Box Office: Will NEEK’s performance impact Dhanush’s Idly Kadai’s run?

Despite NEEK’s failure, Dhanush’s star power, stellar cast, and pan-India appeal give Idly Kadai strong box office potential ahead of its April 10 release

Written by Shanaz Syed , Journalist

Published on Feb 27, 2025 | 05:59 PM IST | 5.6K

Credit: Dhanush Instagram

Throughout his career, Tamil Superstar Dhanush has served as an actor, director, producer, and writer in addition to being a powerful performer and gifted filmmaker. However, Nilavuku En Mel Ennadi Kobam (NEEK), his most recent film as director, has performed poorly at the box office. Discussions over whether this surprising performance will affect the commercial aspects of Dhanush's next Tamil film Idly Kadai—in which he is writing, directing, producing, and starring—have been triggered.

Although Nilavuku En Mel Ennadi Kobam's lackluster performance has some fans worried, many think Idly Kadai has a better chance of winning. Dhanush's on-screen persona is among the main causes for hope. NEEK's poor performance and lackluster reaction might have been caused by the cast's preponderance of novices. But Idly Kadai immediately makes it more appealing by bringing Dhanush back in the lead role. His enormous fan base is anticipated to offer the movie enormous openings, not only in Tamil Nadu but also in Telugu and Hindi-speaking areas.

The fame of Dhanush extends well beyond Tamil film. His Telugu films, such as Sir, the direct Telugu feature, and Raghuvaran B.Tech, the dubbed version of VIP, were big box office successes. In the meantime, he achieved both critical and financial success in Bollywood with his Hindi films, such as Raanjhanaa. Compared to NEEK, which was mostly restricted to Tamil viewers, Idly Kadai is a more bankable project due to its pan-India appeal.

Idly Kadai also has an amazing supporting ensemble, which includes Arjun Reddy star Shalini Pandey, action hero Arun Vijay, and versatile actress Nithya Menen. Experienced actors like Prakash Raj, Samuthirakani, and Rajkiran give the ensemble cast more weight and guarantee that the movie has star power supported by amazing performance talent. For the reasons listed above, trade analysts think there is minimal cause for concern that NEEK's failure will affect Idly Kadai.

Set for a grand worldwide release on April 10, 2025, Idly Kadai is one of the most anticipated films this year, though the movie was originally supposed to be released last year itself. While the shadow of NEEK may linger briefly, all signs point toward Idly Kadai being a promising comeback for Dhanush as a director — with his acting prowess serving as the ultimate saving grace.