RDX vs Thallumaala vs Ajagajantharam: Which is better? Social media battle rages on

Malayalam cinema’s latest blockbuster RDX: Robert Doney Xavier has already revived the action genre in the industry that saw flashes of its box office potential with films such as Antony Varghese’s Ajagajantharam in 2021 and Tovino Thomas’ Thallumaala in 2022.

The film, which is helmed by debutant Nahas Hidayath and has Shane Nigam, Antony and Neeraj Madhav as part of its cast, eclipsed the other Onam releases such as Dulquer Salmaan’s King of Kotha and Nivin Pauly’s Ramachandra Boss and Co to become the box office winner last month . And there seems to be no stopping it either, with the film already crossing Rs 50 crore in worldwide box office gross in nine days.

Also read: Loved RDX? Stream these 4 action-packed Malayalam films on OTT 

The five massive action set pieces form the foundation of the film, which is set in the 90s and 2000s and revolves around three youngsters trained in karate and their appetite for fights. The movie’s action directors Anbariv , who had previously worked in blockbusters such as KGF and Vikram, have mounted some epic fight scenes along with ‘mass’ moments to keep the audience fully engaged in theatres.

RDX, Thallumaala or Ajagajantharam: Which is better?

While there’s no doubt that RDX is the clear winner at the box office, the social media in the past few days have been abuzz with another comparison. Fans of the film have pitted it against Thallumaala and Ajagajantharam to see which action blockbuster reigns supreme and this has paved the way for some heated battles on social media.

All three films got enough support, not just from the Malayalam audience but also from fans from other languages. Many even praised the editing and filmmaking in Malayalam cinema today. For the uninitiated, it was the success of Khalid Rahman's Thallumaala in 2022 that gave Nahas the confidence to go ahead with a movie like RDX. The filmmaker had even approached Tovino to play Shane Nigam's role in the movie, but the Minnal Murali star declined. This further adds value to the argument that Thallumaala is better, according to a few users in X (formerly known as a Twitter).

RDX fans, however, were quick to point out that the film has already crossed the lifetime box office earnings of Thallumaala in nine days, showing that it's well-accepted by a wider group of audience than Thallumaala. They also cited the film's emotional and romantic angles that worked well for both youth as well as family audience, unlike Thallumaala, which only catered to the younger audience .

There was also a section of the audience, who were happy that Malayalam cinema brought out all three films that have managed to win the hearts of the audience. Both RDX and Thallumaala also won the appreciation of celebs across South India including Lokesh Kanagaraj, Udayanidhi Stalin and Keerthy Suresh. 

Even as the debate rages on, Ajagajantharam director Tinu Pappachan is gearing up for the release of his next movie Chaaver , which is set to hit theatres in the third week of August. The movie, which had Kunchacko Boban, Arjun Ashokan and Antony Varghese, promises to be another great addition to the action genre.