The third outing of Vijay Salgaonkar has moved from a strong run to a record-setting one. On Tuesday, October 20, Abhishek Pathak’s Drishyam 3 added ₹6.25 crore net in India, taking its 19-day total to ₹357.9 crore.
That pushes the Ajay Devgn thriller past Sanju, the Rajkumar Hirani-directed biopic that finished with ₹341.22 crore net and stood as Hirani’s highest-grossing film. In all-time Hindi rankings, the threequel now sits at No. 14.
On the all-time Hindi chart, passing Sanju is not a small marker. The film has long been a reference point for star-led biopics. Clearing it in under three weeks shows how much equity the franchise has accumulated.
The number behind the number
The ranking tells only part of the story. The film was reportedly made on a controlled production budget of ₹110 crore. A ₹357.9 crore cume leaves a net profit of roughly ₹247.5 crore, and a return on investment of 225%.
That is the stat trade-watchers should carry into the next release calendar. In a market that often rewards opening-weekend scale, Vijay Salgaonkar’s franchise is a case study in using a known story and tight costs to build profitability over a long run.
The comparison with Dhurandhar makes the financial bar concrete. That film recorded a 297.55% return on investment, with a much larger production budget of ₹225 crore. Drishyam 3 does not need to match its total revenue to matter; because its cost base is lower, every rupee of collection goes further toward profit.
What is still within reach
- Border 2: at ₹362.76 crore, it is the next collection to clear; passing it would make Drishyam 3 the second-highest Hindi grosser of 2026.
- The ₹400 crore club: now the theatrical benchmark being discussed for the run.
- Dhurandhar’s profit mark: to match that film’s 297.55% return, Drishyam 3 would need about ₹437.25 crore net, or roughly ₹79.75 crore more than its current haul.
The run’s shape
Week one contributed ₹243.5 crore and week two added ₹90 crore. In the third week, the film has moved between ₹3.1 crore and ₹6.25 crore a day, with the most recent Tuesday again hitting ₹6.25 crore. The steadiness matters: it suggests repeat viewing and word-of-mouth are feeding the late-run numbers rather than a single holiday bump.
For readers who track Hindi cinema’s record book, the next test is not only whether Drishyam 3 clears Border 2 and ₹400 crore, but whether it can convert its controlled-cost advantage into the year’s most profitable theatrical outcome.
Source: Koimoi
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