Drishyam: The Conclusion opens on October 2 to mixed reviews; box-office claims remain separate

Drishyam: The Conclusion opened in theatres on October 2, 2026, bringing Ajay Devgn back as Vijay Salgaonkar for the final chapter of the Hindi film series. The first critical reviews are mixed rather than uniformly positive: several praise the suspense and the performances of Devgn and newcomer Jaideep Ahlawat, while others say the last act does not fully deliver on the promise of a franchise finale. Those judgments concern the film itself, not its box-office performance.

Why October 2 matters

The Gandhi Jayanti release date carries a second meaning for Drishyam viewers. In the series, October 2 is bound up with Vijay’s carefully constructed account of his family’s movements. Releasing the conclusion on that date turns a familiar detail of the story into an immediate point of recognition for audiences, as well as placing the film in a holiday theatrical window.

Directed by Abhishek Pathak, the new film resumes the Salgaonkar family’s struggle to live with the consequences of the earlier story. Vijay’s effort to protect his wife, Nandini, and their daughters faces renewed scrutiny when a police officer played by Ahlawat takes up the case. Tabu returns as Meera Deshmukh, whose son’s disappearance remains central to the conflict. Shriya Saran, Ishita Dutta, Mrunal Jadhav and Rajat Kapoor also return, while Prakash Raj appears in the courtroom strand of the film.

The concluding Hindi film takes its own narrative route rather than simply repeating the story of the Malayalam-language third instalment. That distinction matters to viewers arriving with expectations from either version: the familiar characters and central predicament remain, but reviews of one film should not be read as a verdict on the other.

What the early reviews actually say

There is broad agreement in the initial criticism that Devgn’s restrained portrayal remains an anchor for the series and that Ahlawat gives him a forceful new counterpart. Reviewers also point to the police investigation and courtroom scenes as important sources of tension. Beyond that, their assessments diverge.

Some critics find the final chapter satisfying, arguing that its reversals, returning characters and confrontation with the past give Vijay’s story an effective send-off. Others enjoy much of the thriller but question whether its culminating moves are persuasive or whether the ending matches the ingenuity of the earlier films. A further criticism is that the emphasis on the investigation leaves less room for the Salgaonkar family dynamic that made Vijay’s choices compelling in the first place. These are differing assessments of the storytelling, not a single critical consensus.

Early audience posts have likewise highlighted twists, the lead performances and the climax. Such posts offer a snapshot of individual reactions from people discussing the film soon after release. They do not provide a representative measure of everyone who has seen it, and enthusiasm online cannot establish how many tickets were sold.

Reviews are not opening-day receipts

Advance bookings, opening-day predictions and collections are three different things. An advance-booking figure concerns tickets sold before a screening; a forecast estimates what a film might earn; a reported collection concerns receipts from completed business over a defined period and market. None can be substituted for another simply because all three appear in release-week discussion.

This update makes no claim about a verified opening-day gross for Drishyam: The Conclusion. In particular, praise for the film and estimates circulating during its first theatrical day should not be presented as a confirmed box-office result. The firm development here is its October 2 release, followed by an early response that is engaged but divided on whether Vijay Salgaonkar’s final chapter earns its ending.