Jun 05, 2025 03:55 PM IST
Mani Ratnam’s Kamal Haasan-starrer Thug Life did not release in Karnataka amid a language row. Trade analysts predict how much loss the film will face.
Mani Ratnam’s Thug Life, starring Kamal Haasan, Silambarasan TR and Trisha Krishnan, released everywhere in India but in Karnataka on Thursday. The film’s release was banned in the state after Kamal refused to apologise for saying ‘Kannada was born out of Tamil’. A report by The Hindu now predicts that the film will face a ₹35-40 crore loss due to not releasing in Karnataka. (Also Read: Kamal Haasan fans travel 42 km from Bengaluru to Hosur to watch Thug Life after ban in Karnataka)
How much Karnataka ban cost Thug Life
Producer and distributor G Dhananjayan said that the production of Thug Life will likely lose ₹35-40 crore gross at the box office and ₹12-15 crore share to producers due to the missed release in Karnataka. This calculation was based on how Pushpa 2, Baahubali 2, RRR, and Kalki 2898 AD made around ₹74-104 crore of their over ₹1000 crore worldwide revenue in Karnataka alone.
He said, “With the four Telugu films grossing a total of ₹5832 crore, the Karnataka box office revenue alone amounts to ₹391.20 crore, while the north Indian market accounts for ₹2361.60 crore. The Karnataka market accounts for around 7% of the total revenue.” Even top-grossing Tamil films like Jailer, Leo, Ponniyin Selvan, The GOAT, and Vikram had a major chunk of the market in Karnataka, said the producer, adding, “For Tamil films too, the Karnataka market accounts for 7% of the total revenue.”
The language row explained
On 27 May, while promoting Thug Life in Karnataka and calling Shiva Rajkumar his family, Kamal said, “Kannada was born out of Tamil,” sparking uproar. Even after the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce threatened to ban the film’s release in the state, the actor refused to apologise and claimed his statement was being misconstrued.
He moved the Karnataka High Court to help with the release, but the court also said the issue could be solved with a ‘simple apology’ while criticising the actor for not being a linguist or historian. The Tamil Active Film Producers Council has stated that Karnataka stopping or postponing Thug Life’s release will damage the relationship between the two film industries and will have consequences.
Thug Life has received mixed reviews since its release.
