Director Jeethu Joseph's follow-up to Drishyam 2 hit theatres on Thursday, coinciding with its lead actor Mohanlal's birthday. Recently, the film earned around 35 crore worldwide through pre-sales alone, according to data from the industry tracker Sacnilk. As per the tracker, Drishyam 3 grossed 43.37 crore at the global box office on its opening day. It is worth noting that the aforementioned is a cumulative figure, including the pre-sales tally.
Interesting, the film earned more from theatres overseas as compared to the cinemas in India. The data from the tracker shows that the film earned a gross collection of 18.37 crore from theatres in India, versus 25 crore at the global box office. It also earned a net collection of 15.85 crore from theatres.
A vast majority of the Drishyam 3 box office collection in India came from theatres in Kerala. Sacnilk reveals that the film earned 11.15 crore from theatres in Kerala on release day, followed by 2.65 crore in Karnataka, 2 crore in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, 1.25 crore in Tamil Nadu, and 1.32 crore in the rest of India.
The third instalment in the Drishyam franchise picks up the story from where it left off in the second chapter. It explores Georgekutty's (Mohanlal) emotional state following the tragic passing of Varun at the hands of his family and the subsequent cover-up of the murder. The film also stars Meena, Ansiba Hassan, Esther Anil, Siddique, Murali Gopy, and Asha Sharath, among others.
The film has opened to mixed reviews from critics and audiences. While some have expressed their reservations with its pacing and storytelling, which they called 'dated,' others have considered it a satisfying watch thanks to Mohanlal's performance in the lead role, the plot, and the climax.
