'Thamma' Stumbles as 'Kantara' Reigns Supreme in Diwali Box Office Battle

As of October 20th, 2025, Bollywood's highly anticipated Diwali release, 'Thamma', has started off on a slow note in terms of advance bookings. With just one day left until its release, the Ayushmann Khurrana and Rashmika Mandanna-starrer has managed to sell over 100,000 tickets across India in both Hindi and Telugu languages.

The film has grossed around ₹3.09 crore and ₹7.01 crore for its opening day, including block seat sales, according to trade website Sacnilk. However, the festive mood is expected to boost the film's performance once the main Diwali celebrations wind down and families head out for post-festivity outings.

The real challenge for 'Thamma' comes from the continued dominance of 'Kantara: Chapter 1' in the Hindi belt. The Aditya Sarpotdkar-directed horror-comedy will need to generate strong word-of-mouth to outperform previous films in the Maddock's horror-comedy universe, such as 'Munjya' and 'Bhediya'.

Ayushmann Khurrana's star power and the audience's trust in his script choices could work in 'Thamma's favor. If the film manages to strike a chord with the audience, it could mark a remarkable box office comeback for the actor, who has delivered only two hits in the past six years.