Thug Life fails to outperform Indian 2 and Vikram

Mani Ratnam and Kamal Haasan’s much-hyped Thug Life has turned retired to beryllium a disappointing outing, with the movie failing to bushed the collections of adjacent Indian 2 — a task considered 1 of the biggest underperformers successful Tamil cinema successful caller times.

What’s much telling is that Thug Life, contempt enjoying an 8-day opening week acknowledgment to its Thursday release, could lone negociate a nett full of Rs 43.37 crore crossed each languages successful India.In contrast, Indian 2 directed by Shankar, which faced mixed reviews and an assemblage divide, inactive posted a Rs 70.4 crore nett successful its archetypal 7 days, portion Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Vikram, released successful 2022, had a phenomenal Rs 143.95 crore week — astir 3 times what Thug Life achieved. This result is peculiarly embarrassing for Thug Life, considering the magnitude of anticipation surrounding the movie owed to the Kamal Haasan-Mani Ratnam reunion aft decades.The film’s regular net witnessed crisp drops aft its opening time Rs 15.5 crore start, plunging implicit 50% connected its 2nd day, and ne'er rather recovering implicit the weekend. The 8th-day fig of Rs 1.15 crore is simply a wide indicator of the audience’s rejection.On the different hand, Indian 2 — a sequel made aft 28 years — though criticized for its magnitude and dated screenplay, inactive managed a respectable opening play earlier collapsing connected weekdays.

Its anemic show has reportedly formed doubts implicit the destiny of Indian 3, which was initially planned arsenic a back-to-back merchandise with Indian 2. Industry chatter suggests that Indian 3 mightiness present skip a theatrical merchandise altogether and caput consecutive to OTT.Thug Life, which was primitively designed to travel a Hindi film-like 8-week OTT merchandise window, mightiness besides person to rethink its plan. Given its not truthful palmy theatrical run, insiders uncover the movie could beryllium forced onto a integer level wrong 4 weeks to salvage immoderate returns from non-theatrical rights.

The makers had banked heavy connected the Kamal-Mani marque worth and the film’s large-scale promotional run but neither translated into footfalls.At this point, Thug Life finds itself successful a pugnacious spot — not lone has it failed to surpass Indian 2, a movie wide considered a flop, but it besides pales successful examination to Vikram, leaving Mani Ratnam’s ambitious task struggling for relevance some astatine the container bureau and with its aboriginal prospects.