Coolie vs War 2: Rajinikanth’s Film Rakes in ₹50 Cr Day 1 Advance, Beats Hrithik-Jr NTR
Coolie smashes records with ₹50 Cr pre-sales vs War 2’s ₹2 Cr. Rajinikanth leads Independence Day box-office battle.
Independence Day Clash: Coolie Storms Past War 2 with Record Advance Bookings
Rajinikanth’s upcoming film Coolie is off to a thunderous start, raking in nearly ₹50 crore in Day 1 advance bookings — leaving Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR’s War 2 trailing far behind. The Independence Day box-office clash is already shaping up to be one-sided.
Coolie Advance Booking: ₹50 Cr and Counting 🚀
Before hitting Indian theatres on August 14, Coolie has stormed international markets, clocking ₹41 crore overseas pre-sales. In North America alone, premiere bookings have touched USD 1.7 million (~₹14 crore), with USD 1.45 million from the USA and over 56,000 tickets sold. This surpasses Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Leo premiere record of USD 1.3 million.
In India, bookings opened in phases on Friday. The film has already secured ₹14 crore in domestic pre-sales, with ₹10 crore earmarked just for Day 1. The Tamil version leads with ₹10 crore, while Telugu and Kannada editions show solid momentum. The Hindi version lags but is expected to pick up closer to release.
With this pace, Coolie could break the all-time Tamil cinema advance booking record of ₹46 crore, set by Thalapathy Vijay’s Leo. It has already outpaced Rajinikanth’s own Jailer (₹18 crore India pre-sales) and may double its current figures before release.
War 2 Advance Booking: Only ₹2 Cr So Far ⚠️
Meanwhile, War 2, backed by Yash Raj Films and starring Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR, is struggling. According to Sacnilk, the film’s advance bookings stand at ₹2.09 crore — a fraction of Coolie’s massive tally. With a production budget of ₹400 crore, the film has significant ground to cover. War 2 also stars Kiara Advani in a pivotal role.
Massive Pre-Release Business 💰
Coolie has been mounted on a ₹375 crore budget but has already recovered about ₹250 crore through advance bookings and the sale of international, digital, music, and satellite rights. The film also features Nagarjuna, Upendra, Shruti Haasan, and an extended cameo by Aamir Khan.
As trade analysts predict, if Coolie maintains its momentum, it could set new Tamil cinema records and potentially dominate the holiday box office battle. Whether War 2 can close the gap remains to be seen.
