Dulquer Salmaan desperately needs a hit. Can I'm Game change his fortunes?

Dulquer Salmaan is due. Not for a good film, he’s had those, even through his so-called lean years. What he’s really due for is a hit. Because somewhere along the way, the actor, the film and the box office stopped moving in the same direction. Dulquer has continued to pick interesting stories and deliver performances, but the big theatrical win has remained elusive. Lucky Baskhar gave him that high in 2024. Since then, the wait has only grown.Now, the stakes are different. He needs a film where everything clicks — the star, the performance, the writing, the audience response and, most importantly, the numbers.On September 3, I’m Game arrives in theatres in five languages. For Dulquer, this isn’t simply another release. It is a chance to remind the box office why he became a star in the first place.A hit-and-miss runTo understand the weight of this, let’s look at his recent lead outings. King of Kotha (2023) arrived as one of the biggest Onam releases in Malayalam cinema, only to lose momentum rapidly after its opening. The roughly Rs 50-crore gangster saga fell well short of expectations and was widely regarded as one of the disappointments of the year.Then came Kaantha (2025), his Tamil period thriller with Rana Daggubati. The film received warm reviews, with Dulquer’s performance as a rising 1950s film star earning particular praise. But critical appreciation did not translate into theatrical success, with the film reportedly falling short of its break-even target. And that is arguably the more worrying pattern: it isn’t that the work is bad. It is that work and the box office have stopped agreeing with each other.The wins came from elsewhereLucky Baskhar (2024) broke that streak, and it’s worth noting how. Directed by Telugu filmmaker Venky Atluri, the film placed Dulquer in unfamiliar territory — an ordinary bank employee who gets drawn into a dangerous get-rich scheme. It wasn’t a conventional star vehicle, nor was it dependent on his Malayalam fan base.Yet the film turned into a major success, grossing more than Rs 100 crore worldwide. Its success also travelled beyond theatres, with Lucky Baskhar finding a massive audience on Netflix after its theatrical run.But Lucky Baskhar was Telugu. His Malayalam theatrical career — the one built on films such as Charlie and Bangalore Days — has been quieter in recent years. His biggest Malayalam success of the last two years, Lokah Chapter One: Chandra, came with him primarily as a producer, along with a supporting appearance. The film went on to become a phenomenal theatrical success. Dulquer was part of that victory, but it did not count as a lead-actor hit.Betting on a comebackWhich is what makes I’m Game interesting. It puts Dulquer back at the centre of a Malayalam theatrical release, with the scale and ambition to match the stakes.Directed by Nahas Hidhayath, who previously made RDX, and produced by Dulquer’s Wayfarer Films, the film is releasing simultaneously in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Kannada. It was initially scheduled for an August 20 release before being pushed to September 3.Dulquer plays Dan John, a gambler who uses an algorithm to place bets on cricket. But when the system begins to turn against him, his carefully controlled life starts spiralling out of control. The trailer promises a slicker, more chaotic Dulquer than we have seen in some of his recent films — high production values, action, gambling, humour and a protagonist whose confidence may ultimately become his biggest weakness.Jakes Bejoy, who has previously collaborated with Dulquer, has composed the music, adding another familiar name to a film that is clearly being positioned as a commercial entertainer.What’s missingThat is where the real interest lies. Dulquer has never lacked range. Romantic lead, gangster, conman, filmmaker — he has moved comfortably between genres and industries. He can do restraint, and he can do excess, often in the same film.What has been missing is a film where that range translates into sustained theatrical momentum.King of Kotha had the scale but failed to connect. Kaantha had critical goodwill but struggled to convert it into numbers. Lucky Baskhar proved that Dulquer can still deliver a major commercial success when the material clicks.The question is whether I’m Game can bring all those pieces together again — this time in Malayalam.The odds this timeOn paper, I’m Game has several things going for it. It is high-concept, designed for a pan-Indian audience, backed by a five-language release and produced by Dulquer himself. More importantly, it is selling itself as a commercial entertainer rather than relying purely on the actor’s image.That may be exactly what Dulquer needs.Because this isn’t about whether he can still make a good film. He clearly can. It’s about whether he can make the film — the one that gets the audience excited, gives him the performance he can sink his teeth into and brings the box office back into the conversation.For an actor who has spent the last few years moving between interesting choices, critical appreciation and uneven theatrical returns, I’m Game is more than another release.Dulquer is due. And this time, he needs the gamble to pay-off.- EndsPublished On: Sep 2, 2026 15:46 IST