The movie, which was shot mostly in Malaysia, was screened in a special premier event in Kuala Lumpur last night, attended by local celebrities and MIC leaders.

Gopi Veerapan, 34, travelled from Serdang Lama to the Lotus Fivestar cinema (formerly known as Coliseum cinema) in Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman in downtown KL to catch the first regular screening on the first day.

“I don’t mind coming all the way here to watch the movie, he said, then admitting he is watching the movie again today, and intends to catch it another four or five times during the movie’s expected long run.

As a diehard Rajnikanth fan, Gopi shaved his hair on the back of his head to feature the word “Kabali.”

“Everyone should watch this movie as it has a social message behind it,” Gopi said.

Another fan Gunalan Thanabalan, 37, from Setapak Jaya said he came to Lotus Fivestar cinema immediately after completing his night shift at work, just to watch the movie.

“I’m coming to watch after my night shift. I’m hoping the movie will be good, so that I will recommend it to my friends and family,” Gunalan said.

An Indian citizen, Durai Raj, 60, from Bangalore, said he and his 12 friends were here on holiday and had made sure not to miss the Kabali movie screening here.

Durai said: “We want to experience watching the movie while we are here and we are thankful to our friend in Malaysia for getting us the tickets.”

Shamala Manogaran, 28, the manager of Lotus Fivestar cinema in Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman said they received a massive crowd of moviegoers for the first show this morning and the positive response has continued since.

“From the first show until afternoon, all tickets were sold out. We are hopeful the turnout will be at the same level for many days to come,” she said.

Kabali, which features prominent Malaysian actors Rosyam Nor, Norman Hakim and Zack Taipan, is also the first Tamil movie to be dubbed in Bahasa Malaysia. The BM version will hit cinemas on July 29.