Malayalam Cinema 2016: Pavada, Kali hit the spot; Hello Namasthe, Akashvani fail at Box Office

Super Hits

1) Action Hero Biju (still running)

Action Hero Biju released on 4 February with good collections on its opening. But a section of the audience defamed the film by posting negative reviews on social media. The negativity reviews of the film affected its collections right from the noon shows. Despite all the negative propaganda, the Nivin Pauly starrer made one of the best comebacks ever in Malayalam cinema history. The negativity failed to work from Monday onwards as cinema lovers realised that the film was made well. Made on a budget of Rs. 2 crore by Nivin Pauly himself, Action Hero Biju went on to cross the Rs.15 crore mark at the Box Office and emerged as the highest grosser of the year. The film, still running at select cinema theatres in Kerala, collected Rs. 16 crore after completing a two-month theatrical run.

2) Pavada

Prithviraj continued his dream run at the Box Office with his first film of the year, Pavada. 

Released on 15 January 2016, Pavada opened to positive reviews all over.  The film was the actor's fourth super hit movie in a row after Ennu Ninte Moideen, Amar Akbar Anthony, and Anarkali. The film collected Rs. 15 crore at the Box Office to become the first super hit of the year.

3) Maheshinte Prathikaram

After four flops in a row with Mariyam Mukku, Haram, Ayal Njanalla, and 

Monsoon Mangoes, Maheshinte Prathikaram came without any expectations from actor Fahadh 

Faasil. However, the Aashiq Abu venture garnered unanimously positive reviews to become the biggest solo hit of Fahadh's career. The film was released at the same time as Nivin Pauly starrer, Action Hero Biju, and managed to gross Rs. 14.50 crore from its theatrical run.

4) Kali (still running) 

Dulquer Salmaan starrer Kali has created history by recording the highest opening day collections at the Malayalam Box Office by beating the record set by his previous film Charlie. The film 

collected Rs 2.32 crore on its first day. Kali has also seen the highest opening weekend for a 

Malayalam film with collections of Rs. 5.71 crore. The super hit film is still running at select cinemas in Kerala and has so far collected Rs.11 crores at the Box Office.

Average Grossers

1) Puthiya Niyamam 

Mamootty's first film of 2016 was expected to work wonders at the Box Office. 

However, a bad release timing and a date clash with Action Hero Biju and Maheshinte Prathikaram worked against the film. After a good opening weekend, the film failed to perform on weekdays. At the end of its theatrical run, the Mamootty-Nayantara starrer managed to bag the average verdict with life time total of Rs. 8 crore, which is quite low for the superstar's film.

2) Darwinte Parinamam 

The second Prithviraj film of the year was released to good expectations as the film was the actor's fifth release after four consecutive super hits. The film had a terrific opening weekend to become the highest opening weekend of the year. However, from Monday onwards, the film registered a massive drop at the ticket window. Reports of the film were mixed and it evidently affected the collections of the Prithviraj starrer. Thanks to it's opening weekend, the film survived at the Box Office with a theatrical gross of Rs 7.75 crore.

3) Vettah 

Manju Warrior, Kunchako Bobab and Indrajith Sukumaran starrer Vettah had a decent opening 

at the Kerala Box office. The film released on 26 February 2016, and collected around Rs 4 crore on its opening weekend. However, the entire Vettah team and cine lovers are still in shock following the sudden demise of the film's director, Rajesh Pillai. His death came one day after the release of his film. 

At the end of the theatrical run, Vettah managed to collect Rs. 6 crore at the Box Office.

Major Flops

Akashvani, Hello Namasthe, Ithu Thanda Police and Monsoon Mangoes

The Vijay Babu - Kavya Madhavan starrer Akashvani and multi-starrer Hello Namasthe -- released on 19 February 2016, opening to very low occupancy at the ticket windows. The reviews had also been just average.

The Asif Ali-starrer Ithu Thanda Police fared poorly at the Box Office. The film, which was touted to be an action-comedy entertainer, also marked the Mollywood comeback of Abhirami and Janani Iyer after a two-year gap. However, their comeback film met with a negative response at the Box Office. The clash with Prithviraj's Darwinte Parinamam further lowered its chances.

Fahadh Faasil's first film of the year, Monsoon Mangoes also happened to be a Box Office failure.