Touted as India's  most expensive and blockbuster film ever with an estimated $40 million budget, the first part of a planned two-part epic has become the fastest Indian film to cross the 1 billion rupee ($16 million) mark, the local standard for a strong box-office performer.

Baaahubali also recorded the highest opening weekend ever for an Indian film with the U.S. box office, collecting $3 million, according to Rentrak, landing in the 11th spot. According to the producers, Baahubali also picked up another $1.4 million from Thursday preview shows.

The second part in the “Baaahubaali” franchise — a fantasy drama about a fictional kingdom — has rewritten box office records, and how.

After zooming past the Rs 100 crore mark on its first day of hitting screens in India, the much-awaited movie which piqued the interest of viewers with the question ‘Why did Kattappa kill Baaahubaali?’, has kept the audience coming in to find out the answer.

The film, featuring Prabhaas, Anushkaa Shetty, Ranaa Daggubati and Tamannaah in the lead, released in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam in over 6500 screens across Indiaa, and in 9000 plus screens worldwide.