War 2 Vs Coolie: Hrithik Roshan, Jr NTR, Rajinikanth to ensure Rs 1,000 crore Independence Day weekend?

War 2 Vs Coolie: Hrithik Roshan, Jr NTR, Rajinikanth films to create a hurricane at the Indian box office

Published: Saturday,Apr 05, 2025 14:32 PM GMT-06:00

Urmimala Banerjee

It is War 2 Vs Coolie at the box office on Independence Day 2025. Top stars from Bollywood and South India promise a box office extravaganza that has been hardly matched in recent times. While War 2 stars Hrithik Roshan, Jr NTR and Kiara Advani in main roles, Coolie stars Rajinikanth and Nagarjuna with a cameo from Aamir Khan. Lokesh Kanagaraj has also roped in Malayalam actor Soubin Shahir, Upendra Rao and others. This has also ignited the curiosity of Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam fans. Here is a look at how both the films stand vis-à-vis…

Brand value

War 2 has a great existing brand value. The 2019 movie War got an opening of Rs 51 crores at the box office. Aditya Chopra has personally overseen the Ayan Mukerji film in terms of its plot, locations and action. The chemistry between Hrithik Roshan and Kiara Advani is also looking good. On the other hand, Rajinikanth is coming up with a movie with Lokesh Kanagaraj. The filmmaker has one of the best track records in the South with Vikram and Leo finding fans even in the Hindi belt.

Star power

War 2 has Jr NTR who should bring in the Telugu audience to the theatres. The movie is mainly targeted at the Hindi and Telangana belt. Trade experts believe that War 2 has an edge over Coolie. However, if the content is good, even Coolie can strike gold at pan-India box office. Rajinikanth has a better pull at North Indian box office than Kamal Haasan or Thalapathy Vijay. They also have Aamir Khan with them.

Overseas

Coolie might have an edge given the mad craze amongst the South Indian, especially Tamil diaspora spread all over the world. Saying that, even Jr NTR enjoys an insane fan following in North America and Japan. It is a huge market for producers.

It surely seems that War 2 Vs Coolie might do business of around Rs 1000 crore combined in its first weekend. In 2023, we saw how Gadar 2 brought in huge footfalls for Indian theatre owners even in small towns. Let the fireworks begin!