Ram and Keerthi Suresh-starrer "Nenu Sailaja" has turned out to be the first Tollywood money spinner of 2016 at the US box office. It has beaten the lifetime records of all the movies of Ram.

iDream Media, which earlier distributed "Drishyam", "Loukyam" and "Loafer", had acquired the US theatrical rights of "Nenu Sailaja". The distribution house held paid previews of the film at several centres across North America. The movie received very good response in the premieres on Thursday night. It is estimated to have grossed approximately $37,548 at the US box office

"Nenu Sailaja" released in 66 cinema halls across the US on Friday, and debuted with superb occupancy everywhere. The movie grossed $131,769 (Rs 87.28 lakh) at the box office in Thursday previews and Friday. This is the biggest release (in terms of screen count) and also the biggest opening for Ram in the US.

The Kishore Tirumala-directed romance drama garnered positive response from the audience in the country. The word of mouth took its business upwards on Saturday, with the movie witnessing over 40% growth. "Nenu Sailaja" collected $181,357 at the US box office on its second day.

The film has collected approximately $350,674 (Rs 2.32 crore) at the US box office since Friday. None of Ram's films has collected such a huge amount so soon, and his latest outing has become the highest grosser for the actor in the country. The movie is expected to cross the $500,000 mark in the US.