Dude box office collection day 2: Ranganathan, Mamitha Baiju film witnesses slight dip, collects over ₹7 crore

DUde package power assemblage daytime 2: theater director Keerthiswaran’s debut film Dude, starring Pradeep Ranganathan and Mamitha Baiju in the lead roles, released in theatres this Friday. After enjoying a strong opening, the film witnessed a slight dip in its box office collections on the second day.Dude box office collectionAccording to the trade website Sacnilk, the film registered business of ₹7.66 crore on day two, taking the total to ₹17.41 crore. There was a slight dip from the opening day numbers; however, the film is expected to pick up momentum over the weekend amid the Diwali festivities.When it comes to occupancy, Dude had an overall 51.18 per cent occupancy in Tamil on Saturday.The film opened at ₹9.75 crore (Tamil ₹6.5 crore and Telugu ₹3.25 crore) on Friday. After witnessing a strong start, Dude has already surpassed the opening of Pradeep Ranganathan’s Love Today, which had collected ₹2.45 crore, and also overtaken his previous film Dragon, which opened at ₹6.5 crore.On the other hand, Mamitha’s Premalu opened with ₹90 lakh, with both films expected to see growth in collections depending on word of mouth. Dude earned ₹3.89 crore from advance bookings.The Tamil romantic comedy saw mixed reactions on social media after its release. While some people praised the film’s youthful energy and performances, others felt it failed to maintain its charm beyond the first half.About DudeDude is directed by Keerthiswaran and stars Pradeep Ranganathan and Mamitha Baiju in the lead roles, alongside Sarathkumar, Sai Abhyankkar, and Hridhu Haroon in supporting parts. Billed as a coming-of-age rom-com for the digital generation, the film follows a spirited youngster navigating love, friendship, and self-discovery in modern-day Chennai. With Sai Abhyankkar’s music and a youth-centric premise, Dude tries to capture the essence of Gen-Z romance.As per Hindustan Times review, “The drawback, Dude suffers from, is when the first half quickly unpacks everything there is to be, and you wonder what other curveballs are left to tackle. Without giving much away, the lead characters confront a very timely and real-world issue that has been addressed differently in other films. And while Keerthiswaran eventually finds a way to tackle it, the lead-up to it gets repetitive and begins to feel like a pile-on after a while. He excels at comedy but struggles with emotion, which can sometimes border on melodrama. The final twist of the film, too, doesn’t land as intended.”