Festive Box-Office Clash Formula for South Movies

Harshini S V

2023 began

With the Pongal battle of Varisu vs Thunivu, while Diwali was less star-studded with Japan and Jigarthanda DoubleX going head-to-head…so what exactly is the box-office winning formula for a festive weekend?

In 2019

Tamil cinema saw two major releases during the Diwali season. After the Mersal firecracker in 2017 and Sarkar in 2018, Vijay continued his festival streak with Atlee in Bigil.

We Also Had

Nayanthara in the squad, and a women's football team, all packed into a sports-revenge drama that was every bit a fan service to the star. The film had seven songs, accounting for close to 30 minutes of the film’s 3-hour runtime.

Earlier That Year

We had two star vehicles battle it out during Pongal — Viswasam and Petta; much like the Varisu vs. Thunivu clash we saw this year. The Vijay-Ajith festival was followed by Raghava Lawrence’s Rudhran and Aishwarya Rajesh’s Soppana Sundari during Tamil New Year 

There Seems to Be No Single Pattern

Neither in terms of genre nor in terms of casting when it comes to these releases. So, what exactly constitutes a good box-office clash that satisfies the audience, producers, theatre owners and the entire ecosystem alike?