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Bollywood
Pan-India Power Report 2025: Kantara Ch 1 Mints 223 Cr in Hindi; A Reality Check for Southern Dubs in 2025
2025 has been the year of the Pan India Reality Check. The Hindi audience has become ruthless embracing authentic rooted stories like Kantara with open arms while coldly rejecting generic mass actioners, even those starring heavyweights like Pawan Kalyan and Kamal Haasan. While Rishab Shetty emerged as the undisputed king of the Hindi box office this year, other highly anticipated projects like Lokesh Kanagaraj's Coolie and Suriya's Retro posted numbers that fell short of their astronomical pre release hype.From folklore to gangster dramas, here is the ultimate report card of how South Indian films performed in the Hindi belt this year. Movie Industry Hindi Net Collection Kantara: Chapter 1 Sandalwood ₹223.79 Cr Coolie Kollywood ₹37.23 Cr Game Changer Tollywood ₹32.93 Cr Mirai Tollywood ₹16.86 Cr Baahubali: The Epic Animation ₹6.94 Cr HIT: The Third Case Tollywood ₹4.11 Cr Kannappa Tollywood ₹3.98 Cr Lokah: Chapter 1 Mollywood ₹3.78 Cr They Call Him OG Tollywood ₹3.36 Cr L2: Empuraan Mollywood ₹2.59 Cr Thug Life Kollywood ₹1.70 Cr The Girlfriend Tollywood ₹ 0.60 Cr Madharasi Kollywood ₹0.50 Cr Retro Kollywood ₹ 0.49 Cr Daaku Maharaaj Tollywood ₹ 0.40 Cr Hari Hara Veera Mallu Tollywood ₹ 0.33 Cr Bad Girl Kollywood ₹0.06 Cr 1. Kantara:Chapter 1 Industry:Sandalwood (Kannada) Director:Rishab Shetty Star Cast:Rishab Shetty,Rukmini Vasanth"¨ The prequel to the 2022 divine blockbuster Kantara shattered ceilings. Delving deeper into the origins of the Panjurli Daiva during the Kadamba era, the film offered a visual spectacle that was both raw and grandiose. The Divine climax once again became a cultural talking point, driving repeat audiences in Maharashtra and the Hindi belt. It stands as the only true All Time Blockbuster from the South in Hindi this year. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) 2. Coolie Industry:Kollywood (Tamil) Director:Lokesh Kanagaraj Star Cast:Rajinikanth, Nagarjuna, Shruti Haasan, Soubin Shahir."¨ The union of Thalaivar Rajinikanth and director Lokesh Kanagaraj was expected to set the screens on fire. A stylish gangster drama involving a gold-smuggling syndicate, the film had massive hype. However, the Hindi numbers (₹ 37.23 Cr) suggest it played more to the gallery of existing fans rather than breaking out to the neutral Hindi audience like Vikram or Jailer. 3.Game Changer Industry:Tollywood (Telugu) Director:S. Shankar Star Cast:Ram Charan, Kiara Advani."¨ Coming off the global high of RRR, Ram Charan teamed up with the showman Shankar. While the film's political theme resonated in the South, the Hindi audience found the narrative slightly dated. ₹ 32.93 Cr is a respectable total but falls short of the expectations set for a Ram Charan and Shankar collaboration. 4.Mirai Industry:Tollywood (Telugu) Director:Karthik Ghattamaneni Star Cast:Teja Sajja, Ritika Nayak. "¨The surprise package of the year. After HanuMan, Teja Sajja cemented his position with Mirai. Based on the legend of Ashoka's 9 secret books, this Super Yodha film connected well with kids and families, earning nearly ₹ 17 Cr purely on concept strength without a Tier-1 star. 5. Baahubali:The Epic Industry:Pan India (Re-release/Edit) Director:S.S. Rajamouli Star Cast:Prabhas,Anushka Shetty"¨ To celebrate the franchise's legacy, the makers released a special Single Film edit of the two part saga with remastered visuals.While die hard fans turned up, the ₹ 6.95 Cr collection proves that the audience prefers new content over nostalgia trips in theaters. 6. HIT:The Third Case Industry:Tollywood (Telugu) Director:Sailesh Kolanu Star Cast:Nani, Srinidhi Shetty."¨ Nani entered the HIT universe as Arjun Sarkar. While the film was a critical success in Telugu, the dark, gritty thriller genre has a limited ceiling in the Hindi dubbed market unless backed by massive marketing, reflected in its niche ₹ 4.11 Cr collection. 7. Kannappa Industry:Tollywood (Telugu) Director:Mukesh Kumar Singh Star Cast:Vishnu Manchu,Preity Mukhundhan (Cameos: Prabhas, Akshay Kumar, Mohanlal)."¨ Despite a star-studded lineup of cameos including Prabhas and Akshay Kumar, this mythological drama starring Vishnu Manchu failed to generate buzz in the Hindi belt, collecting a meager ₹ 3.98 Cr. 8. Lokah:Chapter 1 - Chandra Industry:Mollywood(Malayalam) Director:Dominic Arun Star Cast:Kalyani Priyadarshan, Naslen, Sandy. "¨Malayalam cinema's ambitious entry into the superhero genre! Starring Kalyani Priyadarshan, the film was praised for its VFX and unique world-building. For a Malayalam film without a traditional Mass Hero, earning ₹ 3.78 Cr in Hindi is a positive sign of growth. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) 9.They Call Him OG Industry:Tollywood (Telugu) Director:Sujeeth Star Cast:Pawan Kalyan, Priyanka Mohan."¨ The biggest shocker of the list. Pawan Kalyan's gangster drama, despite featuring Emraan Hashmi as the antagonist, crashed in Hindi with just ₹ 3.36 Cr. It highlights that Pawan Kalyan's stardom is still strictly regional compared to peers like Prabhas or Allu Arjun. 10. L2:Empuraan Industry:Mollywood (Malayalam) Director:Prithviraj Sukumaran Star Cast:Mohanlal, Manju Warrier,Prithviraj. The sequel to Lucifer. While a massive blockbuster in Kerala, the complex political drama of Empuraan proved too dense for the mass Hindi audience, collecting just ₹ 2.59 Cr. 11. Thug Life Industry:Kollywood (Tamil) Director:Mani Ratnam Star Cast:Kamal Haasan, Trisha Krishnan,Silambarasan TR."¨ The reunion of legends Mani Ratnam and Kamal Haasan after decades was a cinematic event, but sadly, only for Tamil Nadu. The Hindi version was a non-starter (₹ 1.7 Cr), proving that Class Classics rarely translate to Mass Hindi Box Office. 12.The Girlfriend"¨ Industry:Tollywood (Telugu)"¨ Director:Rahul Ravindran"¨ Star Cast:Rashmika Mandanna, Dheekshith Shetty."¨ "¨A solo lead thriller by Rashmika Mandanna. While she is a National Crush, the film's niche subject matter restricted its appeal, leading to a washout in the Hindi dubbed version."¨ 13.Madharasi"¨ Director:A.R.Murugadoss"¨ Star Cast:Sivakarthikeyan, Vidyut Jammwal."¨ "¨Despite being directed by A.R.Murugadoss (known for Ghajini) and starring Vidyut Jammwal (a known face in Hindi), this film was a disaster in Hindi. It seems the audience has moved past the 2000s style of commercial filmmaking."¨ 14.Retro Industry:Kollywood (Tamil) Director:Karthik Subbaraj Star Cast:Suriya, Pooja Hegde."¨ Also known as Suriya 44, this stylish actioner by Karthik Subbaraj was expected to be Suriya's big theatrical comeback in Hindi. The shocking collection of less than ₹ 50 Lakhs indicates a complete failure in marketing or release strategy in the North. 15.Daaku Maharaaj"¨ Industry:Tollywood (Telugu)"¨ Director:Bobby Kolli"¨ Star Cast:Nandamuri Balakrishna, Bobby Deol"¨"¨ Even the presence of Bobby Deol (fresh off Animal fame) couldn't save this Balakrishna mass entertainer in Hindi. The over the top action style of NBK clearly has zero takers in the Hindi belt in 2025."¨ 16. Hari Hara Veera Mallu"¨ Industry:Tollywood (Telugu)"¨ Director:Krish Jagarlamudi,Jyoti Krishna"¨ Star Cast:Pawan Kalyan, Bobby Deol."¨ "¨A delayed period drama that felt stale upon arrival. With collections of just ₹33 Lakhs, it stands as a significant commercial underperformer for a star of Pawan Kalyan's stature."¨ (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) 17.Bad Girl Industry:Kollywood (Tamil) Director:Varsha Bharath Star Cast:Anjali Sivaraman."¨ A small budget coming of age drama produced by heavyweights like Vetrimaaran. While critically acclaimed in festivals, it was virtually non-existent at the Hindi box office. Ultimately, 2025 will be remembered as the year the Hindi market transitioned from being a star reliant territory to a landscape defined by audience discernment. The staggering gap between Kantara (₹223 Cr) and generic mass entertainers highlights a significant shift in viewer preferences. When highly anticipated projects featuring legends struggle to gain traction while a rooted folklore thriller creates history, the trend is undeniable.The era of blind loyalty to formulaic tropes is fading, making way for a new chapter of content supremacy.
