Rajinikanth’s Jailer 2 becomes third-highest-grossing Indian film of 2026, nears Rs 5 billion

Monday test, what's that?

Jailer 2 treated it like a second opening day. Five days into its run, Nelson Dilipkumar’s sequel has rewritten the record books, posted the best Monday in Tamil cinema history thanks to the Navratri holidays, and is now within sight of the Rs 500-crore mark. Tiger Muthuvel Pandian, it seems, has no plans to stay behind bars.

The numbers so far

The signs were there before the first show even began. Advance bookings brought in Rs 80 crore gross for the opening weekend, with around Rs 50 crore of that for day one alone. The film went on to cross Rs 400 crore within its first four days.

Then came Monday. With the Navratri break in full swing, Jailer 2 collected Rs 42.35 crore net on day five, the highest Monday collection ever for a Tamil film and one of the biggest in Indian cinema history. That brings its domestic total to Rs 242.25 crore net (Rs 283.75 crore gross).

Overseas, the story is just as loud. Rajinikanth’s fan base in the USA and Southeast Asia gave the film record-breaking starts in many markets, and on some days its international earnings matched or even beat its domestic haul. Jailer 2 has made $20.5 million internationally in five days, taking its worldwide gross to Rs 477 crore.

Third-biggest Indian film of 2026

In under a week, Jailer 2 has become the third-highest-grossing Indian film of the year. On Monday, it overtook the lifetime totals of two big hits: Border 2 (Rs464 crore) and Hanuman Ansh (Rs 439 crore). Only two 2026 releases now stand above it: Dhurandhar The Revenge (Rs 1,852 crore) and Drishyam 3 (Rs 538 crore and counting). Dhurandhar 2 is out of reach, but Drishyam 3 should fall before Jailer 2 enters its second week.

Climbing the all-time Tamil chart

The film is also working its way up the list of the highest-grossing Tamil films ever, a top 10 dominated by Rajinikanth and Vijay. As of Monday, Jailer 2 sits at #6, and at its current pace it should soon pass Ponniyin Selvan: I (Rs 488 crore) and Coolie (Rs 518 crore). Next in its sights: the ₹600-crore mark, along with Leo (Rs 605 crore) and the original Jailer (Rs 609 crore). At the very top sits another Rajinikanth film, 2.0, with Rs 691 crore worldwide. The superstar’s toughest competition, it turns out, is himself.

All about Jailer 2

Produced by Sun Pictures and directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, Jailer 2 is a rare sequel for Rajinikanth, who has turned down follow-ups to his other blockbusters in the past. He returns as ‘Tiger’ Muthuvel Pandian, this time taking on a fresh legion of villains. Ramya Krishnan, Yogi Babu, Mirnaa and Rithvik reprise their roles from the first film, while S. J. Suryah, Mithun Chakraborty, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Vidya Balan, Anna Rajan and Jatin Sarna join the cast.

The film also features high-profile cameos from Hrithik Roshan, Mohanlal, Shiva Rajkumar and Jackie Shroff. Anirudh Ravichander composed the music.