Vettaiyan box-office collection Day 10: Rajinikanth's thriller struggles, Lyca eyeing fee adjustment?

On Day 10, Vettaiyan, starring Rajinikanth and Amitabh Bachchan, saw a net collection of ₹4.25 crore across India, marking a 38% increase from the ₹2.6 crore earned on Day 9. However, this boost comes amid growing concerns about the film’s overall performance at the box office.

Released on October 10 ahead of Dussehra, Vettaiyan had a promising opening weekend, earning ₹26.75 crore on Saturday and ₹22.3 crore on Sunday. Despite this initial surge, the film's total earnings over its first week amounted to ₹122.15 crore, leaving it short of its ₹300 crore target. Industry tracker Sacnilk reports that the movie has underperformed, falling more than 50% short of expectations.

The tenth day also saw an uptick in theatre occupancy, particularly in Tamil Nadu. The film registered an overall Tamil occupancy of 26.60%, with Chennai leading at 34%, followed by Trichy at 36%, and Coimbatore at 30%. However, in metro cities like the NCR, occupancy remained low at 9.67%, and Mumbai recorded 16.50%.

Reports have surfaced that Lyca Productions, the studio behind Vettaiyan, has approached Rajinikanth regarding potential compensation for the film’s underwhelming performance. While no official confirmation has been made, it is suggested that the studio is in talks with the superstar to lower his fee for future collaborations. This follows a series of financially underwhelming projects between the production house and Rajinikanth, including 2.0, Darbar, and Lal Salaam. The disappointing returns from Vettaiyan have prompted Lyca to explore options to mitigate their losses, including the possibility of another film with Rajinikanth under adjusted terms.

Directed by TJ Gnanavel, Vettaiyan features Rajinikanth as a cop once again, with the filmmaker hinting at a prequel titled Vettaiyan: The Hunter. Gnanavel expressed interest in exploring the character of Athiyan, played by Rajinikanth, tracing his path to becoming an encounter specialist. The prequel would also focus on the transformation of Fahadh Faasil’s character into a thief and police informant.

Fans were excited to witness the reunion of Rajinikanth and Amitabh Bachchan, marking their first on-screen collaboration since Hum (1991). However, despite the star power and supporting cast, which included Fahadh Faasil, Rana Daggubati, Manju Warrier, Ritika Singh, and Dushara Vijayan, the film has struggled to translate this anticipation into box-office success.