Shivaraj Kumar starrer and Ram Gopal Varma directorial "Killing Veerappan" has made an earth-shattering business in Karnataka. If we go by Kannada media reports, then the film -- which was released on 1 January -- has minted an astonishing Rs 20 crore in 10 days.

The reports say that "Killing Veerappan", which was released in over 200 screens, had raked in Rs 4.5 crore on the first day. This is a big number in a limited Kannada market. After getting a huge opening, the film managed to collect over Rs 15 crore in the next nine days.

Shivarajkumar in Killing Veerappan
Shivaraj Kumar in Killing Veerappanhttps://twitter.com/RGVzoomin

If the reports turn out to be true, "Killing Veerappan" will be the first hit of 2016 in the Kannada film industry. Traders confirm that the film has won the hearts of the audience and it is performing well in Karnataka. The good pre-talk backed by decent promotions has worked wonders for the film.

It has also given the much-needed hit for Shivaraj Kumar and Ram Gopal Varma. Both the actors and director have suffered a series of flops before finally tasting success with this film. On the other end, the Telugu version of "Killing Veerappan" opened to decent response and the talks are good among the Tollywood audience.

"Killing Veerappan" has simultaneously been made in Kannada and Telugu languages. It will also be dubbed into Hindi. Shivaraj Kumar plays the mastermind, who plans an operation to kill the forest brigand. Sandeep Bharadwaj will be seen in the role of Veerappan with Yagna Shetty plays his wife's character -- Muthulakshmi. Parul Yadav has a key role in the flick.

Meanwhile, Junior NTR's "Nannaku Prematho" has been released in Bengaluru and it is expected to take a toll on the business of "Killing Veerappan". The latest film has over 250 shows in the Garden City on the opening day, 13 January, and the advance booking indicate that it is going to have a dream start in Karnataka.