How Malayalam film Lokah Chapter 1 beat Coolie, War 2 at box office, fans call it better than Kalki 2898 AD, Brahmastra

Lokah Chapter 1, a Malayalam superhero film, has demolished heavyweights like Rajinikanth, Mohanlal, Hrithik Roshan, and Jr NTR at the box office.

Updated on: Aug 30, 2025, 10:16:23 IST

By Abhimanyu Mathur

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Even as Param Sundari dominated the airwaves this weekend among new releases, two Malayalam films also hit the screens, and very quietly garnered acclaim as well as eyeballs. While Hridayapoorvam had the star power of Mohanlal in it, it was Lokah Chapter 1 that sprung up the true surprise. The superhero film has been hailed as one of the best Indian films of the year, and is already making waves at the ticket window.

Lokah Chapter 1 stars Kalyani Priyadarshan and Naslen.

Lokah Chapter 1 box office

Directed by Dominic Arun and produced by Dulquer Salmaan, Lokah Chapter 1 is supposed to be the first instalment in Dulquer's planned Wayfarer Cinematic Universe. The superhero film blends elements of fantasy, mythology, and science fiction, which has been appreciated by the audience. Lokah Chapter 1 opened at ₹2.7 crore at the box office on Thursday, and saw a 40% jump on Friday, netting ₹3.75 crore on day 2. Incidentally, on the same day. Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR's War 2 earned just ₹65 lakh, while Rajinikanth's Coolie brought home ₹1.75 crore. Lokah out-earned the two of them combined.

Even Mohanlal's Hridayapoorvam lagged behind Lokah with a net collection of ₹2.70 crore on Friday. It was just Param Sundari, a Bollywood film released on a much larger scale that managed to pip Lokah with a Friday haul of over ₹7 crore.

The praise coming Lokah Chapter 1's way

The superhero film is being called one of the best in the genre to come out of Indian cinema. One fan on Reddit called it, "It’s Avengers meets girls with a dragon tattoo meets Bangalore energy." Another said that Thama and the horror universe have their work cut out now. "It's litt af!!! Kalyani absolutely killed it in the action scenes. And the comedy is great too. Amazing how they demolished Bollywood and their horror universe," read the comment.

Many said that the film's use of folklore in a modern setting was exemplary. "This is what big films like Kalki 2898 AD and Brahmastra should have done. Lokah was way better," tweeted one.

All about Lokah Chapter 1

The film stars Kalyani Priyadarshan, Naslen and Sandy, alongside Arun Kurian, Chandu Salimkumar, Nishanth Sagar, Raghunath Paleri, Vijayaraghavan, Nithya Shri and Sarath Sabha in supporting roles. It was released in theatres on 28 August, and has already earned ₹6.20 crore in India. Judging by the push it is getting via word of mouth, a bumper weekend looks likely for the film, which may push its earnings close to ₹15 crore, if not past that.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Abhimanyu Mathur
Abhimanyu Mathur is Deputy Editor, Entertainment at Hindustan Times. With almost 15 years of experience in writing about everything from films and TV shows to cricket matches and elections, he inhales and exhales pop culture and news. Currently, he watches movies and TV shows and talks to celebrities for a living, while occasionally writing about them as well. A journalism graduate of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Delhi University, Abhimanyu began his career with Hindustan Times at the age of 20, swapping classrooms for newsrooms at an early age. He began his journey in the early days of digital journalism, later switching to the madness of print journalism. Work has led him to far off places like Japan and Jordan, as well as to the interiors of Haryana and the Indo-Pak border. He dabbled in city reporting in places like Meerut, Gurgaon, and Delhi, covered the Olympics and Cricket World Cups, before finding his calling in entertainment and lifestyle during the pandemic. A Rotten Tomatoes Certified Film Critic, he is equally at home covering stories on ground as he is interviewing celebrities and studios, and sometimes prefers to shepherd teams in delivering traffic through the day. Even as his role has evolved from reporter to supervisor over the years, his first love remains writing (and of late, talking on camera). With a good understanding of cinema and its trends, and a keen eye for detail, he continues to spark conversations around showbiz for readers around the world.Read More

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