Disasters Dressed as Big Films: Mani > Shankar

The Tamil film industry has recently witnessed two of its biggest disasters — both delivered by legendary directors.

It began with Shankar’s Indian 2, which turned out to be one of the most disappointing sequels in Indian cinema.

The film not only failed to live up to the legacy of its iconic predecessor but also became a symbol of how not to handle a franchise.

Then came Mani Ratnam’s Thug Life, also starring Kamal Haasan, which followed the same path — another high-profile disaster.

Both directors, once known for crafting unforgettable, timeless films, have now delivered two of the most talked-about embarrassments of their careers.

Commercially and critically, both films bombed right from their first U.S. premieres.

But the bigger shock lies in the North America box office numbers — Mani Ratnam actually outflopped Shankar.

In the Telugu version alone, Thug Life has grossed just $116K so far, while Indian 2 managed $486K.

Even when you combine both Tamil and Telugu versions, Thug Life sits at $1.2M — far behind Indian 2, which ended with $2M.

While there’s no debate that both films are colossal failures, the fact that Mani Ratnam “won” the wrong race against Shankar makes it even sadder.

Watching two of Tamil cinema’s most respected filmmakers falter like this is not just disappointing — it’s disheartening.