Thug Life on OTT:Mani Ratnam’s Thug Life, starring Kamal Haasan, Simbu, Trisha Krishnan, Abhirami, and others in lead roles, was released in theatres on 5 June. Less than a month later, the film began streaming on Netflix. While some thought the film was ‘not as bad’ as people made it out to be, others believed it was still as ‘boring’ as they remembered it.
‘Thug Life isn’t that bad’

Viewers discussed Thug Life on X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit after its OTT release. One person though most of the reviews got it wrong, “It's funny how 'Thug Life' movie reviewers can sometimes be on a totally different page. After watching it on Netflix, it's clear they were wrong. Kamal Haasan's & Simbhu's great acting, and Mani's direction, really work. It's a deep, engaging that deserves a watch.”
Another thought that the film was cohesive than most other Mani Ratnam films, “Watched Thug Life on Netflix. It isn’t as BAD as they claimed it to be. Simbu has done a fabulous role and the screenplay was more cohesive than many other Mani Ratnam movies.”
{{/usCountry}}Another thought that the film was cohesive than most other Mani Ratnam films, “Watched Thug Life on Netflix. It isn’t as BAD as they claimed it to be. Simbu has done a fabulous role and the screenplay was more cohesive than many other Mani Ratnam movies.”
{{/usCountry}}One fan re-watched the film and thought it was as good as they remembered it, “Re-watched #ThugLife on Netflix. The best thing about a #ManiRatnam film is that, with every rewatch, you discover something new. a subtle gesture, a layered emotion, a hidden meaning, etc… I’m so gripped by how crisply the story is told through dialogues alone.” Another wrote, “Just watched as I skipped it in the theatre. I actually liked it.”
Some, however, liked certain portions of the film over others, “I like certain parts in this movie. Yes, majority hate these scenes also, but I like two or three scenes. Rest of the movie is just trauma to me. Aprm i personally liked jinguchaa song portion very much.”
‘Thug Life is a straight dud’
One X user mocked people liking Thug Life after its OTT release, writing, “Thug Life is a misunderstood meta film. It delivers a clear warning to KH/ MR fans that betrayal always comes from the ones you trust most. A decent 1st half followed by a painfully dull 2nd half is a meta reference to their career graphs.”
Another called it a snoozefest on Reddit, writing, “Just did a breezy rewatch yesterday in Netflix and boy after the flashback portions, it was straight dud. I mean it doesn't even have trolling level rewatching capacity. What an absolute snooze-fest and dud in everyone's career.”
Some even had inputs on what could’ve made the film better, “I watched this morning and man, instead of omaara they could have given the bgm they used for kamal intro in the flashback, that o maara song was such a misfit for simbu intro! I saw till kamal goes to jail that's all I could take. My god.”
About Thug Life
Thug Life also stars Aishwarya Lekshmi, Abhirami, Ashok Selvan, Joju George, Nassar, Mahesh Manjrekar, Ali Fazal, Sanjana Krishnamoorthy, and Tanikella Bharani. The film was highly anticipated as Kamal and Mani’s reunion after their 1987 hit film Nayakan. According to Sacnilk, Thug Life made ₹97.25 crore worldwide in its lifetime. It was made on a budget of over ₹200 crore.
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