Mohanlal goes from duds in 2024 to ruling Mollywood in 2025; makes a cumulative gross of ₹500 crore single-handedly

Anyone doubting him after Malaikottai Vaaliban and Barroz 3D were silenced after releases of L2 Empuraan, Thudarum, even Chotta Mumbai.

Mohanlal did not have a good 2024 with both Malaikottai Vaaliban and Barroz 3D struggling to make a mark. Failures are nothing new to the star who began his career with the 1980 film Manjil Virinja Pookkal and saw many ups and downs in these 45 years. Some questioned if the beloved ‘lalettan’ (big brother) was losing touch. His answer to the naysayers? Collecting a cumulative gross of ₹500 crore for Mollywood single-handedly in 2025. (Also Read: Mohanlal's Thudarum co-star Prakash Varma is a master ad man who created viral Vodafone ads, worked with Shah Rukh Khan)

Mohanlal in a still from Prithviraj Sukumaran's L2 Empuraan.

How 2024 fared for Mohanlal

Mohanlal had a lukewarm 2024 with Malaikottai Vaaliban and Barroz 3D each collecting ₹29.75 crore and ₹15.1 crore respectively worldwide, as per Sacnilk. While these numbers are decent for Malayalam films made on small budgets, it spelt trouble, given that both films were mounted on a higher scale. The latter film in particular was highly publicised as a game changer, only for it to be panned for the shoddy CGI, while the former found its audience, but not the wide reach expected of it.

Mohanlal rules Mollywood in 2025

And then came 2025. L2 Empuraan, which was released in March this year, became the highest-grossing Malayalam film of all time. It also became the second-highest-grossing Indian film of 2025 with its ₹265.5 crore haul. These numbers are unheard of in Malayalam cinema. His next film, Thudarum, which was released in April, came close to L2 Empuraan by bringing in ₹234.5 crore worldwide, and is the fourth-highest-grossing Indian film this year. These films register a cumulative gross of over ₹500 crore. And this is without even adding the ₹1.05 crore collected in two days from the re-release of his 2007 film Chotta Mumbai.

Mohanlal film	Worldwide collection
L2 Empuraan	₹265.5 crore
Thudarum	₹234.5 crore
Chotta Mumbai	₹1.05 crore (in 2 days)
Total	₹501.05 crore

Upcoming work

Mollywood has always been appreciated for its engaging, sensitive and smart stories, but bringing in big bucks wasn’t something the film industry achieved till now. Mohanlal’s upcoming line-up includes the epic action-drama Vrusshabha, which will be released on 16 October and the family drama Hridayapoorvam, releasing before that on 28 August. Mollywood also has a juggernaut in the making, featuring Mohanlal, Mammootty and Fahadh Faasil in one film, which could well be the next game changer from Kerala.