Star power, a famous surname and a praised climax all failed to save three big Telugu-Tamil releases from a weak long-weekend opening, according to TeluguCinema.com.
Three films walked into the Gandhi Jayanti weekend with real hype behind them. All three walked out with nothing much to show for it.
Of the nearly eight releases over the long weekend, Don't Trouble the Trouble (DTTT), Sigma and Thella Kaagitham carried the biggest expectations, and delivered the biggest letdowns, according to TeluguCinema.com.
DTTT had the most star power riding on it. Fahadh Faasil led the cast, and the promotional push leaned hard on names like NTR and SS Rajamouli, who lent their visible support ahead of release. The film also had the Baahubali producers backing it, with Rajamouli's son S.S. Karthikeya attached. That pedigree built up an expectation of something bigger than ordinary.
What audiences got, per the outlet, was a fairly standard entertainer, the kind that could have worked just as well with a mid-tier local hero like Allari Naresh. Premiere shows did fine business on curiosity alone, but once reviews and word of mouth turned negative, the momentum collapsed fast. Even Kerala, where Fahadh Faasil's pull is usually dependable, didn't show up for this one.
Sigma had a different kind of curiosity working in its favour. Director Jason Sanjay is Vijay's son, and that connection kept the film in conversation online well before release, with Jyothika posting well-wishes on Instagram and Jason Sanjay reportedly pitching the project directly to Suriya's team.
But curiosity around a debutant director's lineage only stretches so far. Lead actor Sundeep Kishan doesn't carry major theatrical pull in the Telugu states, and the film opened weak there. It did a little better in Tamil Nadu, where the Jason Sanjay angle generated some traction, but not nearly enough to lift the numbers. Critics were unkind too, and Vijay's own fanbase, despite the family tie, didn't turn out in any real strength.
TeluguCinema.com called it an outright disaster.
Thella Kaagitham, the smallest of the three, had young actor Harsh Roshan in the lead and a climax that drew some genuine appreciation from those who watched it. But a low-budget film going up against bigger, more heavily marketed titles on the same weekend rarely gets a fair shot at footfalls, and that's exactly what played out.
What makes this weekend notable isn't just that three films underperformed. It's that none of the usual safety nets held. Star power didn't save DTTT. A famous surname didn't save Sigma. A praised third act didn't save Thella Kaagitham.
The Gandhi Jayanti long weekend is usually a reliable slot for Telugu and Tamil releases to cash in on holiday footfalls. This year, with eight films splitting the audience and reviews turning sour across the board, that advantage never showed up. Whether any of the three claw back ground over the following weekdays, or quietly vanish from screens by next Friday, is the only thing left to watch.
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