numbers to it.
IMDb Rating
Daman movie has received the highest IMDb rating of 9.7 out of 10, making it the first Indian film to do so, surpassing this year’s blockbusters RRR, KGF: Chapter 2, Kantara, which have IMDb ratings of 8, 8.4, and 9.1 respectively.
