Puneet's star rises with 'Akash'

Bangalore, June 9 (IANS) "Akash", the fifth movie of promising actor Puneet Raj Kumar, has proved to be the most popular of his films. The simple but gripping narrative has managed to grab eyeballs.

Here are the Kannada top five:

"Akash": The film's collections for the first four weeks have surpassed the records of many mega hits. The movie, starring Puneet, Ramya and Ashish Vidyarthi, is produced by Puneet's mother Parvathamma Raj Kumar. It is expected to have a long run since family audiences are now thronging movie theatres. In Bangalore, the collections have already crossed the Rs.10-million ($23,000) mark.

"Aham Premasmi": Ravichandran's much-awaited film has lived up to the audience's expectations. The first week's collections have been encouraging for this Rs.60-million ($1.3 million) film. The movie, the launch vehicle for Ravichandran's brother Balaji, appears to be more popular in urban areas.

">"Varsha": This Vishnuvardhan-starrer has completed six weeks in many theatres. Unlike "Akash", "Varsha" is making slow and steady progress. Winning the race. In Mysore, the film's collections have crossed Rs.3.2 million ($73,000). The film may complete a 100-day run in a few centres.

"Aaptha Mitra": The film's collections are still good in the B and C centres. In Bangalore and Mysore, the film is still running well. It is expected to run for a year in Bangalore. Though the collections are declining in Mysore and other centres, a new publicity blitz may make a difference.

"Gunna": Though the film cannot be considered a hit, it has to be included in the top five as no other film released recently has done well. The film's collections dropped after some encouraging collections in the first week.