13 October,2026 02:40 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Prithviraj Sukumaran in Khalifa. Pic via X
Onam 2026 saw a box office clash in Kerala with Prithviraj Sukumaran-starrer Khalifa: The Ruler locking horns with Nivin Pauly-starrer Bethlehem Kudumba Unit. Among them, Bethlehem Kudumba Unit turned out to be a blockbuster, becoming the highest-grossing Malayalam film of all time, while Khalifa fell short. Although the film did well, the director seems to think his film received a lukewarm response at the box office because of the lead actor.
After Khalifa arrived on OTT recently, filmmaker Vysakh has been resharing posts praising the film. Similarly, he re-shared one such fan post on Instagram that read, "A film which came with huge hype, but became a box office flop ... Had this in my theatre list, but had to watch on OTT yesterday. Must say, it a classic example of utter degrading, review bombing and hatred towards Prithvi."
"True that it had BKU as a rival. Still, had it been helmed by any other lead actor, the fate would have been different ... It had all elements for a mass masala entertainer with class music, editing and direction. Had required plot twists and yes, is a bit old school but what's the issue? We also need such unrealistic mass movies too among so called natural' ones!! Felt sorry for directorvysakh to see his efforts went vain," the post further read.
The director also re-shared posts calling Khalifa's climax ‘mass' and the film ‘absolute cinema'.
However, the internet seemed to disagree with Vysakh's views that Khalifa received negative reviews due to the hate towards Prithviraj. A user on X wrote, "Instead of such a post, Vyshak should have improved his script selection." Another user commented, "Vyshakh needs to stop thinking he made a cult classic...the film had it's moments here and there.. but unfortunately not for a blockbuster."
A user even wrote, "So now he accepts it is a flop and part 2 was a gimmick and he did not have an ending in his mind."
Similarly, on Reddit one user wrote, "I was able to watch this film only in OTT. It was a bit of snoozefest for me," as another commented, "Lol if the film is good it will suceed khalifa was a below average film Prithviraj was good."
Khalifa was released in theatres on August 20, 2026 and grossed around Rs 45.05 crore worldwide. The film also starred Neil Nitin Mukesh, Malvika Sharma, Shammi Thilakan and Indrans alongside Prithviraj. It also featured cameos from Mohanlal, Tovino Thomas and Soubin Shahir. Meanwhile, the makers have announced a sequel titled Khalifa: The Legacy.
