Kalyani Priyadarshan’s ‘Lokah: Chapter 1 - Chandra’ emerges as the 5th biggest Malayalam hit of 2025

Malayalam cinema continues to spring surprises in 2025, and the latest film to carve its place among the year’s biggest successes is Lokah: Chapter 1 – Chandra. Directed by Dominic Arun, backed by Dulquer Salmaan and headlined by Kalyani Priyadarshan in the titular role, the film has already amassed an impressive Rs 19.87 crore from its India Malayalam net collections, while total collection of the film now stands at Rs 24.40 crore. This performance has placed Lokah at number five in the list of 2025’s top Mollywood hits, ahead of several bigger-budgeted contenders.

Kalyani Priyadarshan has been praised widely for her portrayal of Chandra, a layered role that demanded both intensity and vulnerability. Her commanding screen presence has given the film its emotional centre.Joining her is an ensemble of young and proven talents like Naslen and Tovino Thomas.



Lokah opened at a modest collectionRs 2.7 crore on its first day, it was only released in Malayalam on the first day. But on the second day it also found takers in Telugu. The collections jumped to Rs 4 crore on day 2 with Rs 35 lakh coming from Telugu, Malayalam still being the main contributor. On the third day, based on strong word-of-mouth the film also got a release in Tamil and it’s collection jumped to Rs 7.6 crore with Malayalam contributing Rs 5.8 crore, Tamil Rs 60 lakh and Telugu Rs 1.2 crore. On 4th day the collections jumped to Rs 10 crore with Tamil contributing Rs 1 crore and Telugu providing Rs 1.6 crore, rest coming from Malayalam version. And with that the Malayalam version’s collection jumps to Rs 19.87 crore surpassing Narivetta and firmly cementing its spot as the fifth biggest Malayalam film of 2025.

The achievement becomes even more significant when compared to other releases this year. Thudarum and L2: Empuraan have dominated the charts, while Alappuzha Gymkhana and Rekhachithram took the third and fourth spots, respectively. For Lokah, a mid-sized film without the backing of a major franchise or massive budget, breaking into the top five is a testament to audience faith in content-driven cinema.

As it continues its theatrical run, Lokah: Chapter 1 – Chandra has set the stage for a potential franchise. For now, it stands as a clear winner—proof that strong characters, authentic storytelling, and smart backing can still break through in a competitive box office year.