Dude: Can Pradeep Ranganathan create hattrick success after Love Today and Dragon?
For Pradeep Ranganathan, Dude is his next film hitting theatres after the successes of Love Today and Dragon. Both films have been certified blockbusters at the box office.
Last Updated: 06.49 PM, Oct 15, 2025
Director-turned-actor Pradeep Ranganathan is only two films old as an actor. But both the films have been blockbuster successes that have gone on to become one of the highest grossers of that year. His directorial Love Today (2022), in which he also starred in the lead role, and his film with filmmaker Ashwath Marimuthu, Dragon (2025), rocked the box office. While Love Today earned in multi-fold its budget, Dragon went on to earn over Rs 100 crore. Now, all eyes are on Dude, Pradeep Ranganathan’s Gen-Z catering romantic entertainer. Can it give a hat-trick success to Pradeep?
Dude: Pradeep Ranganathan to have hattrick success after Love Today and Dragon?
Pradeep Ranganathan is gearing up for the release of his next film Dude. To release on October 17 for Diwali, Dude gives off a youthful entertainer vibe and brims with freshness. Not only does it feature recent sensation Mamitha Baiju as the female lead, and composer Sai Abhyankkar, who has been having good indie music stints, but it is helmed by debutant Keerthiswaran.
For Pradeep, Dude is his next film hitting theatres after the successes of Love Today and Dragon. Both the films have been certified blockbusters at the box office, and cemented Pradeep’s position as a star for the youth. While Love Today had a wacky premise, Dragon’s eccentricity ensured a 100-crore return, Dude appears to safely have both these elements in place. With the real conflict in Dude not yet known, the trailer of the film shows Pradeep Ranganthan doing what he is best doing onscreen: a comic mixture of eccentricity and youthful appeal.
Both Love Today and Dragon mainly catered to youngsters, the major chunk of the age group that visits cinemas. While Love Today revolves around two young lovers who had to exchange their phones in the era when mobiles hold more secrets than anyone else, Dragon showed a successful professional going back to college to clear his arrears. With both these films, Pradeep pulled off a success as the box office had sure-shot firework celebrations.
With Dude, Pradeep promises yet another film which will captivate the young audience. Given this year’s Tamil cinema has not witnessed tremendous success barring a few films, Dude has several low-hanging fruits to win over, while also having some pressure to be on par if not more than Dragon.
Also read: Mamitha Baiju cast in Dude after director Keerthiswaran watched her on a reel: ‘I saw her in…’
Dude must face competition at the box office
Even as Dude has a solid backing in terms of cast, crew, producers and distributors, the film must compete at the box office with Diesel and Bison. Diesel, an actioner, comes from Harish Kalyan. The young actor comes from the success of Parking and Lubber Pandhu, proving his mettle in choosing good content. On the other hand, Bison is helmed by Mari Selvaraj, who has not delivered any flops so far. Given it is Dude, Bison and Diesel clashing on October 17, one has to wait and watch to see if Pradeep Ranganathan is able to achieve a hat-trick and if the third time is indeed the charm.
FAQs
Q. Which platform is Dude OTT rights?
A. Netflix has bagged Dude OTT rights.
Q. What is the salary of Pradeep Ranganathan?
A. Reportedly, Pradeep Ranganathan was paid Rs 12 crore for his last film Dragon.
Q. When is Dude releasing?
A. Dude is releasing on October 17.