Sep 30, 2026 3:32pm IST
‘Sigma,’ ‘Anbil Avan,’ ‘Don’t Trouble the Trouble’ and More: Can the South Indian Box Office Handle Nine Releases in One Week?
South Indian audiences are in for a treat this week, with nine fresh releases starting October 2 and five holdover films. How will this impact overall business, with multiplexes gravitating towards bigger films while smaller films fight for attention? We speak to industry experts to get the big picture.
Nine South Indian films are releasing this week, starting October 2. In Tamil cinema, they include “Anbil Avan,” “Yezhu Kadal Yezhu Malai,” “Sigma” and “Baththa.” The Fahadh Faasil starrer “Don’t Trouble the Trouble” is simultaneously releasing in Malayalam and Telugu. Kannada movie lovers can look forward to “Pinaka,” “Bail” and “Trikaaram.”
Three Tamil movies, “Dorothy,” “Meesaya Murukku 2” and “Mandadi,” one Telugu film, “The Paradise,” and one Malayalam movie, “Drishyam 3,” are still holding in theatres from last week. In addition, there is one Hindi release, “Prem Keetanu,” and one English release, “Avengers: Endgame.”
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The festive season brings a crowded box office
Traditionally, the festive season in South India heralds the arrival of multiple new films, as producers, directors and distributors release their movies during these auspicious days to capitalise on the holiday crowd looking for non-stop entertainment.
“It has happened before. In the South, Sankranthi and Pongal are huge festivals, and so is Diwali. Historically, there have always been many releases, but ultimately, they get filtered, as obviously all of them will not do well. Maybe they hope to get good festival footfall with initial openings, but by the weekend, only the good ones will stay and you will see the actual results,” says Kannada actress Sumalatha Ambareesh.
Trade expert Ramesh Bala describes this as an extraordinary situation for theatres in South India. “With nine films competing for screens and prime shows, word of mouth will ultimately decide which films hold their ground. It’s going to be a fascinating week at the box office.”
Bigger films could get the initial advantage
Kannada film producer and distributor Ravindra AJ points out that this trend has become increasingly popular over the past five years.
“Last week, a Kannada film, ‘Premada Oorali,’ emerged as a surprise hit. It came from a new production house, while its director Manoj Kumar had previously won a National Award for his Kannada debut film, ‘Akashi.’ At the same time, one big Telugu release failed to generate strong word of mouth despite having a major release. This ultimately created some space for new films to get better show allocation.”
In the current scenario, exhibitors usually give more showcasing to films with established star casts and bigger budgets, especially during the first week.
“For new filmmakers, the first day becomes very important. If a film underperforms, shows can be reduced quickly. Exhibitors generally allocate shows based on a combination of factors, including marketing, star cast, budget, opening-day performance and, most importantly, word of mouth. So, the initial allocation may favour bigger releases, but the number of shows can change quickly based on audience response,” says Ravindra.
Prime-time shows become the battleground
Ramesh adds that these multiple releases will create a major scheduling challenge for multiplexes.
“Shows will inevitably be divided based on advance bookings, demand and previous-week performance. Prime-time slots will be at a premium, and after the opening day, audience response could quickly determine which films gain or lose shows.”
The unpredictability of a film’s success makes it difficult to determine the impact on overall business.
“Even if there are only two releases, if both flop, it is the same result. ‘Lagaan’ and ‘Gadar’ released at the same time and both did so well. Or ‘Sholay’ and ‘Jai Santoshi Maa’ were both blockbusters. There is enough of a movie-going audience, and it really depends on what they ultimately like,” says Suma.
Content remains the biggest factor
The fact that good content is king has been reiterated more strongly in recent times.
“At this moment, looking at the current trends and audience behaviour, I believe good content has the potential to benefit irrespective of the film’s budget. Ultimately, audience response and word of mouth will play a major role in determining which films sustain and benefit at the box office,” says Ravindra.
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Ramesh places his bets on “Sigma,” “Baththa,” “Anbil Avan” and “Don’t Trouble the Trouble.”
“They should have an advantage because of their visibility and pre-release buzz. Strong holdovers like ‘The Paradise’ and ‘Meesaya Murukku 2’ will also continue competing for prime shows. Smaller releases could feel the squeeze unless strong word of mouth kicks in quickly.”
However, Ramesh also adds a word of caution: “The festive season naturally brings more releases, but overcrowding can hurt overall business. Screens, prime slots and audience spending get divided, leaving even good films with limited room to maximise their box-office potential.”
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