Drishyam 3 opens strong as its advance sales rank seventh of all time

Ajay Devgn's Drishyam: The Conclusion, the third and final chapter of Vijay Salgaonkar's story, reached theatres on October 2. Reports say it has made one of the strongest starts of the year. Trade estimates put Friday morning occupancy at 35 to 40 per cent, and the film is said to be running at bumper levels in Mumbai, Pune and Delhi-NCR.

The advance numbers were big. The thriller reportedly sold about 4 lakh tickets for its first day across the PVR Inox and Cinepolis chains. That is said to be the second-best pre-sales figure of the year, behind only Dhurandhar: The Revenge. On the all-time list of advance sales at national chains, it sits seventh, between War and Chennai Express. Advance collections for the day are reported at over Rs 25 crore nett.

The film is reportedly heading for an opening day of Rs 50 crore nett. Estimates of how far it can go vary, with one projection at Rs 55 crore and another at Rs 60 crore. The national holiday on release day is expected to keep shows busy all day, and word of mouth will decide how much it grows over the weekend.

Early viewer reactions on X have been warm. Fans have picked out the face-off between Ajay Devgn and Jaideep Ahlawat, the interval sequence, the camera work and the twists. Several called the climax satisfying. One viewer said Akshaye Khanna had made a big mistake by leaving the franchise, but added that Jaideep handled the role well.

Ajay has said the Hindi film is not a retelling of the Malayalam Drishyam 3, which came out in May 2026. Speaking at FICCI Frames, he called the third part a completely new script that the writers had spent about two years shaping. He said the way it turned out is why the team decided to make it the conclusion.

Abhishek Pathak directed the film and co-wrote it with Aamil Keeyan Khan and Parveez Shaikh. The cast also includes Tabu, Shriya Saran, Rajat Kapoor, Prakash Raj, Kamlesh Sawant, Ishita Dutta and Mrunal Jadhav. The makers have also announced an IMAX release.