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Despite massive pre-release hype and the combined star power of Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR, YRF’s spy thriller War 2 failed to meet expectations at the box office. The film was released in the Telugu states with great prestige by producer-distributor Naga Vamsi, who had even gone on record stating that if the film failed to become a blockbuster, he would stop urging Telugu audiences to watch his future releases.

Unfortunately, War 2 turned out to be a major disappointment in the Telugu market. The collections fell well short of what is typically expected from a Jr NTR starrer, leading to underwhelming theatrical performance across the region.

Addressing the issue, Naga Vamsi revealed that the Telugu theatrical rights of War 2 were acquired for ₹68 crore, excluding GST. Notably, Yash Raj Films bore the GST amount themselves prior to the film’s release. However, with the film generating only around ₹35–40 crore in distributor share, the losses became evident.

In a significant move, YRF reportedly voluntarily refunded ₹18 crore to Naga Vamsi, as per his statement. Based on these figures, the net loss for YRF is estimated to be in the ₹10–15 crore range, contrary to widespread social media claims suggesting losses of ₹30–40 crore.

Industry observers note that had YRF not stepped in with the refund, Naga Vamsi would have incurred losses of ₹20–25 crore, including publicity and promotional expenses. Such scenarios, unfortunately, are not uncommon in the Telugu film distribution space when high-profile films fail to perform as expected.