Dulquer Salmaan's I'm Game scores solid box-office start, beats Yash's Toxic Day 1 collections
Malayalam audiences power I’m Game to a robust nationwide 44% occupancy
Dulquer Salmaan is back on his home turf, and Malayalam cinema is here for it. Following his 2023 outing King of Kotha, the actor returned with the action thriller I'm Game, directed by Nahas Hidhayath, which hit theatres on September 3, and the numbers, while not chart-topping, are nothing to scoff at.
The film pulled in Rs. 5.05 crore on opening day across 2,714 shows, per Sacnilk, with Kerala audiences doing most of the heavy lifting: the Malayalam version alone brought in Rs. 4.30 crore, while the Telugu dub added Rs. 0.65 crore and the Hindi version chipped in Rs. 0.10 crore. Overall occupancy landed at a respectable 44% nationwide.
Reviews, though, have been a mixed bag, critics and audiences seem split on whether I'm Game delivers, even as it packs theatres.
Here's the twist: it didn't quite topple King of Kotha, which opened stronger at Rs. 6.85 crore back in 2023. Still, "I'm Game" has muscled its way into Dulquer's top five opening-day performers of all time — trailing only Lucky Baskhar (Rs. 7.35 crore), King of Kotha (Rs. 6.85 crore), and Kurup (Rs. 5.60 crore).
And here's where it gets interesting for the pan-India box office watchers: I'm Game actually out-earned Yash's Toxic: A Fairytale For Grown Ups on a single day. While Dulquer's film was racking up Rs. 5.05 crore on day one, Yash's Kannada blockbuster, already nine days into its run, could only manage Rs. 4 crore on that same day, according to Sacnilk.
I'm Game wasn't always meant to land in September. The film was originally slotted for the Onam festival window, where it was gearing up for a box office face-off against Khalifa and Bethlehem Kudumba Unit. Those plans got shelved, though, and the release was pushed back, finally bringing the film to theatres on September 3 instead.
Fronting the cast is Dulquer Salmaan, joined by an ensemble that includes Antony Varghese, Mysskin, Kayadu Lohar, Samyuktha Viswanathan, Kathir, Vinay Forrt and Parth Tiwari. At its core, the film follows a gambler whose world gets turned upside down after a chain of events lands him in serious trouble.
Behind the camera, Nahas Hidhayath directs, having co-written the screenplay alongside Sajeer Baba, Ismail Aboobacker and Bilal Moidu. The film was brought to life by Dulquer Salmaan himself alongside Jom Varghese, produced under their Wayfarer Films banner.
