Hanuman Ansh opened with no stars, no marketing push and a first day of about ₹10 lakh. Two months later this ₹2 crore devotional film had a reported worldwide gross of ₹424 crore, and Hombale Films was taking it overseas and into Telugu.
Hanuman Ansh is a Hindi film about the life of Neem Karoli Baba, the 20th-century saint whose ashram at Kainchi Dham still draws devotees from around the world. It reached Indian cinemas on 7 August 2026, barely registered in its first fortnight and then grew week after week on word of mouth alone.
By the end of August, trade writers were calling it the biggest box office surprise of the year. Here is how a film nobody was tracking became one of the stories of 2026.
Hanuman Ansh at a glance
- Release date: 7 August 2026 in India, after moving from 31 July
- Director and writer: Vishal Chaturvedi, adapting his own book, Divine Detour: That Changed My Life
- Lead: Shobhinaw Satyaa as Neem Karoli Baba
- Production companies: Swambhu Media Network and Holy Cow Home Productions
- Reported budget: about ₹2 crore
- Runtime: 150 minutes
- Certificate: U
- Overseas release: 11 September 2026, through Hombale Overseas
- Telugu release: 9 October 2026
Hanuman Ansh: the story of Neem Karoli Baba
The film follows Lakshmi Narayan Sharma, a 13-year-old from Akbarpur in the Braj region who leaves home after his mother dies, searching for Lord Rama through Hanuman. Years of wandering and encounters with ascetics turn him into Neem Karoli Baba, and the story ends with him settling near Kainchi, with a hint of a sequel.
The real Neem Karoli Baba was born around 1900 and died in Vrindavan on 11 September 1973. He founded the Kainchi Dham ashram near Nainital in 1964, and his Western disciples included the spiritual teacher Ram Dass and the singer Krishna Das.
The title means roughly “a part of Hanuman”, reflecting the deep devotion to the deity at the heart of his teaching. Purnima Tiwari, Chandan K Anand, Anil Rastogi and Sugandha Malhotra complete the main cast.
An unlikely leading man
Shobhinaw Satyaa was not meant to play the saint. He was working as second assistant director when the original lead fell ill during the first schedule, and he won the part after auditioning for it.
Chaturvedi had been researching the story since around 2009. Filming took place in November 2025, mainly in Chitrakoot with some scenes in Mumbai, and the poster was launched at Kainchi Dham itself in early 2026.
The Hanuman Ansh box office curve
The film opened in only about 250 cinemas across India. The early figures, from Sacnilk and trade analyst Taran Adarsh as reported by ETV Bharat, show a pattern almost never seen in modern Indian cinema:
- Day 1: about ₹10 lakh
- First two weeks: about ₹1.48 crore combined
- Third week: ₹10.35 crore, according to Adarsh
- Fourth Friday: ₹6.12 crore
- Fourth Saturday: ₹9.08 crore, a jump of 48%
- By 30 August: about ₹27 crore, a return of roughly 1,250% on its budget
Most films take the bulk of their money on the first weekend. The film made almost nothing in its first fortnight and then kept rising, week after week.
Why Hanuman Ansh became a hit
Word of mouth from devotees. Neem Karoli Baba has a large following, and people who saw the film brought family and friends back with them. Taran Adarsh called it “one of the biggest success stories of recent times” and said audiences had become its “brand ambassadors”.
Grassroots promotion. With no big marketing budget, the team organised eight bhandaras, or community meals, to spread the saint’s message. Chaturvedi also credited the U certificate with helping the film reach whole families.
It held its ground against giants. Hanuman Ansh shared cinemas with Yash’s Toxic, Emraan Hashmi’s Awarapan 2 and Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and still kept growing.
From ₹61 crore to ₹424 crore
By the end of its fourth week the film had reached ₹61.88 crore net in India, according to Sacnilk. On 5 September it was made tax-free in Uttarakhand, home of Kainchi Dham, after Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami watched it in Dehradun.
The run then accelerated. On 6 October, Business Today reported a worldwide gross of ₹424.24 crore after 60 days, with the film still taking ₹3 crore on Sunday 4 October.
That return on a ₹2 crore budget puts the film in rare company. Its theatrical return on investment has been described as the highest of all time, a record it shares with Jai Santoshi Maa, the 1975 devotional hit.
A soundtrack of devotion
Krishna Das, one of Neem Karoli Baba’s best-known Western disciples, performs “Om Namah Shivaya” and “Shri Ram Jai Ram”, while Shreyas Dharmadhikari sings “Jai Hanuman” and Chaturvedi himself performs “Hriday Mein Jinke Sita Ram”.
Hanuman Ansh goes global with Hombale Films
In early September, Business Today reported that Hombale Films, the studio behind KGF and Kantara, would release the film internationally through its Hombale Overseas arm. The worldwide date, 11 September, also marked the anniversary of Neem Karoli Baba’s death in 1973.
Hombale then took charge of the Telugu version, which opened on 9 October after a trailer launch on 5 October. Chaturvedi has also confirmed that work on a sequel has begun, covering the saint’s years linked to Agra and Mathura.
Watching Hanuman Ansh in the UAE
The 11 September international release opened the door to overseas markets, though the reports we checked did not name individual countries. Check UAE cinema listings for screenings and language versions, and follow Hombale Films’ official channels for any streaming announcement.
Hanuman Ansh FAQs
What is Hanuman Ansh about?
It tells the life story of Neem Karoli Baba, the Hindu saint and devotee of Hanuman who founded the Kainchi Dham ashram near Nainital.
How much has Hanuman Ansh earned?
Business Today reported a worldwide gross of ₹424.24 crore on 6 October 2026, on a reported budget of about ₹2 crore.
Who released Hanuman Ansh overseas?
Hombale Films, through Hombale Overseas, released it internationally on 11 September 2026. It also handled the Telugu version on 9 October.
For another Hombale success, see how Kantara Chapter 1 became 2025’s highest-grossing film, and find more stories in our Bollywood section.