Mumbai: With packed houses for the paid previews, the success of part one still buzzing and its release coinciding with Eid and Gudi Padwa holidays, “Dhurandhar: The Revenge” is set for a bumper opening with industry insiders and trade pundits looking at the Aditya Dhar film setting box office records.
The Ranveer Singh-starrer, which comes soon after “Dhurandhar”, releases in cinemas on Thursday. And more than 15 lakh tickets have already been sold. This includes the paid previews which begin from 5.30 pm on Wednesday.
“At PVR INOX, we have not seen this sort of advance booking even pre-COVID-19… The excitement is phenomenal, there’s no precedence. It looks like the film is going to take a massive opening. We are looking at a strong finish to March, and a strong start to April,” Kamal Gianchandani, chief business planning & strategy, PVR INOX Limited, told PTI.
“I hope it breaks the record of ‘Dhurandhar’ one and hope it turns out to be the first film to cross Rs 1,000 crore nett box office in Hindi, besides, the contribution from dubbed versions of Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam. I hope that’s an addition to Rs 1,000 crore.”
On opening day, it is set to challenge the current Hindi film record held by Shah Rukh Khan’s “Jawan”, which earned Rs 66 crore net in India, according to Sacnilk.
The sequel will be chasing the first “Dhurandhar”, which currently sits at the top of the all-time highest-grossing Hindi films list, ahead of “Pushpa 2: The Rule” (Hindi), “Stree 2” and “Chhaava”.
“Dhurandhar”, which released only in Hindi unlike part two dubbed in multiple languages, released in December 2025 and earned Rs 1,300 crore worldwide.
If “Dhurandhar: The Revenge” crosses the Rs 1,000 crore nett Hindi mark that Gianchandani is hoping for, it will enter the territory of Pan-India blockbusters sequels dominated by the likes of “Pushpa 2: The Rule” and “Baahubali 2”.
The demand for the film is spread across major metropolitan hubs – Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai – and extends to key Tier-II markets including Pune, Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Coimbatore.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh equated “Dhurandhar 2” to a tsunami.
“In the past, I’ve seen this craze for ‘Sholay’ and ‘Baahubali 2’. People were keen to know, ‘Kattappa ne Baahubali ko kyu mara?’ Now, this film has caught the attention of one and all – not just in India but overseas as well. This is a toofan, a tsunami – how do you handle a tsunami?” he said.
“All sorts of records will be shattered and new milestones will be set. No one can predict the numbers – even the producers will not be able to. It is a goldmine for investors – they will be laughing all the way to the bank,” he added.
In what is being reported as a first for a Bollywood release, theatres in Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad have opened bookings for post-midnight and early morning shows ahead of the film’s March 19 release.
In Mumbai, MovieMax Sion scheduled Thursday screenings at 2.15 am, 3.15 am and 5.30 am, while MovieMax Wonder Mall in Thane has shows at 2.15 am, 3 am, 4.20 am and 5.20 am.
The mania also affected a long running ritual.
Maratha Mandir, the single-screen theatre that has run “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge” continuously for three decades, has shifted its iconic 11.30 am DDLJ show to 10:00 am from March 18 to make room for three shows of “Dhurandhar: The Revenge” — at 1.15 pm, 5.30 pm and 9.45 pm.
BookMyShow COO Ashish Saksena said the film will set new box office records internationally.
“The songs were on Spotify’s global chart the last time — the same is expected this time. Music was a big contributor to the first part, and there’s curiosity around it this time since they haven’t released as much music ahead of the release,” he added.
Produced by Jyoti Deshpande and Lokesh Dhar, “Dhurandhar: The Revenge” features Ranveer Singh as Jaskirat Singh Rangi, a young man who transforms into covert operative Hamza Ali Mazari operating deep inside Pakistan.
The sequel charts Mazari’s rise in the Karachi underworld while tracing the origins of the man behind the cover.
Actors R Madhavan, Arjun Rampal, Sanjay Dutt, Sara Arjun and Rakesh Bedi return alongside Singh for the sequel, which releases in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam.
Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, who was effusive in his praise for the first part, is equally excited for part two.
“In Indian cinematic history, no film is being awaited more eagerly than Dhurandhar 2. I wouldn’t be surprised if it earns over Rs 120 crore in a single day,” he added.
Film historian and author S M M Ausaja drew parallels with some of the biggest pre-release frenzy moments in Hindi film history.
“This has happened in the past with quite a few films. The biggest talking point was ‘Shahenshah’ in 1988 – the release kept getting postponed, and when it finally opened it had historic numbers, 100 per cent occupancy across the country. There was similar buzz around ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ and ‘Hum Aapke Hai Koun!” he said.
Given the frenzy around the second part, Dhar posted a statement on X, urging fans to not spoil the movie for others and to stay till the end credits, hinting that something special is in store for them.
“… You made ‘Dhurandhar’ what it is. Now I’m trusting you to protect what this becomes,” he said.
He wrote in an accompanying post, “Oh, and one more thing. Don’t leave your seats until the credits have stopped rolling.”
“In a theatre, in the dark, surrounded by friends, family, and even strangers, everyone feeling the same emotions. That’s how films should be experienced. Not on someone’s phone in a blurry image,” Dhar said.
