Coolie vs War 2 advance booking: Lokesh Kanagaraj sets up biggest South vs Bollywood clash yet

Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Coolie and YRF’s War 2 are locked in a fierce advance booking showdown ahead of the Independence Day weekend, with Coolie storming South India and overseas markets while War 2 dominates the Hindi belt.

As of August 13, Coolie leads the advance booking race in India with ₹20 crore and over 9 lakh tickets sold — one of the highest pre-sale figures for any Indian film in 2025. 

Tamil Nadu alone has contributed more than ₹12 crore, while Kerala and Karnataka added ₹5.35 crore and ₹4.15 crore respectively. Despite modest traction in Hindi-speaking regions — just 17,500 tickets sold for Day 1 — the film is expected to open with ₹4–4.5 crore in Hindi markets.

War 2, starring Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR, trails domestically with ₹17.29 crore in bookings but has sold 1.29 lakh tickets nationwide, led by strong Hindi belt performance. 

Hindi 2D sales alone total ₹5.56 crore, with premium formats boosting the total. It’s projected to rake in ₹30–35 crore on Day 1 in Hindi markets, buoyed by high ticket prices and wide IMAX rollout.

Internationally, Coolie is setting unprecedented records for Tamil cinema, with ₹27 crore in pre-sales and $2 million already grossed in North America — the first time for a Kollywood film. Total global advance bookings are estimated between ₹50–60 crore, with expectations of hitting ₹100 crore before release.

In contrast, War 2 has garnered just ₹4.5 crore overseas, with decent Telugu traction but far behind Coolie’s diaspora reach.

The head-to-head is especially high-stakes for YRF after its surprise hit Saiyaara, which grossed ₹330 crore. Industry analysts say War 2 must surpass that figure to justify its scale and star power. But while War 2 holds the Hindi-speaking market, Coolie’s domination of South India and international circuits poses a serious challenge.

With Coolie, Lokesh Kanagaraj has already eclipsed his own records from Leo and Vikram in both domestic and overseas advance sales.