Overview

• Advance bookings across PVR, Inox and Cinepolis totaled just 6,500 tickets ahead of the July 11 release.
• Trade insiders project an opening day haul of ₹2–4 crore, significantly below Rao’s previous ₹7.2 crore debut with Bhool Chuk Maaf.
• Netizens praise Rao’s performance as his finest yet but fault the film’s screenplay for predictability and uneven pacing.
• The film needs to cross a ₹60–70 crore domestic gross to be deemed a hit, placing high stakes on sustained audience interest.
• Maalik marks Rajkummar Rao’s first full-scale entry into the mass-action gangster genre under Pulkit’s direction.