The much-awaited ‘Drishyam: The Conclusion’ (3rd Part) is just a few days away from release, and the rising buzz around it raises a crucial question—whether the film will meet the same fate as Haiwaan, given the current trend at the box office.
This question ties to Drishyam because of the box-office history of 2026. Despite the star power, several films couldn’t make it in terms of earnings, signaling that just casting an A-list actor doesn’t guarantee success; for example, Emergency ( starring Kangana Ranaut), Alpha (starring Alia Bhatt and Sharvari), Batwara 1947 ( starring Sunny Deol), and others, with the most recent being Haiwaan (starring Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan).
Haiwaan, which looked intriguing at first, received mixed to negative reactions; largely, the audience liked performances by Akshay Kumar, who plays the deadly antagonist, and Saif Ali Khan, who plays the blind protagonist, but the film turned out to be a massive box office disaster—collapsing within two weeks and earning less than ₹12 crore worldwide against a reported budget of over ₹100 crore—the tracking for Drishyam 3 points to a completely different outcome.
So the answer is certainly a no. Drishyam: The Conclusion (Drishyam 3) is unlikely to become a box office dud like Haiwaan, and here’s why the two films stand on entirely different grounds.
The major reason is the franchise value. Drishyam brand is one of Bollywood’s most trusted IPs (Intellectual Property).
Franchise Value: While Haiwaan itself is a remake of its original Malayalam counterpart, Oppam (2016), critics and viewers called it overindulgent and defanged. Drishyam 1 (2015) built a massive cult following through word of mouth, while Drishyam 2 (2022) was a monumental post-pandemic blockbuster, netting over ₹250 crore in India.
Original Storyline: In addition, Drishyam 3 is written as an original Hindi storyline moving ahead of the Malayalam timeline, unlike the first two Drishyam films. This factor also adds to the interest.
Final Chapter: Another reason Drishyam builds anticipation is that Drishyam 3 is the final part of the franchise, which heightens audience anticipation what will happen in Vijay Salgaonkar’s story. In that regard, Haiwaan saw no buzz ahead of its release.
Advance Bookings: Box office prediction is another factor: Haiwaan was projected to earn around ₹3 crore to ₹5 crore net on day 1, but it recorded a lackluster opening day of just ₹2.79 crore net and failed to hold strong.
But for Drishyam 3, it is expected to earn around a whopping ₹35–42 crore net on day 1, with bookings starting on September 27 and having already earned over ₹8 crore in initial-day bookings. The film is also backed by a National Holiday, celebrating Gandhi Jayanti on October 2, 2026.
In conclusion, despite the positive factors in favor of Ajay Devgn’s film Drishyam, a long-term success cannot be guaranteed. While the upcoming film may not replicate the box-office fate of Haiwaan, success depends on whether the story resonates, matches or outshines its previous two parts, and delivers the unexpected.
