A glance at the 2025 box-office scoreboard highlights blockbuster triumphs like Dhurandhar, Kantara Chapter 1, Saiyaara, Chhaava, and Lokah Chapter One—films that shattered expectations and rewrote records.
However, the other side of the story is far grimmer. More than 80% of Indian films released in 2025 failed commercially, with several registering historic losses.
The biggest box-office disaster of the year suffered a staggering 97% loss and was pulled out of theatres in under a week; despite featuring a superstar riding high on the success of his career’s biggest hit.
That film was Vrusshabha, a Malayalam epic drama that hit theatres during Christmas.
Headlined by Mohanlal, the project was touted as one of the most ambitious ventures in the history of Malayalam cinema.
Expectations were sky-high, especially since Mohanlal came into the film fresh off the record-breaking success of L2: Empuraan, which finished as the highest-grossing Malayalam film ever.
The reality, however, was disastrous.
Vrusshabha opened to a poor ₹60 lakh net in India on Day 1 and barely registered overseas. Collections dipped further on Day 2 and showed no signs of recovery even over the weekend.
By the end of Day 6, the film had earned just ₹1.5 crore domestically and a mere $30,000 overseas, taking its worldwide gross to around ₹2 crore—an alarming 97% drop against its reported ₹70 crore budget.
With even Mohanlal’s star power failing to draw audiences, several theatres across Kerala began cutting losses and removed the film from screens by Tuesday, preventing it from completing even a full week in cinemas.
The film is now expected to wrap up its theatrical run with little to no additional revenue.
Written and directed by Nanda Kishore, Vrusshabha features Mohanlal in a dual role spanning two timelines; as a medieval king and a modern-day businessman.
The cast also includes Samarjit Lankesh, Nayan Sarika, Ragini Dwivedi, Ajay, and Neha Saxena. The film was released on December 25 in Malayalam, Telugu, Hindi, and Kannada.
Despite its scale, star power, and multi-language release, Vrusshabha stands as a stark reminder that even the biggest names cannot guarantee box-office success.
