Rajinikanth’s Jailer 2 has become the first Tamil film to earn more than Rs800 crore
Rajinikanth’s film crossed the milestone on its third Sunday, 18 days after its release
Dubai: Rajinikanth’s Jailer 2 has become the first Tamil film to earn more than Rs800 crore (about Dh309 million) at the worldwide box office.
Directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, the action-comedy sequel crossed the milestone on its third Sunday, November 1, 18 days after its October 15 release.
The numbers so far
Jailer 2 had grossed an estimated Rs807.25 crore (about Dh312 million) worldwide by the end of Sunday, according to box office tracker Sacnilk, The Hollywood Reporter India reported.
Of that, Rs533.75 crore (about Dh206 million) gross, or Rs456.30 crore net, came from India. The rest, Rs273.50 crore (about Dh106 million), came from overseas markets.
The fastest climb in Tamil cinema
The film opened to $44.5 million (about Dh163 million) worldwide over its first four days, across more than 20 markets.
It went on to become the first Tamil film to cross Rs700 crore worldwide during its second weekend. It added Rs9.25 crore net in India on Sunday alone.
Records along the way
Jailer 2 has overtaken Rajinikanth’s 2018 science-fiction film 2.0 as the highest-grossing Tamil film of all time. 2.0 finished with Rs691 crore worldwide, Sacnilk reported.
It is also the first Indian film to gross more than Rs75 crore individually in each of the four big southern markets: Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Karnataka and Kerala.
In Kerala, it has passed Baahubali 2 to become the highest-grossing non-Malayalam film in the state, The Week reported. It is also Rajinikanth’s first film to cross Rs200 crore gross in Tamil Nadu.
Jailer 2 is now level with Vicky Kaushal’s Chhaava, which ended its run at Rs807.91 crore worldwide, according to Business Today. Hindustan Times reported that the film has now overtaken the lifetime totals of both Chhaava and Aamir Khan’s PK.
Strong in the Gulf
The Middle East was the film’s biggest overseas market in its first week. It brought in $7.10 million (about Dh26 million), nearly a third of the film’s $22.24 million overseas total at that stage, Sacnilk reported.
In the UAE, the film is showing at cinemas including VOX and Reel Cinemas, in Tamil with English and Arabic subtitles, and is rated PG15.
Without the big Hindi multiplexes
The film reached the milestone without a wide Hindi release. The Hindi version was not screened by multiplex chains PVR INOX or Cinepolis, reportedly over a disagreement about its four-week window before streaming. By comparison, 2.0 earned about Rs240 crore from its Hindi version alone.
The film’s success has come mainly from South India, with Tamil Nadu contributing Rs198.70 crore gross in the first 16 days.
What the film is about
Jailer 2 is the sequel to Nelson’s 2023 hit Jailer, which became the highest-grossing film of that year in the UAE. Rajinikanth returns as Tiger Muthuvel Pandian, the retired jailer at the centre of the first film.
The cast includes Ramya Krishnan, Yogi Babu, Mohanlal, Shiva Rajkumar, Vidya Balan, SJ Suryah, Mithun Chakraborty and Suraj Venjaramoodu. Anirudh Ravichander composed the music, and Kalanithi Maran produced the film under Sun Pictures.
During the film’s run, Sun Pictures shared a post on X: “For the first time in 40 years, Superstar Rajinikanth joins fans to witness #Jailer2 on the big screen!”
The next big test
Jailer 2 now faces competition from Ranbir Kapoor’s Ramayana: Part One, which opens in UAE cinemas on Thursday, November 5.
