Jiiva-starrer Thalaivar Thambi Thalaimaiyil (TTT), which released on January 15 as the final Pongal entrant, has shown encouraging upward momentum at the box office despite entering the race late and facing competition from Parasakthi and Vaa Vaathiyaar. The film has collected an estimated Rs 8.7 crore India net in its first three days, as per a report on Sacnilk.com.
After a modest opening of Rs 1.5 crore on Thursday, the film saw a strong 80 per cent jump on Day 2 with Rs 2.7 crore. The real turnaround came on Saturday, when collections surged to Rs 4.5 crore, marking a further 66.67 per cent growth. The steady rise suggests positive word-of-mouth kicking in over the weekend, especially for a content-driven film without the advantage of a holiday release day.
In contrast, Vaa Vaathiyaar, which was released a day earlier on January 14, opened at Rs 1.65 crore but has struggled to maintain momentum. While it posted growth on Day 2, the Karthi-starrer saw consistent drops thereafter, collecting Rs 6.95 crore over four days, lower than TTT’s three-day total despite an earlier release.
Compared to Parasakthi, which dominates the Pongal box office with Rs 46.1 crore in eight days, Thalaivar Thambi Thalaimaiyil operates in a completely different bracket. However, while Parasakthi witnessed sharp weekday drops after its massive opening, TTT’s collections have grown day-on-day, indicating a healthier trend curve for a smaller film.
Directed by Nithish Sahadev, who makes his Tamil cinema debut after the Malayalam hit Falimy, Thalaivar Thambi Thalaimaiyil is a slice-of-life drama that relies more on word-of-mouth than scale-driven spectacle. The film is headlined by Jiiva and backed by a strong ensemble cast including Thambi Ramaiah, Ilavarasu, Prathana Nathan, and Anuraj OB.
On the technical front,Thalaivar Thambi Thalaimaiyil reunites the Falimy team, with cinematography by Bablu Aju, music by Vishnu Vijay, and editing by Arjune Babu. Vishnu Vijay and Bablu Aju previously collaborated with Nithish Sahadev on Falimy, lending the film a familiar tonal and aesthetic sensibility. The film is produced by Kannan and co-produced by Deepak Ravi, with the screenplay penned by Nithish Sahadev along with Sanjo Joseph and Anuraj OB.