Box Office: Retro and Tourist Family perform well in France over their 2nd weekend; read on

Not every international box office story begins in Hollywood. This past weekend, France saw an unusual spike in ticket sales for two South Indian films, both of which continue to hold strong after their May 1 release. One happens to be Suriya's Retro and the other one is Sasi Kumar's Tourist Family.

Tamil superstar Suriya Sivakumar’s Retro, directed by Karthik Subbaraj, has now registered 9,800 ticket sales in France by the end of its second weekend. The stylish period gangster drama is expected to breach the 10,000-admit mark by the end of its theatrical run. The film deals with the story of a ruthless goon who gives up his past for his lady love, but the past starts haunting him.

Suriya’s commanding performance has been one of the film’s major draws, alongside Santhosh Narayanan’s thumping score. Backed by 2D Entertainment, Retro has been a slow burner overseas, though its current worldwide gross slowed down after collecting over Rs 92 crores.

But the bigger surprise has been newcomer director Abhishan Jeevinth's Tourist Family, which quietly crossed 5,000 ticket sales (admissions) in France in just 11 days, with 2,000 of those entries coming over the second weekend alone. With Sasi Kumar and Simran in lead roles, Tourist Family is a family drama at the core, with human emotions, emotional storytelling, and comedy topping it up.

The story follows a Tamil Sri Lankan family that illegally lands on the shores of Rameshwaram and tries to settle in Tamil Nadu, posing as locals. Its grounded narrative and strong performances have resonated deeply with the audience.

 

What’s even more remarkable is that Tourist Family is now posting stronger day-wise totals than Retro in domestic and multiple overseas markets. The film has already crossed Rs 50 crore worldwide gross, a big feat for a content-driven film with no traditional box office hero at its core. With its rising popularity in France, the UK, and Malaysia, the film’s theatrical run shows no signs of slowing down.

Compared to other May Day releases like Nani's HIT 3, Ajay Devgn's Raid, and Suriya's Retro, Tourist Family is holding up far better internationally. In an era ruled by star power, the success of Tourist Family is proof that strong storytelling and authentic emotions can still lead the race.

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