9 best South films of 2025 first-half: Tourist Family, Nani's HIT 3 to Thudarum
The first half of 2025 saw some massive releases from South Indian cinema, including Ram Charan starrer Game Changer, Kamal Haasan's Thug Life, Mohanlal's L2: Empuraan, and more. While some satisfied the audiences, others fell short.
As we step towards the latter half of 2025, let's take a look back and explore some of the top-rated releases from 2025's first half.
Where to watch top 9 South films of 2025 on OTT
1. Rekhachithram (Malayalam)
Cast: Asif Ali, Anaswara Rajan, Manoj K Jayan, Siddique, Jagadish, Saikumar, Harisree Ashokan, Mammootty (AI-cameo)
Director: Jofin T Chacko
Genre: Crime Drama
Runtime: 2 hours and 20 minutes
Where to watch: SonyLIV
Rekhachitham, starring Asif Ali and Anaswara Rajan in the lead, is considered one of the first hits from Malayalam cinema this year. The mystery crime drama is an alternative historical film, which takes place at the shooting location of Mammootty starrer Kathodu Kathoram (1985).
The film focuses on the story of a newly reinstated CI Vivek Gopinath, who comes across an old case of a young girl gone missing, shrouded in mystery.
2. Kudumbasthan (Tamil)
Cast: Manikandan, Saanve Meghana, R Sundarrajan, Guru Somasundaram, Kudassanad Kanakam
Director: Rajeshwar Kalisamy
Genre: Comedy Drama
Runtime: 2 hours and 35 minutes
Where to watch: ZEE5
Kudumbasthan is a Tamil-language comedy drama featuring Manikandan in the lead role. The top-rated movie features the story of Naveen, a man from a lower-middle-class family who marries his girlfriend despite hailing from different caste backgrounds.
As he becomes the sole earner of the family, the film features the financial turmoil he faces, balancing mounting debts and family tensions after losing his job. Whether he succeeds in his journey or fails forms the entire story.
3. Choo Mantar (Kannada)
Choo Mantar is a Kannada-language film featuring the tale of 4 friends who decide to enter the Morgan house. In hopes of finding a secret treasure, they accidentally find something much more sinister.
4. Court: State vs A Nobody (Telugu)
Court: State vs A Nobody is a legal drama that features the tale of a teenager who is presumed to be guilty of a heinous crime. How a passionate defense attorney fights for him against the system of prejudice and corruption becomes the central focus of the film.
5. Veera Dheera Sooran: Part – 2 (Tamil)
Cast: Chiyaan Vikram, SJ Suryah, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Dushara Vijayan, Prudhvi Raj, Baalaji SU, Ramesh Indira, Maala Parvathi
Director: SU Arun Kumar
Genre: Neo-noir Action Thriller
Runtime: 2 hours and 30 minutes
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video
Veera Dheera Sooran: Part - 2 is a neo-noir action thriller written and directed by SU Arun Kumar. The Tamil-language film features the story of Kaali, a former henchman of a mobster who is brought back for a mission to put an end to a police officer.
The entire film focuses on the night's journey of how Kaali manages to complete the mission and what it costs him.
6. Thudarum (Malayalam)
Cast: Mohanlal, Shobana, Prakash Varma, Farhaan Faasil, Maniyanpilla Raju, Binu Pappu, Irshad Ali, Aarsha Chandini Baiju
Director: Tharun Moorthy
Genre: Crime Thriller
Runtime: 2 hours and 43 minutes
Where to watch: JioHotstar
Thudarum is a Malayalam film featuring Mohanlal and Shobana in the lead roles. The crime thriller drama focuses on the story of Shanmugham aka Benz, once a stuntman in cinema, who leads a quiet life with his family in a town in Kerala.
However, once his son goes missing and what happens to him forces Benz to take revenge on the wrongdoers.
7. Tourist Family (Tamil)
Tourist Family features the story of a Sri Lankan family of four who move out of their country due to economic crisis. The film focuses on the family's interaction with the rest of the neighbors after they arrive in Tamil Nadu.
8. HIT: The Third Case (Telugu)
Cast: Nani, Srinidhi Shetty, Rao Ramesh, Samuthirakani, Tisca Chopra, Adivi Sesh, Karthi
Director: Sailesh Kolanu
Genre: Neo-noir Action Thriller
Runtime: 2 hours and 30 minutes
Where to watch: Netflix
HIT: The Third Case, starring Nani in the lead role, was released on the big screens earlier this year. The action thriller film features the story of a ruthless police officer, Arjun Sarkaar, who is sent by the Homicide Intervention Team (HIT) in order to capture a group of serial offenders, leading to a bigger conspiracy at play.
The movie was the 3rd installment in the HIT Cinematic Universe, with a fourth installment titled HIT: The Fourth Case in the lineup.
9. Padakkalam (Malayalam)
Padakkalam is a supernatural fantasy comedy featuring the tale of four comic nerd friends who suspect their college professor, Renjith, of practicing black magic. After locking horns with him, the rest of the film features how the gang deals with a body swap situation along with another professor, Shaji.
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