Karthik Subbaraj On Kollywood’s ₹1000 Crore Question: Why He Says It Cannot Be Planned

Filmmaker Karthik Subbaraj has shared his views on why the Tamil film industry is yet to deliver a ₹1000 crore blockbuster like KGF 2 and Pushpa 2: The Rule. During a recent masterclass with Student Tribe, he was asked why Kollywood had not reached the box office milestone despite having some of South India’s biggest stars. The director, who has worked with Rajinikanth and Suriya, said such success cannot be planned in advance.

Karthik Subbaraj on Kollywood’s ₹1000 crore film debate

When a student asked why Tamil cinema had not produced a ₹1000 crore hit, Karthik initially responded with a question of his own. “ ₹1000 crore film aa? (laughs) How will I be able to answer the question, why? How did the Telugu industry make ₹1000 crore? You answer me the how, I’ll tell the why.”

When the student pointed out that filmmaking was also a business, Karthik explained that a box office milestone of this scale was not something a filmmaker could simply set out to achieve. “It happens….nobody can target a ₹1000 crore and make a film and then get a ₹1000 crore. That’s a phenomenon that happens for any film. Just to answer the question like that, if people from the Tamil industry are trying to make, okay, now I’m going to make a ₹1000 crore film, you’re never going to attain the ₹1000 crore film.”

He then referred to KGF and Pushpa, suggesting that their makers may have hoped for major commercial success but could not have predicted the scale of their eventual reach. “I don’t think they would’ve targeted to…they would’ve definitely targeted, it’s going to be a big hit, it’s going to collect big, and all that. But when it goes and reaches a ₹1000 crore, suddenly all the audience like that film, and across India, even beyond India people started liking it. So, it’s a phenomenon. It’s like a magic that happens here and there. You can’t plan for magic to happen. It just happens by itself,” said Karthik.

How Kollywood compares with KGF and Pushpa at the box office

Tamil cinema has major stars including Rajinikanth, Vijay, Ajith Kumar and Suriya. However, its highest-grossing films remain below the ₹1000 crore mark. Jailer 2 has reportedly collected ₹766 crore, while 2.0 earned around ₹720 crore. Leo, Jailer and Coolie have also featured among the industry's biggest box office performers.

The Telugu film Pushpa 2: The Rule reportedly collected ₹1871 crore worldwide, while Kannada blockbuster KGF 2 earned ₹1215 crore. Karthik’s comments underline the difference between aiming for a successful film and anticipating a phenomenon that connects with audiences across markets.