Jailer box office Day 1: Rajinikanth takes cinemas worldwide by storm; beats Varisu, Thunivu in USA

"It's Kabali-like pressure," said the owners of popular cinemas in Tamil Nadu reacting to the demand for the tickets of Superstar Rajinikanth's latest movie Jailer . The movie has taken cinemas across the world by storm as millions of fans thronged the theatres to watch the 72-year-old Superstar in action.

Jailer took a massive start at the Tamil Nadu box office, raking in more than 20 crores on its opening day, without the advantage of the early morning shows or the fan shows. And judging by the initial reception, Jailer might become one of the highest-grossing movies of all time in the state.

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Not just in Tamil Nadu, the film has also taken a huge opening in Karnataka with over Rs 11 crore in ticket sales. Jailer has overtaken the first-day collection of Rajinikanth's Kabali, which had reportedly taken in Rs 10 crore opening. The movie will maintain a bullish trend for at least the next few weeks. Kannada superstar Shivarajkumar's cameo in Jailer will add more to its momentum.

The reception for Jailer in Kerala has also been phenomenal. The early estimates peg the opening day collection of the movie more than Rs 5.5 crore making it the biggest Tamil opener in the state. According to the buzz, the theatres had to add more night shows across Kerala to meet the growing demand for tickets. Superstar Mohanlal's cameo in Jailer is also doing wonders for the movie at the ticket windows. 

The film's performance in the Telugu states was also exceptional as it exceeded all the initial expectations. According to reports, Jailer took in Rs 5 crore on its opening day in Telangana alone. The unenthusiastic reviews and lack of anticipation for Tollywood superstar Chinrajeevi's Bhola Shankar might also benefit Jailer, making it a top choice for moviegoers in the Telugu states.

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Jailer is also performing well in worldwide theatres. In North America, Jailer raked in $1.5 million on day one, overtaking the lifetime collections of Ajith Kumar's Thunivu and Thalapathy Vijay's Varisu there.

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It seems the movie earned close to Rs 50 crore in India alone on its opening day. Some predict that the movie might have earned up to Rs 70 crore from its worldwide ticket sales. Some claim the film might breach Rs 100 crore mark on the opening day itself when final collection figures come in. 

Written and directed by Nelson, the film is bankrolled by Sun Pictures.