Kuberaa review ; Dhanush - BGM OK but others ? Will Beat Ajith Post Covid numbers ?

 Dhanush has just delivered a masterclass on performing arts in Sekhar Kammula’s Kuberaa, and audiences cannot get over his stellar acting in the film. The crime drama has arrived in the theaters, and viewers have offered their reviews of X. The film also stars Nagarjuna, Jim Sarbh and Rashmika Mandanna, but hardly anyone has talked about them yet! Apart from Dhanush, if there is one star who is being talked about, it is Devi Sri Prasad and his music! The background music of the film is being hailed as one of the main stars of this crime drama!

However, audiences have pointed out a major issue with the film. The length! A viewer on Reddit wrote, “Just saw it, it’s 45 minutes too long, feels 4 hours long. But the emotions for the first 2 hours of work are botched. Dhanush carries. They could’ve ended things on a lighter note and given a proper payoff. But it’s watchable.” 

Deccan Chronicle review; Kuberaa suffers from a lack of tonal consistency and narrative coherence. The plot, while ambitious, is contrived and fails to emotionally connect with the audience, barring some episodes showcasing the pitiable world of beggars, particularly one scene where a deceased beggar is left untouched even by GHMC workers, and other beggars burn him in the dump yard.

Dhanush’s demand for ₹10,000 crore for the welfare of beggars across India seems outlandish and symbolic, and the sequence where he forces Jim Sarbh to beg for a day stretches believability.

Jim Sarbh feels miscast, lacking the menace required for such a pivotal role. Rashmika Mandanna plays a semi-tragic character who forms a bond with Dhanush after a personal heartbreak, but her role feels underwritte

With 323.79 crores, Dhanush can surpass Ajith Kumar’s post-COVID run if Kuberaa hits a century at the Indian box office. For those who don’t know, Ajith’s post-COVID sum is 428.77 crore net. To topple him, the Raayan actor needs 104.99 crores more. Achieving this much with Kuberaa is a very difficult task, still, anything is possible if word-of-mouth is positive.

Check out the top 10 ticket pre-sales for Telugu Films of 2024 – 25 on BMS.

• Sankranthiki Vasthunam: 442K
• HIT 3: 336K
• HanuMan: 286L
• Daaku Maharaaj: 235K
• Thandel: 155K
• Kuberaa: 150K
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• Dhanush along with his son Lingaa were present at a popular theatre to watch the first day of Kuberaa. A video doing the rounds on social media shows fans cheering and welcoming the father-son. Director Sekhar Kammula joined Dhanush for the FDFS of the film and even took some pictures with fans.As fans cheered for Dhanush, he became emotional. The video of Dhanush showing his vulnerable side has gone viral on social media.

Kannada Dimple Queen Rachitha in Trouble / Malay Rapper Darkkey,Biopic

 Sandalwood’s Rachita Ram, fondly called as the ‘Dimple Queen,’ is currently facing two separate complaints filed against her with the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC), raising concerns among industry professionals.

The first complaint has been lodged by Sanju Weds Geetha 2 director Nagashekar, who claims the actor failed to participate in any promotional activities for the film’s release on June 6. While Rachita was present at the film’s muhurath, a song launch, and a few press events nearly two years ago, the director states she was absent from all major promotional efforts during the critical weeks leading up to the release.

“I’ve directed 11 films and never had to take this step before,” Nagashekar said. “Her fans are sharing edited footage to suggest she promoted the film, but those are from earlier events. When we organized the pre-release function and invited Shivarajkumar, she chose not to attend. She participated during the initial phases — the shoots and celebrations — but did not support the film when it mattered most.”

Sanju Weds Geetha 2 producer Chalavadi Kumar also approached the KFCC, noting his disappointment. “When senior actors like Shivarajkumar and Upendra are extending their support to the film, it is discouraging to see a key cast member unwilling to engage with its promotion. Even after senior producer Rockline Venkatesh tried to intervene, there was no response from her side.”

In addition to this, an older, unresolved issue involving Rachita Ram has resurfaced. Veteran producer Vijayalakshmi Aras alleges that the actor accepted an advance of ₹13 lakh in 2017 for the film Uppi Ruppi, which featured Upendra and was to be directed by K. Madesh. However, Rachita later exited the project and allegedly failed to return the advance.

“Only 35% of the film was completed. We had scheduled international shoots, booked her flights and accommodations — and she never turned up. Our losses exceeded ₹1.5 crore,” said Vijayalakshmi. “Despite multiple attempts to contact her, we have not received the advance back, nor any communication.”

Rachita Ram has so far chosen not to comment on either matter. While she has maintained a reputation for professionalism in the past, her continued silence in both cases has drawn attention within the industry.

 

The life of Darkkey Nagaraja, known widely as Darkkey, is being adapted into a feature film, titled Aku Darkkey. One of the pioneers of Malaysian Sambarock, Darkkey was recently seen in the Ajith Kumar-starrer Good Bad Ugly, performing his song 'Arakana', which was titled 'AK The Tiger' in the film's album.

Darkkey found fame when he released the single 'Akkamage' along with his band, The Keys. He then released a full-fledged album, also titled 'Arakana'. In cinema, Darkkey most famously featured in 'Ulagam Oruvanukka' from Rajinikanth's Kabali, which had music composed by Santhosh Narayanan and was written and directed by Pa Ranjith.

Aku Darkkey, which translates to I Am Darkkey from Malay, follows the story of The Keys' frontman in his journey from his humble beginnings in Kuala Lipis, Malaysia, to attaining stardom in Kuala Lumpur and beyond. The film is set to feature scenes with Darkkey, some live-action cinematic recreations of his life, and some sequences in the style of anime. Aku Darkey is also set to feature archival footage from his previous performances.

The film is directed by Vicram Lachumanam, who has worked with directors like Venkat Prabhu and Pa Ranjith. Ashwath and Roshan Jamrock are producing the music, with Yugan Shanmugam as the director of photography, and Elayaraja Sekar as the editor. Veerasegar Thyagarajan and Thiruvarasu Sandreseger are producing Aku Darkkey, with Lachumanam and Amaresh serving as executive producers. The film is set to release in 2026.

Thug Life Karnataka Distributor BACKS OUT / Mohanlal Ooty house for Rent

 Distributor of Thug Life in Karnataka says that he is not releasing the film. One reason is that the multiplexes are giving 30 # of the screens, negative reviews and Producers ( RKF have to return the advance paid by the Distributor  have I and Madras Talkies have not returned advance running to crores as the film skipped the release date and will hereafter given on commission basis. Read on : Venkatesh Kamalakar, who had acquired the Karnataka distribution rights under VR Films, confirmed that Thug Life will not be released in the state — at least not by him.

“We are not planning to release, and, we will not release. We had taken the distribution rights for Thug Life, but could not release it earlier for reasons already known,” he says.

When asked if the film might still hit screens later, Venkatesh explains: “It’s already been two weeks. The film is underperforming everywhere, collections are falling, and multiplexes are not enthusiastic. Moreover, the multiplexes now offer only 30 per cent of the original expectations."

Insiders say financial issues are also part of the problem. A reliable source reveals to Cinema Express that the producer has yet to repay a significant advance amount back to the distributor, which runs up to crores, and its settlement is still pending.

 

We already know that Mammootty’s house in Panampillu Nagar Ernakulam is available for rent and cost only Rs 75,000 per day. Now Mohanlal;s Ooty bungalow is out for rent- Rs 37000 plus taxes. It is a 15 minute drive from Ooty bustand. Interiors are wooden and living room has a miniature of Lal and a well stocked Mini Bar that is called Gun Room, Here Lalettan personal Chef cooks for you.

In Chennai on the ECR stretch is the Sridevi bungalow that is available for rent. Take a look; Recently, Janhvi Kapoor opened the doors to her mother Sridevi's opulent Chennai home According to Airbnb's official website, Kapoor's Chennai home has been listed in the 'Icons' category, alongside other celebrity-owned properties. The website also states that the 27-year-old actress will be welcoming two guests who will have exclusive access to the lavish four-acre property. These guests will also get to enjoy local delicacies like Ghee Podi Rice, Andhra Biryani, Pesarattu Dosa, and Palkova, with the Bollywood actress.

In July 2022, the Kapoors sold their triplex apartment, located on the 14th, 15th, and 16th floors of a premium residential tower in Juhu, to Bollywood actor Rajkummar Rao and his wife Patralekhaa for Rs 44 crore. Later in November (2022), the Kapoors purchased a spacious duplex home in Pali Hill, Bandra, for around Rs 65 crore.

Paid Negative reviews killed RETRO says Karthik / Thug Life 5th 100 cr / Vijayakanth son escapes Flop

 After Paid reviews to say positive aspects of a film, now Director Karthik Subburaj says that "I am fine woith critical reviews of a film. But this paid hatred and paid agenda to share negative reviews for a film... I just can't take that. " The Director was referring to his film Retro that he claimed was a blockbuster but in reality had just about scraped through. The Director had earlier thamked the media for good reviews and went on to announce a Rs 235 crore collection. It was silent on whether it was a theatrical collection but it turned out that it was inclusive of all earnings from theatre and non theatrical. The silver lining was that Suriya donated Rs 10 crore which he said was profit to his Charity Foundation.

A few days back a producer was seen in a video saying that his small film was not reviewed bya big reviewer who thinks that he is GOD as he could ask him to pay from the review. Irony was that this Producer was te pioneer to created a Twitter lobby of critics and industry watchers – trackers with the sole intention to give inflated box office figures for a set of producers that he advocated. The lobby that he created has now outgrown him amd become a rogue lobby.

Lets hear what Karthik and Bhardwaj Ranhan the host of the website has to say. Karthik says - He said "I am fine with critical reviews of a film. But this paid hatred and paid agenda to share negative reviews for a film... I just can't take that. " The host also acknowledged his views. Bharadwaj Rangan said "Even I heard from somebody that every actor has an enemy camp on Twitter, they are paid to run a campaign and discredit someone who shares good things about a film. " Karthik Subbaraj said "Not just that, they have an office, and they get paid for it. "

He added that, when he went to the theatre to watch Retro with the audience they seemed to enjoy it. "Everyone who I spoke to liked the film, they told me they are confused as to why the film got negative reviews. This paid campaign is very dangerous and it is very shocking. "

Karthik Subbaraj stated that Suriya’s Retro will continue as a web series. The filmmaker revealed that he has plans to release his film as a web series by extending each phase of the film into an episode. Retro on OTT did not create any ripples .

Kamal Haasan 100 crore worldwide grossers

In his career, Kamal Haasan only has 4 films that have entered the 100 crore club worldwide so far. It is to be noted that we’ve only considered films starring him as the leading actor, hence Kalki 2898 AD has not been included.

Check out Kamal Haasan’s 100 crore+ worldwide grossers below:

1. Vikram (2022) – 426 crores
2. Indian 2 (2024) – 150.94 crores
3. Dasavathaaram (2008) – 104.85 cr gross
4. Vishwaroopam (2013) – 103.60 cr gross

Thug Life is only 3.51 crores away from becoming his 5th 100 crore grosser globally. That milestone is expected to be unlocked in its lifetime!

The Late Vijayakant’s son Shanmuga Pandian starrer Tamil action film, Padai Thalaivan kickstarted in an impressive manner at the box office. However, on its 4th day it slumped but the theatre collection till date has recovered 80 % of the budget as it is around Rs 5-6 crores only. The OTT- TV and digital rights combined might pull the film to a no profit- loss situation.

The Shanmuga Pandian starrer opened at 1.29 crores which was not a very bad opening. However, on its second day, it saw a drop of around 5% and amassed 1.22 crores. But on the third day, the movie again saw a stellar growth of 43% and earned 1.75 crores.

Now, according to the early estimates in Sacnilk, the movie saw a crash of around 50%. It only garnered 87 lakhs which is the lowest day-wise collection for the film till now. The total India net collection of Padai Thalaivan 5.13 crore. Including the taxes, the gross collection comes to 6.05 crore.

Dhanush Kubera more awaited than Aamir film on BookMy Show / Drishyam3-Mohanlal's Rs 300 crore club

 Kuberaa has Tamil Actor Dhanush and directed by Sekar Kammula of Tollywood and though a biliangual, film is basically a Telugu film. Sitara Zamee {ar has Aamor Khan ina Hindi film directed Tamil Director R S Prasanna.According to the figures on the BookMyShow website, Sitaare Zameen Par has a BMS Interest score of 41.4K. On the other hand, Kuberaa boasts a much higher score of 172.1K – about four times Sitaare Zameen Par’s score (at the time of writing). So, based on BookMyShow Interests, it looks like the movie-going audience is currently more interested in watching Kuberaa.

Kubera trailor Reditt comment ; In the first 4 seconds, whatever Dhanush is saying is perfectly matched with the video which confirms that the movie was shot in Tamil. But then after that in the same scene when he starts to say "neenga sonna kaasu policeu" it's the telugu video but the audio remains in Tamil 

Kuberaa's trailer dubbing is very off. This same scene seems to have been shot in both Tamil and Telugu like it was marketed it to be. In the first 4 seconds, whatever Dhanush is saying is perfectly matched with the video, after that the video is in telugu and the lip sync is completely off.

According to the makers, the SZP trailer scored 50+ million views in the first 24 hours. On Aamir Khan Talkies YouTube channel, the trailer generated 42+ million views in the first full day, making it one of the most-watched Indian film trailers on the platform.

So far, Mollywood has seen only three 200 crore grossers, and entering the 300 crore club is going to be an Everest task. While the task is very difficult, Drishyam 3 looks like a perfect fit. The biggest reason is that the franchise is highly popular, and there’s goodwill from the first installments. There’s already a strong buzz on the ground level.

Considering the buzz, Drishyam 3 is the potential blockbuster. While it will likely break records in Malayalam, the film also has hype among the Hindi audience. So, if the makers decide to release it in Hindi, the film might see a significant boost in business.

Ajay Devgn‘s Drishyam benefited due to the unavailability of the Hindi dubbed version of the original Malayalam film. Even the sequel wasn’t released in Hindi. However, this time, with Mohanlal’s Drishyam enjoying popularity among the Hindi audience through OTT, the makers might come up with the Hindi-dubbed version. Though this decision might harm Ajay’s Drishyam 3, it could make the path easier for the Mohanlal starrer in its journey towards the 300 crore club at the worldwide box office.

Ajay 'Drishyam 3' can only begin filming in October, as he must first complete his commitments for 'Dhamaal 4' and 'Ranger'. Kumar Mangat Pathak, who has produced the Hindi remakes of the franchise, is reportedly in discussions with the original makers to explore the possibility of a simultaneous release for both the Malayalam and Hindi versions. This could help manage the competition between the two films.

Dr.Atlee - Allu Arjun budget- salary Details / Anirudh says no marriage

Dr.Atlee called it India's most expensive film, however, when he was asked about the budget, he remained tight-lipped. He said "This is the most-expensive film, we are brining in all the new technologies in it. In terms of budget, the producer has to decide, my work is to direct the film. As of now I am having big dreams for the project. It is going to make all of us proud." After recieving the Doctorate fromthe Sathyabhama COllege ( University) in Chennai where he studied, he spoke about the film.

Apart from making US proud , Dr Atlee will also be the only Director in South India to recieve this amount as fees and thereby beating his Guru Shankar. Read on:

Previously, it was reported that the untitled project (for now being called A6) is being made on a budget of Rs 800 crore. With Atlee's new revelation, it is now certain that A6 is the most expensive Indian film beating, SS Rajamouli’s SSMB29 with Mahesh Babu which is reportedly made on a whopping budget of Rs 1000 crore.

Produced by Sun Pictures, Allu Arjun is reportedly getting paid Rs 175 crore along with a backend deal of 15 per cent stake in profits while Atlee will take home Rs 100 crore fees for his 6th film of the career, anchoring his brand value and box office power.

Previously, a video featured Arjun, Atlee, and Sun Pictures Kalanithi Maran visiting top visual effects studios in Los Angeles was shared on social media. They were seen discussing the script with Hollywood VFX artists. Jos Fernandez, CEO and Art Director of Ironhead Studio, as one of the technicians. He has worked on Spider-Man: Homecoming, Captain America: Civil War, and Avengers: Age of Ultron. James Madigan, VFX Supervisors for movies like GI Joe: Retaliation and Iron Man 2, were also part of the team.

In what would have a union of Anirudh top notch Music composer and nephew of Latha Rajinikanth with Kavya Maran , CEO SunRisers Hyderabad and head of Sun Music, daughter of Kalanithi Maran owner of Sun Network,  is also the grand-nephew of former Tamil Nadu chief minister Late M. Karunanidhi, just rumours.In a tweet amid marriage speculations, Anirudh wrote, “Marriage ah? lol .. Chill out guys. Pls stop spreading rumours (sic).”

We reported it- readl https://southfilmy.blogspot.com/2025/06/anirudh-to-marry-sun-tv-sunrisers-kavya.html . Anirudh BRO go chilling out, Marriage can wait.

Suriya- Vetrimaaran Vaadivaasal is ON / Rajini and Dhanush hears H Vinoth/ Dragon Again with AGS

 

• Vaadivaasal is not dropped, rumors are false. The animatronics had some delays and there were some budget issues, but shoot will begin from October-November. Will release next year. Suriya is in discussion with a film with director Jithu Madhavan who did Aavesham. It is produced by a Tamil company.

• Simbu’s immediate project is a dark gangster drama set in North Madras, directed by Vetrimaaran. There is a decent chance that this film is Vada Chennai 2, or is part of that world. The film shoot begins first week of July, and will get wrapped up around October. Releasing in December to February. Right after this Simbu will begin his project with Ashwath Marimuthu.

• Rajinikanth and Dhanush are in talks for seperate films with director H Vinoth. For the Dhanush project the producer is 7 Screen Studios. Hearing Vinoth is in a better head space now.

• Pradeep Ranganathan has signed two films with AGS. One of them is his second collaboration with Ashwath Marimuthu, and the other is one of his own direction. The film is a commercial Sci-Fi Super Hero subject, which the bound script is done. It isn’t decided if Pradeep will act in this film- AGS wants him to but Pradeep is reluctant.