Tamil horror-comedy “Kanchana 3”, the fourth installment in the widely popular franchise, has struck gold at the ticket window with a first week worldwide gross of over Rs. 100 crore approximately.

Directed by Raghava Lawrence, who has also played the lead role, the film has appealed to the masses despite being heavily panned by critics.

“Just like its predecessors, ‘Kanchana 3’ cashed in on the popularity of the franchise. In spite of opening to very mixed reviews, it approximately grossed around Rs 100 crore in its first week worldwide. The film grossed around Rs 60 crore from Tamil Nadu alone,” trade analyst Trinath told IANS.

Released in Tamil and Telugu simultaneously, the film registered the biggest opening in the franchise.

“Unlike the previous parts, ‘Kanchana 3’ registered the biggest opening day numbers with Rs 12 crore gross from Tamil Nadu, thanks to the phenomenal hype. Since it released during the Easter weekend, it managed to make a killing at the box office with a four-day weekend window,” he said.

The film also stars Vedhika, Oviya, Nikki Tamboli, Kovai Sarla, Divyadarshini and Sriman.

Meanwhile, Lawrence is gearing up for his Bollywood debut. “Kanchana 2” is all set to be remade in Hindi with Akshay Kumar.

In a recent media interaction, Lawrence said that the pre-production work for the remake is already underway.