Kollywood's top stars, including Kamal Haasan, Rajinikanth, and Vijay, have underperformed at the box office with their recent releases.
Smaller productions like Vijay Sethupathi's Maharaja and Lubber Pandu have achieved surprising successes, focusing on strong storytelling over star power.
Producers and distributors are now looking to Ajith's Vidaamuyarchi and Suriya's Kanguva to revive the financial health of the Tamil film industry.
Kanguva, directed by 'Sirurthai' Siva and starring Bobby Deol and Disha Patani, is expected to collect Rs 2,000 crore at the box office.