South Indian box office mid-year report 2026: Ram Charan’s ‘Peddi’ tops charts; ‘Drishyam 3’ and ‘Karuppu’ shine.
The first half of 2026 has produced several major theatrical hits across the South Indian film industries. Telugu cinema led the race with several blockbusters, while Malayalam cinema continued its remarkable run with sequels and content-driven entertainers as always.
Tamil cinema was also a major commercial winner and marked the return of superstar Suriya after a long string of disappointing films. “Peddi” tops the chart. Tamil cinema was also a major commercial winner and marked the return of superstar Suriya after a long string of disappointing films.
“Peddi” tops the chart
At the top of the list stands Ram Charan’s ‘Peddi’. The sports drama has emerged as the highest-grossing South Indian film of the year, collecting between Rs 332 crore and Rs 378 crore worldwide.As per Sacnilk’s latest estimates, Peddi registered 20.8% growth on 23rd, taking its India net collection to close to Rs 240 crore and India total to nearly Rs 282 crore. The opening week alone contributed over Rs 193 crore. Even with the mixed reviews and controversies related to Janhvi Kapoor’s character, ‘Peddi’ turned out to be a winner at the box office.
Winners of ‘Karuppu’, ‘Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu’ and Malayalam
Suriya’s Karuppu has emerged as the biggest hit of Tamil cinema in 2026.
The fantasy-action entertainer has grossed approximately Rs 304 crore to Rs 340 crore worldwide. It became the biggest hit of Suriya’s career.
Sacnilk reported 28th day net collection in India of Rs 37 lakh. The latest numbers put its India net near Rs 195 lakh crore, India gross at around Rs 226 lakh crore, overseas total at Rs 81 lakh crore, and global collections close to Rs 306 lakh crore.Chiranjeevi’s ‘Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu’ also enjoyed a popular theatrical run.
Released during Sankranthi, the film crossed Rs 300 crore worldwide after opening to over Rs 32 crore on the first day. The film ended its first week with approximately Rs 158 crore nett in India and maintained steady collections throughout the holiday season.Malayalam cinema had two of the biggest commercial successes of the year. Mohanlal’s Drishyam 3 has grossed around Rs 238-242 crore worldwide. Strong overseas support and the popularity of the franchise helped the thriller become one of the highest-grossing films in Mollywood, although the film was met with mixed reviews from mostly disappointed audiences.‘Vaazha II: Biopic of a Billion Bros’ followed closely with global collections of between Rs 234 crore and Rs 236 crore. The emotional family entertainer benefited from outstanding word of mouth after opening to a net collection of INR 4.75 Crores. Considering the quality of content and box office receipts, ‘Vaazha 2’ can be placed above all other Malayalam releases in the first half of 2026.
‘Aadu 3’, ‘Anaganaga Oka Raju’ and ‘Youth’ surprised the trade
Jayasurya’s ‘Aadu 3’ continued the franchise’s successful legacy by collecting nearly Rs 120 crore worldwide.
The comedian performed exceptionally well in Kerala and had a very successful reign after opening with around Rs 6 crore nett in India.Another surprise hit came from Naveen Polishetty’s ‘Anaganaga Oka Raju’. Produced on a modest budget of around Rs 8 crore, the comedy has grossed between Rs 84 crore and Rs 100 crore worldwide.Tamil cinema also celebrated the success of Ken Karunas’s ‘Youth’, which also marks Sooraj Venjaramoodu’s first successful film in Tamil.
The low-budget film has collected between Rs 68 crore and Rs 77 crore worldwide.
Big budget films that failed
Not every major release was able to meet expectations during the first half of 2026.Prabhas’ The RajaSaab opened strong with nearly Rs 45 crore nett in India, including preview collections. However, the high-budget romantic comedy-horror film is said to have grossed around Rs 208 crore worldwide, which is way below expectations considering its huge production cost.
Pawan Kalyan’s ‘Ustaad Bhagat Singh’ also struggled despite collecting Rs 34.75 crore on its opening day. The film concluded its run with around Rs 97 crore worldwide and was widely considered a commercial disappointment.Other Telugu releases, including ‘Dacoit’, ‘Raakaasa’ and ‘Biker’, also failed to maintain the momentum after their initial releases. Their global collections remained around Rs 57 crore, Rs 22 crore and Rs 18 crore respectively.Malayalam film ‘Kattalan’ from the makers of ‘Marco’ also performed poorly despite opening with around Rs 3.4 crore nett in India. The Anthony Varghese film eventually finished its run in the global range of Rs 8-10 crore.Looking at the collection reports for the first half, Telugu films dominated the box office overall, although the blockbuster films did not please the audiences much. Malayalam cinema has also surprised audiences with unexpected blockbusters including ‘Vaazha 2’.Tamil cinema also enjoyed an encouraging year with films like ‘Karuppu’ and ‘Youth’ and with the release of ‘Jailer 2’, ‘Dharman’ and several more films expected in the second half, the industry seems to be in a safe zone.
