Year Ender 2025: 10 Highest Grossing South Indian Films - KFI's Kantara Chapter 1 tops the list

As the year draws to a close, a look back at the cinematic blockbusters like 'Kantara Chapter 1', 'Coolie', 'Thudaram' and others that consistently set the cash registers ringing at the box office. The year saw some of the finest movies achieve commercial success. Here's a look at the top 10 highest-earning South Indian films of 2025.

Backed by Hombale Films, the spiritual prequel Kantara Chapter 1, directed by and starring Rishab Shetty, stands as the highest-grossing South Indian film of 2025. Made on a Rs 130 crore budget, the movie went on to achieve an extraordinary box office collection, closing its BO run at Rs 850+ crores.

Rajinikanth and Lokesh Kanagaraj's Coolie is also on the list. Produced on a substantial budget of Rs 350 crores, the movie ultimately gathered Rs 517 crores, classifying it as a semi-hit.

The animated film Mahavatar Narasimha is also one of the highest-grossing films of 2025. Made with a budget of Rs 40 crores, the movie saw huge success, earning over Rs 325 crores at the box office and being hailed as a major blockbuster hit.

Kalyani Priyadarshan's Lokah Chapter 1 was a major box office success and was met with great reviews, establishing itself as one of Malayalam cinema's biggest blockbusters. Produced on a budget of Rs 40 crores, the film managed to accumulate a substantial business of Rs 300+ crores.

The list of highest-grossing films also features Power Star Pawan Kalyan's movie, They Call Him OG. Produced with a Rs 240 crore budget, this film secured a successful run, earning Rs 298 crores and emerging as a hit.

L2: Empuraan, one of 2025's most anticipated films starring Mohanlal and Prithviraj Sukumaran, lived up to the hype by smashing the box office. Created with a budget of Rs 150 crores, the movie concluded its run by doing a business of Rs 268 crores and was declated a hit.

Venkatesh's Sankrathiki Vastunam gave the year a strong start at the box office. Made on a budget of Rs 50 crores, the movie proved to be a major success, amassing a significant business of Rs 259 crores.

Kollywood film Good Bad Ugly, starring Ajith Kumar, was also a mega hit 2025 hit. Made on a budget of Rs 180 crores, the movie managed to earn Rs 249 crores at the box office.

Mohanlal's Thaduram became another major blockbuster in the Malayalam film industry. Known for delivering powerful cinema, the movie was made on a budget of Rs 50 crores but achieved a robust box office collection of Rs 235 crores.

Ram Charan's Game Changer was not a profitable venture for its makers. Due to a high-cost production and delayed release, the movie, made on a massive Rs 300 crore budget, ultimately earned only Rs 195.8 crores.

The Kannada horror-comedy Su From So demands special recognition for its exceptional box office performance. Produced with a small budget of just Rs 4.5 to 6 crore, the movie became a runaway hit, collecting a worldwide gross of approximately Rs 125 crore.