Dhilluku Dhuddu (film series)
{{Short description|Indian film series}}
{{Other uses|DD (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox media franchise
| title = Dhilluku Dhuddu
| image = Dhilluku Dhuddu (film series) logo.jpg
| caption = Film series logo from First film
| creator = Rambhala
| origin = Dhilluku Dhuddu (2016)
| owner = {{ubl|
- Sri Thenandal Films
- Handmade films
- RK Entertainment
- The Show People
- Niharika Entertainment
}}
| films = {{ubl|
- Dhilluku Dhuddu (2016)
- Dhilluku Dhuddu 2 (2019)
- DD Returns (2023)
- Devil's Double Next Level (2025)
}}
| soundtracks = {{Plainlist|
}}
| website =
}}
Dhilluku Dhuddu ({{Translation|Money for Guts}}; initialism as DD) is an Indian Tamil-language horror comedy film series. In the film series stars Santhanam. While the first two films were directed by Rambhala, the third film was directed by S. Prem Anand.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cinemaexpress.com/tamil/review/2023/jul/28/dd-returns-movie-review-a-terrific-third-act-and-side-splitting-self-awareness-keep-this-santhanam-46045.html|title=DD Returns Movie Review: A terrific third act and side-splitting self-awareness keep this Santhanam franchise's flag flying high|work=Cinema Express|access-date=28 July 2023|archive-date=28 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728081332/https://www.cinemaexpress.com/tamil/review/2023/jul/28/dd-returns-movie-review-a-terrific-third-act-and-side-splitting-self-awareness-keep-this-santhanam-46045.html|url-status=live}} The film series consists of unrelated horror stories. All of the films in the film series are noted for being commercially successful films featuring Santhanam as a lead actor.
Production
After the success of Dhilluku Dhuddu (2016), Rambhala subsequently worked on Dhilluku Dhuddu 2 (2019), a sequel to his first film, with the same technical team and Santhanam. He revealed that he was keen to explore some ideas written for the original that he was unable to feature owing to time constraints.{{Cite web |title=Tamizh Padam was stolen from Lollu Sabha: Rambhala, director of Dhillukku Dhuddu 2 |url=https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/interviews/2019/feb/06/tamizh-padam-was-stolen-from-lollu-sabha-rambhala-director-of-dhillukku-dhuddu-2-9989.html |access-date=24 December 2022 |website=Cinema Express |language=en |archive-date=24 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221224174415/https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/interviews/2019/feb/06/tamizh-padam-was-stolen-from-lollu-sabha-rambhala-director-of-dhillukku-dhuddu-2-9989.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil/2018/sep/11/dhilluku-dhuddu-2-to-be-more-than-a-horror-film-1870711.html|title='Dhilluku Dhuddu 2' to be more than a horror film|work=The New Indian Express|access-date=28 July 2023|archive-date=28 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728081331/https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil/2018/sep/11/dhilluku-dhuddu-2-to-be-more-than-a-horror-film-1870711.html|url-status=live}}
In 2023, the third film titled as DD Returns previously title Dhilluku Dhuddu 3. The film take over Rambhala's assistant S. Prem Kumar of the project as film director.{{Cite news |date=2022-02-28 |title=Will Rambala's associate direct 'Dhillukku Dhuddu 3'? |work=The Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movies/news/will-rambalas-associate-direct-dhillukku-dhuddu-3/articleshow/89893052.cms |access-date=2023-07-28 |issn=0971-8257 |archive-date=2023-07-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728113325/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movies/news/will-rambalas-associate-direct-dhillukku-dhuddu-3/articleshow/89893052.cms |url-status=live }}
In 2025, the fourth film announced on 21 January 2025, coinciding with Santhanam's birthday, titled as DD Next Level, changed title to Devil's Double Next Level.{{cite news |title= 'DD Next Level': Makers release first look of Santhanam from horror comedy |url=https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/movies/dd-next-level-first-look-santhanam-horror-comedy/article69123424.ece/|work=The Hindu|access-date=21 January 2025}}
Recurring cast
This table lists the actors who appear in two or more of the Dhilluku Dhuddu films. Since the first two film's director Rambhala, Santhanam and S. Prem Anand (third film director) are from the comedy show "Lollu Sabha", many comedians from the show feature in the films including Maaran, Manohar and Swaminathan (third film).
{{center|List indicators}}
- A dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film.
- TBA blue cell indicates the character name not fixed yet in the film.
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; width:100%;" |
| scope="col" rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;"| Actors
! scope="col" colspan="4" style="text-align:center:"| Films |
|---|
| scope="col" style="width:11%"| Dhilluku Dhuddu
! scope="col" style="width:11%"| Dhilluku Dhuddu 2 ! scope="col" style="width:11%"| DD Returns ! scope="col" style="width:11%"| Devil's Double Next Level |
| Santhanam
| Kumar | Vijay (Viji) | Sathish | Krishnamoorty "Kissa" |
| Rajendran
| Sketch Mani | Viji's uncle | Professor | "Veen Pechu" Babu |
| Lollu Sabha Maaran
| Teacher | "Mike" Maaran | Ravi | "All Language" Arumugam |
| Redin Kingsley
| {{cEmpty}} | {{cEmpty}} | Benny | Gopal |
| T. M. Karthik
| Kajal's brother-in-law | Dr. Karthik | {{cEmpty}} | {{cEmpty}} |
| Bipin
| {{CEmpty}} | Garudaraja Bhattadhri (Maya's father) | Kulanthai | {{cEmpty}} |
| Lollu Sabha Manohar
| Kumar's neighbor | {{cEmpty}} | Manohar | {{cEmpty}} |
Additional crew and production details
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" width="100%" |
| rowspan="2" | Occupation
! colspan="4" | Film |
|---|
| width:"10%;"| Dhilluku Dhuddu (2016) ! width:"10%;"| Dhilluku Dhuddu 2 ! width:"10%;"| DD Returns ! width:"10%;"| Devil's Double Next Level |
| Director/Writer
|colspan="2"|Rambhala |colspan="2"|S. Prem Anand |
| Producer
|N. Ramasamy |C. Ramesh Kumar |Venkat Boyanapalli |
| Cinematographer
|Colspan=4|Deepak Kumar Pathy |
| Editor
|Madhavan M. |Bharath Vikraman |
| Music
| colspan="2" 2'' |OfRo |
| Production Companies
|Handmade Films |RK Entertainment |The Show People |
Reception
The first film received mixed to positive reviews,{{Cite web|url=https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/review-dhilluku-dhuddu-is-a-waste-of-time/20160708.htm|title=Review: Dhilluku Dhuddu is a waste of time|work=Rediff.com|access-date=28 July 2023|archive-date=28 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728081331/https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/review-dhilluku-dhuddu-is-a-waste-of-time/20160708.htm|url-status=live}} the second film was released to mixed reviews from critics but positive response from audience,{{Cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/movie-review/dhilluku-dhuddu-2-movie-review-rating-5574385/|title=Dhilluku Dhuddu 2 review: A distasteful 'horror' film; barely funny or scary|work=Indian Express|access-date=28 July 2023|archive-date=28 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728081328/https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/movie-review/dhilluku-dhuddu-2-movie-review-rating-5574385/|url-status=live}} and the third film received positive reviews.
Box office
All three films ran well at the box office and became hits.{{Cite web|url=http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movies/dhilluku-dhuddu/dhilluku-dhuddu-box-office-jul-24.html|title=CHENNAI BOX OFFICE|work=Behindwoods|access-date=28 July 2023|archive-date=28 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728081331/http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movies/dhilluku-dhuddu/dhilluku-dhuddu-box-office-jul-24.html|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.ibtimes.co.in/dhilluku-dhuddu-2-box-office-collection-santhanams-film-opens-well-viswasam-petta-collections-791744|title=Dhilluku Dhuddu 2 box office collection: Santhanam's film opens well, Viswasam, Petta collections slow down|work=IBTimes|access-date=28 July 2023|archive-date=28 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728081331/https://www.ibtimes.co.in/dhilluku-dhuddu-2-box-office-collection-santhanams-film-opens-well-viswasam-petta-collections-791744|url-status=live}}