Kamal Haasan’s ‘Vikraam’ to enter ₹400 crore club

Actor Kamal Haasan's latest release Vikram, which also stars Vijay Sethupathi, Fahadh Faasil, and Suriya in key roles, has set the cash registers ringing.

Over the weekend, it emerged as the highest grossing film of all time in Tamil Nadu, overtaking the top place held by SS Rajamouli's Baahubali 2: The Conclusion. The Lokesh Kanagaraj directorial has now grossed over ₹350 crore worldwide and is slowly heading towards the ₹400 crore (TK476.33 crore) mark.

Vikram, which was also dubbed and released in Hindi, Telugu and Malayalam, features Kamal Haasan in the role of a former agent Vikram who sets out to avenge the death of his son, an undercover officer in the narcotics bureau.

Reports had claimed on Saturday that the film was set to overtake Baahubali 2's collections in Tamil Nadu but it was confirmed only by Monday. Industry tracker Sreedhar Pillai took to Twitter on Monday to confirm that Vikram has overtaken the lifetime collection of Baahubali 2 in Tamil Nadu. The SS Rajamouli directorial held the record for five years.

Trade analyst Trinath confirmed that the film has grossed over ₹350 crore  (TK416.76 crore) at the box-office worldwide and will most likely cross the 400-crore barrier too. "Vikram is having a phenomenal run. It has already grossed over ₹350 crore and might very well breach ₹400 crore club by the end of its theatrical run. This is the biggest blockbuster in Kamal Haasan's career," Trinath told Hindustan Times.

Meanwhile, the entire team is buoyed by the film's success. Last week, Kamal Haasan met the media in Chennai and said he's thrilled with the response for the movie. He said that the success will only motivate them to work harder on their next collaboration.

He thanked actor Suriya for accepting the offer to play a 10-minute cameo in the movie. Suriya, who comes as the main antagonist, plays a character called Rolex. The film connects to Lokesh's previous film Kaithi and sets up a larger cinematic universe, where Suriya will play the over-arching villain. Kamal Haasan and Lokesh Kanagaraj will reunite for the next part in the Vikram franchise next year.

Vikram has emerged as the highest-grossing film in Kamal Haasan's career. The film features is considered a spiritual successor to the actor's 1986 film of the same name. He returns as former agent Vikram of the Black Squad, which used to work for the Indian government.