Trade Experts unite on Coolie vs War 2 clash: Coolie may have nibbled, but War 2 ate itself

August 23, 2025 - 12:00 PM IST

When War 2 released, it entered cinemas alongside Coolie, the southern behemoth fronted by Rajinikanth and Nagarjuna, with the added curiosity factor of an Aamir Khan cameo. On paper, this seemed like a clash of titans across regions. But did Coolie actually dent War 2’s box office numbers - or were the latter’s problems more internal? The trade’s verdict is fairly consistent: competition may have nibbled away at the margins, but the real culprit was the content.

Trade Experts unite on Coolie vs War 2 clash: Coolie may have nibbled, but War 2 ate itself

Taran Adarsh admitted that Coolie had some effect, particularly in Tamil Nadu, Hyderabad and certain southern circuits, “Marginally. In Tamil Nadu and Hyderabad and few other sectors also. I am definitely not denying that. But looking at the content, the solo release would have only marginally helped. What after that? It doesn’t work that way as you need to have content. This is what a lot of exhibitors have told me post release when they saw the film - that they really need to work on the script; there has to be some change. There needs to be some revolutionary change in content while keeping the spirit intact.”

Adarsh’s point underscores a wider industry refrain, a film can survive competition if the storytelling connects. Without that, even a solo release won’t save it.

Girish Johar of Zee Studios reinforced the idea that War 2 and Coolie were never direct competitors in the first place, “I don’t think so, to be very honest, because the markets for both the films were extremely cut out in the sense that War 2 was always going to be a North Hindi belt film whereas Coolie was a southern belt film. Maybe in the overseas markets in US, Canada and other markets where Rajinikanth sir has his strong clout and Hrithik Roshan also has a decent fan following, there would have been a difference of 10% and 5% in the southern market. I don’t think much would have been hampered. If the film is good, it does well everywhere. Just like Mahavatar Narsimha. Even Saiyaara did well everywhere.”

Johar’s analysis suggests that while Coolie may have clipped War 2’s wings slightly overseas or down south, the bigger narrative of underperformance lies elsewhere.

Exhibitor Vishek Chauhan was even more categorical, dismissing the notion of Coolie eating into War 2’s core markets, “I really don’t think so. Not in the Hindi belt. I feel Coolie could not deliver that kind of numbers and it was also not a film that was so huge in the Hindi belt. It was more for your regular South audience. I think the issues with War 2 were internal.”

Chauhan’s take echoes what many in the trade privately concede: Coolie never posed a serious threat to War 2 in Hindi-speaking territories.

Satadeep Saha, CEO of SSR Cinemas Pvt Ltd, struck a middle ground, acknowledging some overlap, “The clash with Coolie affected War 2 in the South market. But in other states, it was not that much affected.” This reflects the broader consensus - yes, Coolie might have carved out audiences in its strongholds, but the larger story of War 2’s stumble cannot be pinned on competition alone.

As the trade sees it, the clash dented, but it didn’t derail. The derailment came from within.