Latest news with #ManiRatnam-KamalHaasan
News18
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- News18
Thug Life Box Office Day 2: Kamal Haasan's Film Witnesses Drop, Earns Rs 23 Crore
Last Updated: Thug Life, the Mani Ratnam-Kamal Haasan film, struggles at the box office with a 55% drop on Day 2, earning Rs 23 crore in two days. Looks like Thug Life is having a bit of a bumpy ride at the box office! The much-awaited reunion between Mani Ratnam and Kamal Haasan, 37 years in the making, had fans excited. But sadly, the film hasn't quite lived up to the massive hype yet. Thug Life is facing a tough battle at the box office, especially after the sharp dip it took on its second day. After a decent start on Day 1, the action-packed drama hit a speed bump on Friday, Day 2 of its release. Collections took a noticeable dip, with the film bringing in around Rs 23 crore. As per industry tracker Sacnilk, the film collected Rs 7.50 crore across all languages on Friday, marking a steep 55 per cent drop from its Day 1 earnings of Rs 15.50 crore. With this, the film's total collection in India over two days stands at Rs 23 crore. What's adding to the pressure is the release of Housefull 5. Akshay Kumar's latest comedy dropped on the same day and matched Thug Life's two-day total, Rs 23 crore, in just one day. The clash proved especially damaging in the Hindi belt, where Thug Life was promoted heavily as a pan-India film. Unfortunately, it opened to a disappointing Rs 65 lakh in Hindi markets, and early estimates suggest that Friday's Hindi collection may be as low as Rs 25–30 lakh. With such numbers, trade analysts believe the film may find it difficult to even cross Rs 5 crore in Hindi during its theatrical run. But it's not just the Hindi version that's struggling as Thug Life isn't exactly lighting up the box office in Tamil either. The film's Rs 23 crore two-day total falls way short when compared to Kamal Haasan's previous hits. Remember Vikram? That Lokesh Kanagaraj blockbuster stormed into theatres in 2022 and raked in a massive Rs 60 crore in just two days. Even Indian 2, which didn't really impress critics or audiences last year, still managed a healthier Rs 44 crore over the same period. So yeah, Thug Life has some serious catching up to do. And to make things worse, the film didn't release in Karnataka at all, reportedly due to backlash over Kamal Haasan's controversial remark about the Kannada language. That definitely didn't help its numbers. Thug Life stars a fantastic ensemble including Trisha, Silambarasan, Joju George, Ashok Selvan, Nasser, Abhirami, and more. The music is composed by the legendary AR Rahman, with stunning visuals captured by cinematographer Ravi K Chandran. The movie's editing is handled by A Sreekar Prasad. First Published:
New Indian Express
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
'Thug Life' movie review: A promising gangster drama bogged down by a generic revenge saga
Blood, Brotherhood, Betrayal. From the time world cinema began to be fascinated by the lives of gangsters, these three words have been the bedrock of every iteration of their story. More often than not, these gangsters escape the long arms of the law only to find themselves on the wrong end of the gun barrel. Godfather was no different. Nayakan was no different. And even if we thought otherwise, or were told otherwise, Mani Ratnam-Kamal Haasan's Thug Life, after a point, is no different. But till we reach that point, the film is a fascinating exploration of the life of an ageing gangster coming to terms with his frailties, and dealing with the same with sardonic wit and insatiable lust. But then, suddenly, Thug Life wants to become a revenge drama fuelled by age-old reasons for betrayal that makes you wonder… Is this really the Mani Ratnam-Kamal Haasan film we were waiting for? When we meet Rangaraya Sakthivel Nayakkar (Kamal Haasan) for the first time, he is battling the idea of death. He is a senior citizen who seems to have developed a knack for escaping the clutches of death. However, as he narrates his story, we are introduced to the world of young Amar, who would grow up to be Sakthivel's commander-in-chief. Mani Ratnam and the supremely effective Ravi K Chandran dish out a delicious sequence that gets us ready for a ride about two men, born out of violence, finding their lives inexplicably intertwined. Thug Life is very much about how these two strong-headed men find themselves at loggerheads. But it is also about how they are two ends of the same coin. This coin is tossed around by various people around them, including Sakthivel's brother Manikkam (Nasser), his henchmen Pathros (Joju George) and Anburaj (Bagavathi Perumal). Each of them have their reasons to want to be close to the throes of power, and it is interesting how they all play off each other and weave a web of deceit and lies. This is a particularly fascinating phase in the film because it is not every day that we see a vulnerable gangster. These portions play out like a Shakespearean tragedy riddled with wry humour that works like a dream.
