Okay, hear us out, the only thing hotter than piping sambar right now is the booking hysteria for Dhanush’s ‘Idli Kadai’. If your WhatsApp groups are messier than a thattu idli plate and your cousin already snagged FDFS seats (extra chutney, obviously), you’re not alone. With bookings live just in time for the holiday, the hype is serving major family drama vibes. Here’s your bite-sized, full-tadka report on numbers, buzz, and all things next-level spicy.

1. The One With ‘Bookings Just Went Live’ Energy

  • The makers officially flipped the ‘Now Serving’ board at 2:30 pm IST on September 27, and ticketing apps basically started smoking in minutes. 
  • Fresh promos and posters kept the drool hype alive; people were refreshing faster than you were refreshing your shopping website during a sale. The big festival-week opening is adding that extra chilli. 

    Idli Kadai first look poster

    Image courtesy Times of India


2. The Early Numbers Platter (Day 1 Pre-Sales)

  • Day one of bookings saw India pre-sales touching ₹52 lakh from 1,635 shows, yep, over 36,600 tickets gone like the last piece of ghee roast. 
  • Chennai and Vellore fans did not come to play. And let’s be real, bookings on a festive week are only just getting into ‘idli ferment’ mode; the real rise happens when last-minute walk-ins stack up before release.

3. The Competition Table: Who’s Sharing the Counter?

  • No paid premieres. It’s a clean Wednesday drop straight into your local theatre’s heart (and tiffin box).
  • But like good idli sambhar, there’s always more on the table; other South biggies are launching the same week, so expect some friendly rivalry. Think ‘sambar vs rasam’, both slap, but there’s only one spot in your plate for now.

4. The ‘Why Fans Care’ Menu: Posters, Family Feels, And That Viral Anecdote

  • The new posters are full-on emotional: two fathers, two sons, and all the nostalgia you can spoon-feed into a Sunday family outing. Kids, cousins, paati, appa, everyone’s booking seats together, and the theatre’s basically your extended living room.

    Nithya Menen and Dhanush in Idli Kadai

    Image courtesy Times of India


  • Oh, and Dhanush finally clarified that viral ‘idli’ promo gaffe. He’s steering the convo back to the film, reminding the internet why we’re all here, pure, unfiltered family masala. 

5. The ‘Kya Scene Hai’ Forecast

  • TN base is coming through stronger than extra gunpowder podi. Chennai is already dominating national booking stats.  
  • With the holiday stretch and multiplexes prepping for last-minute madness, expect evening and late-night numbers to do a rapid double-ferment by Wednesday.

    Thattu Idli Plate

    Image courtesy Justdial


That’s your Idli Kadai first-day advance booking breakdown, warm start, festival lift, and emo quotient maxed out. Are you risking FDFS for spoilers or dragging the fam for a wholesome chai-time show?