Vismaya Mohanlal’s ‘Thudakkam’ sets record worldwide opening for female-led Malayalam film, surpasses ‘Lokah’

Dubai: Vismaya Mohanlal and Ashish Joe Antony's sinister villain act has made quite the box-office entrance.

Their debut film Thudakkam, directed by Jude Anthany Joseph out in UAE cinemas now, has reportedly registered the biggest worldwide opening for a female-led Malayalam film, edging past Kalyani Priyadarshan’s blockbuster Lokah: Chapter 1 – Chandra.

According to figures reported by box-office tracker Sacnilk, Thudakkam earned an estimated Rs68 million worldwide on its opening day.

The thriller collected approximately Rs20 million net in India from 1,102 shows. But it was overseas that the Vismaya-starrer really flexed its muscles, reportedly bringing in another Rs30 million.

That overseas push helped Thudakkam narrowly surpass Lokah, which had opened to approximately Rs60 million worldwide.

Interestingly, Lokah had performed better within India on its opening day. The Kalyani Priyadarshan-led film recorded aroundRs20 million net and Rs30 million gross domestically, while its overseas collection stood at approximately Rs30 million

In our review with Manjusha Radhakrishnan, we rated it 3 out of 5 stars saying Thudakkam comes loaded with nepotism baggage, but the star kids actually deliver. Vismaya Mohanlal, daughter of superstar Mohanlal, is refreshingly natural as Meenu, even if she’s occasionally shaky in the emotional scenes. But Ashish, producer Antony Perumbavoor’s son, is the real surprise. As a near-silent psychopath, he’s properly creepy without trying too hard. The survival thriller also hits home with its take on the everyday horrors women face — creepy stares, groping, victim-blaming and slut-shaming. The villain needed more depth, and Mohanlal’s cameo isn’t exactly subtle.

For Vismaya, daughter of Malayalam superstar Mohanlal, and for Ashish the numbers make their big-screen debut particularly noteworthy.

Directed by 2018 filmmaker Jude Anthany Joseph, Thudakkam is a thriller centred on a young woman thrown into a high-stakes situation that tests her courage, instincts and will to survive.

The film also stars Mohanlal, Aashish Joe Antony, Sai Kumar, Manoj K Jayan, Ganesh Kumar, Bobby Kurian, Kottayam Ramesh, Jaya Kurup and Jaffar Idukki.

With Lokah having gone on to become a massive box-office success, it remains to be seen whether Thudakkam can turn its record opening into an equally formidable theatrical run.