Drishyam 3: The Conclusion arrived in theatres on October 2 amid competition from sleeper hit Hanuman Ansh, Nani-starrer The Paradise and Sidharth Malhotra-starrer The Vvaan - Force of the Forrest, which were already running in cinemas.
Here's a look at how all four films are performing at the box office.
Drishyam 3 Continues Winning Run
Drishyam 3: The Conclusion, the third and final instalment of the Hindi version had the biggest pre-release advantage and has quickly turned that hype into steady collections, backed by the popularity of the franchise and strong audience interest.
The Abhishek Pathak's directorial opened with Rs 62 crore and collected Rs 53.50 crore on Saturday. It then rose to Rs 61 crore on Sunday before seeing a sharp Monday drop. Day 4 collections stood at Rs 21 crore. Even with the drop, the film has reached Rs 197.50 crore net in India and is just Rs 2.50 crore away from Rs 200 crore.
Its worldwide performance has been equally strong. After adding Rs 5 crore from overseas on Monday, the film's worldwide gross reached Rs 303 crore.
Ajay Devgn returns as Vijay Salgaonkar in the film, with Tabu, Shriya Saran, Jaideep Ahlawat, Rajat Kapoor, Prakash Raj and Ishita Dutta also part of the cast.
The Paradise Fades
The Paradise benefited from Nani's popularity and a strong first week but has slowed in its second week. The film collected Rs 108.20 crore in its first week, but its second-week performance has been slower. It earned Rs 2.10 crore on Sunday before falling to Rs 1.10 crore the next day.
Its India net collection now stands at Rs 116.20 crore, while its worldwide gross has reached Rs 168.08 crore.
The action film is directed by Srikanth Odela and stars Nani, Raghav Juyal, Kayadu Lohar, Sonali Kulkarni and Mohan Babu.
The Vvaan Struggles
The Vvaan - Force of the Forrest had a known cast to its advantage and a fantasy premise but has struggled to keep audiences coming back. It earned Rs 53.60 crore in its first week but has slowed considerably in the second week. After collecting Rs 3.25 crore on Day 10, it earned only Rs 0.95 crore on Day 11, a 70.8% drop. The film has now collected Rs 63.05 crore net in India and Rs 82 crore worldwide.
Directed by Deepak Kumar Mishra, the fantasy thriller stars Sidharth Malhotra and Tamannaah Bhatia, with Sunil Grover, Manish Paul, Anup Soni and Milind Gunaji also in the cast.
Hanuman Ansh Holds Strong
Hanuman Ansh started without much hype or a big opening, but positive audience response helped the film grow steadily and emerge as the strongest long-running performer among the four.
It started with only Rs 10 lakh on Day 1 and remained a small release during its first two weeks. However, positive word of mouth helped it grow over the following weeks.
Even after 60 days in theatres, the film continues to add to its tally, collecting Rs 0.75 crore net on 9th Monday. Its India net total has reached Rs 325.48 crore, while its worldwide gross stands at Rs 424.24 crore.
The Hindi devotional drama is written and directed by Vishal Chaturvedi and stars Shobhinaw Satyaa, Chandan Anand, Purnima Tiwari, Anil Rastogi and Gulshan Pandey.
What Next?
With Drishyam 3 leading the current race and Hanuman Ansh continuing its remarkable run, the two films have emerged as the biggest standouts at the box office in very different ways. It remains to be seen how far Drishyam 3 can go as it closes in on bigger milestones, while Hanuman Ansh continues to add to its impressive total.
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