In 2013, director Jeethu Joseph’s well-renowned masterpiece, Drishyam, starring the illustrious Mohanlal, made history by surpassing the Rs 50 crore milestone. This grand achievement made it the first Malayalam film to join the prestigious ‘Crore Club,’ a term that only Malayalam cinephiles had read about while scrolling through news of glamorous Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu blockbusters. A mix of confusion and awe swept over audiences—was it an elaborate prank, or had they truly stepped into a new era of Malayalam cinema? Even the most optimistic among them surely hadn’t imagined that ambitiously tragic treasure of familial crimes and secrets would be the trailblazer to riches.
Fast forward three years, and Mohanlal was back at it again with Pulimurugan (2016), officially kicking down the door of the Rs 100 crore club like it was made of wet cardboard. This film grossed a whopping Rs 139.5 crore, as reported by the ever-reliable industry tracker, Sacnilk. At this point, one can’t help but wonder if Mohanlal secretly has a money tree growing in his backyard, meticulously tending to it while the rest of us grapple with inflation.
Oh, how the times have changed! Mention entering the Rs 50 crore club today, and you’ll likely receive nothing but yawns and eye rolls, as audiences now seem hell-bent on casually tossing around figures that comfortably start with a ‘3.’ The highest-grossing Malayalam film ever, Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra, wrapped up its theatrical run with a jaw-dropping Rs 303.67 crore. Clearly, these days, if your film doesn’t bring in the big bucks, it’s simply a minor setback on your road to mediocrity—cue audience indifference.
You see, while Malayalam cinema waved goodbye to its modest Rs 5 crore days in 2013, the journey began two decades earlier. Back in 1991, during the humble beginnings of the Rs 5 crore club, it was none other than Mohanlal—again!—who guided the industry into commercial viability with the delightful gem, Kilukkam. Directed by Priyadarshan, the film was a classic and a right royal riot, featuring an ensemble cast that could charm the pants off a mannequin.
But, let’s not kid ourselves: even producer R Mohan had doubts about Kilukkam. A budget of Rs 60 lakh back then would give any sane person from the ‘Oh please, it’s just jokes’ school of thought cold sweats. Other films were wrapping up for a cozy Rs 20-25 lakh, so Mohan was understandably sweating bullets. Watching the preview, he had the audacity to wonder if the film would ever see the light of day at the box office. Talk about a plot twist!
“While my Iyer the Great (1990) cost Rs 50 lakh, Kilukkam managed to break my heart (and budget) with its Rs 60 lakh,” Mohan candidly shared during an appearance on Safari TV’s Charithram Enniloode. It’s almost touching how those were the days a budget was a deep sigh rather than an ominous balance sheet. “After watching the preview, I questioned Priyadarshan on how such an exorbitantly priced movie could ever make a profit. I mean, just how many jokes does a film need?” Really, everyone was just waiting for the punchline.
In a classic case of “foreshadowing gone right”—the film earned Rs 5 crore and subsequently smashed box office records like a hammer on glass. Priyadarshan made off like a bandit, pocketing Rs 8-10 lakh merely by selling the remake rights to other languages. Who knew a comedy about a hapless family could cause such a wealth transfer? It seems the real joke is on R Mohan, who went from being apprehensive about making money to witnessing a windfall as census records were being rewritten.
