Thala Ajith's much-awaited film Vidaamuyarchi opened to great numbers on its release day at the domestic box office. The film raked in ₹22 crore on its first Thursday. Of this, the film's Tamil shows made ₹21.5 crore whereas its Telugu shows collected ₹0.5 crore.
Vidaamuyarchi's shows on Thursday had a stellar overall occupancy of 61.23 per cent. The film's morning shows had an overall occupancy of 58.81 per cent and its afternoon shows logged an overall occupancy of 60.27 per cent.
Its evening shows had an overall occupancy of 54.79 per cent while its night shows had an overall occupancy of 71.06 per cent.
Vidaamuyarchi's shows logged the highest occupancy in shows across Trichy (93 per cent), Pondicherry (92.50 per cent), Chennai (89 per cent), Coimbatore (85.25 per cent), and Vellore (80.75 per cent), as per film trade portal Sacnilk.
The film is likely to get a further boost in its India box office collection on its Friday as well as over its first weekend. Ajith Kumar's latest film debuted at No.5 in North America and at No.1 in Malaysia.
The film logged collections worth $373k in its premiere shows in North America, as per film critic and trade analyst Ramesh Bala.
Vidaamuyarchi opened to largely positive reviews from moviegoers and critics alike. While some backed Ajith Kumar for his performance in the film, others appreciated music director Anirudh Ravichander for his background score that helps with the film's pace.
"Vidaamuyarchi is a high-octane thriller with Ajith Kumar in top form. Magizh Thirumeni's direction is sharp, and Anirudh's music amps up the excitement. A must-watch for fans," a social media user said.
Directed by Magizh Thirumeni, the film is the remake of the 1997 film Breakdown. Vidaamuyarchi focuses on a man who sets out a rescue mission after a notorious group in Azerbaijan kidnaps his wife.
Besides Ajith Kumar, the film features Trisha Krishnan, Arjun Sarja, Regina Cassandra, Arav, and Nikhil Nair in pivotal roles. The film released in theatres worldwide on February 6.