The big box office clash between Rajinikanth’s Coolie and Hrithik Roshan–Jr NTR’s War 2 has kicked off — and the Tamil superstar’s film is taking the lead. Released on August 14, Coolie has already outperformed its Bollywood rival in early numbers.
According to trade tracker Sacnilk, Coolie collected ₹46.52 crore net in India by 6 PM, while War 2 managed ₹31.37 crore during the same period. The film has been released in Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi, with South Indian audiences driving the massive turnout. Coolie registered a Tamil occupancy of 84.5%, Telugu occupancy of 92%, and Hindi occupancy of 28%.
Certain regions witnessed near-total bookings — Pondicherry, Salem, and Warangal hit a staggering 99% occupancy, while Chennai, Coimbatore, and Hyderabad stood close at 97%.
The release also coincides with a major milestone in Rajinikanth’s legendary career — 50 years in cinema, celebrated on August 15. Stars from across the industry, including Kamal Haasan, Hrithik Roshan, Sivakarthikeyan, Udhayanidhi Stalin, Mohanlal, Mammootty, and Nani, paid glowing tributes.
Director Lokesh Kanagaraj shared behind-the-scenes moments from the shoot, writing, “#Coolie will always be a special film in my journey… the reason this film shaped up the way it did… is because of you, #Thalaivar @rajinikanth sir. Thank you for inspiring us for 50 glorious years.”
Coolie features an ensemble cast with Rajinikanth, Nagarjuna, Soubin Shahir, Shruti Haasan, Sathyaraj, Upendra, and Aamir Khan. Produced by Sun Pictures, the film’s music is composed by Anirudh Ravichander.