In an industry long driven by weekend numbers, star power and formulaic storytelling, the Dhurandhar franchise has arrived as a completely unseen disruption. the director Aditya Dhar and in the front Ranveer Singhthe two-part saga—Dhurandhar (2025) and Dhurandhar: The Revenge (2026)—not only broke records, but redefined how Hindi cinema thinks about scale, storytelling and success.With a combined run time of 443 minutes and a worldwide gross of 2.9 billion, the franchise has done the unthinkable: proven that audiences will show up, stay engaged, and even return to theaters if the content demands it.But beyond the numbers lies a deeper reset of the industry.
Not just star power, but the perfect storm
the producer Anand Pandit it is clear that Dhurandhar’s success cannot be pinned down to a single factor. “Action films always have a strong following, and ‘Dhurandhar’ proved that once again. The success of a film depends on many factors, and timing is clearly one of them. In this case, the second part was released within a few months of the first part, which worked in its favor. Casting also played a key role. Like the actors. Akshaye Khanna and Sanjay Dutt gave solid performances, along with Ranveer Singh in the first half. So when you look at it, everything came together, the lead actors, the performances and the timing, all of which contributed to the film’s success,” he told ETimes. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh echoes that sentiment, but goes a step further, establishing the franchise as a turning point.“I think all these factors – and the fact that the films also started a new era of the story – played a role. Before the premiere, the expectations were not very high. I remember very clearly that I asked about the advance booking, and a major distributor-shower said that the advance booking is not that good … let’s hope for a good weekend. Honestly, Saturday was bigger, Sunday was very big, and from Monday it was like an unstoppable march,” he told us. This change is critical. For years, Bollywood has relied on spectacle-first cinema: big stars, big budgets, bigger marketing. Dhurandhar turns that equation on its head: the content drives the show, not the other way around.
A sequel that refused to be just a sequel
One of the boldest moves was the dismissal of the entourage. In an industry where the gap between episodes often spans years, Dhurandhar 2 arrived just a few months after the first film.Explaining the strategic brilliance, Pandit said, “‘Dhurandhar 2’ worked because it continued the story from the first part. It follows the same characters, and somehow the first part feels like a block of intervals, while the second part plays out like the second half of the film. The gaps left in the first part are connected in the second. In many sequels, the focus shifts too much to make things bigger and louder, and the core plot is often diluted. But in ‘Dhurandhar 2’, the progression is natural and remains well connected to its predecessor.”Such structural continuity is rare in Bollywood sequels, which often prioritize scale over storytelling. Here, the narrative thread remains the same: tight, purposeful and emotionally resonant.
Word of mouth opening weekend advertising
If Dhurandhar has proven anything, it’s this: opening numbers can be bought, but longevity cannot.Pandit draws from wider experience: “Word of mouth plays a big role, especially in maintaining stable collections. This is true for films, irrespective of the language. For example, when my Gujarati film ‘Chaniya Toli’ was released, it broke the first-day collection record of my own production worldwide, becoming the first grossing Gujarati film.The word-of-mouth was so strong that by the second weekend, ‘Chaniya Toli’ was already garnering huge success, and it continued to garner huge audience participation, especially for the evening shows. So in today’s digital age, the opening weekend may be driven by promotions, but the longevity of a film depends on what people say about it”.Adarsh reinforces this with Dhurandhar’s own track record, “It didn’t open big, but the way it grew… from Monday onwards the march was unstoppable. Both films worked because the stories, the music, the performances, the dialogues, the characters… everything clicked.’
Realism, danger and the rewriting of the spy genre
Perhaps the biggest creative shift lies in tone. While comparisons with franchise films like Pathaan or Tiger Zinda Hai are inevitable, Adarsh insists that Dhurandhar made its own space.As Adarsh states, “It was a spy thriller but in a very different way. We have seen spy thrillers in the past… this was so different. There is a lot of realism. Every actor, every performance, every character stood out. I would say everyone associated with this movie is from Dhurandhar. There is no one Dhurandhar”.He also acknowledges the moments that seemed unusual: “There are some sequences – for example after the interval – that I thought were unusual, but I was ready because the tone had already been set. When a film like this is released, you have to celebrate.”
Marketing without the traditional player
The franchise broke another industry myth – the need for aggressive and paid PR campaigns.As Adarsh points out, “They haven’t followed the format that goes into the marketing of the film. It’s completely different. You have to compare it to the spy films made in Bollywood… this is completely different and better. Today, those films pale in comparison.”Pandit adds a strategic dimension: “The ‘Dhurandhar’ franchise shows that larger-than-life cinematic experiences can still bring audiences to theatres, even in an era dominated by OTT platforms. It is a film on a grand scale, not only in terms of length, but also in its overall design, especially in the casting, music and action choreography. The strong buzz it has created on social media has also helped spark curiosity among the audience.The second part came right after the release of the first on OTT, so even those who missed it in theaters could follow the story without losing the flow. At the same time, the success of the film also shows that marketing should focus on what the film is about, instead of emphasizing its scale.’
Breaking the myth of ‘OTT vs theatre’
At a time when OTT platforms were thought to be the dominant force, Dhurandhar proved that theaters are not obsolete.Adarsh is emphatic: “One thing has been proven: people used to say that Bollywood is over, OTT has taken over. No way. The theater business is alive and well. People want to watch films on the big screen…but on one condition: give them a good film.”He further added, “People were buying tickets priced at Rs 2,000-2,500. It’s not that the audience doesn’t want to spend, they will, if the film is worth it.’
Star Power No Longer Enough: The First Age of Content?
The success also represents a deeper shift in audiences.Pandit explains, “Post-Covid, there has been a clear shift in what audiences are looking for, with a greater strain on large-scale shows that offer a proper theatrical experience. However, action films, in particular, require a high level of technical quality to keep audiences engaged and match international standards in terms of quality.” At the same time, there is a growing interest in fresh and original ideas.While the stars may attract an initial crowd, audience taste is not easy to predict. We’ve seen films with huge pre-release hype at the box office, and some smaller films that have been doing well. This trend is not limited to Hindi cinema. For example, in Malayalam cinema, the recently released Vaazha 2, featuring relatively new faces including social media influencers, has fared well and is also matching the first numbers set by big star films.So standing by star power alone is not enough. You can’t assume that dating a superstar is going to guarantee success.”The Dhurandhar franchise has done what few films manage – it has forced Bollywood to confront its own assumptions.That short films work better? Proved wrong.Do these stars guarantee success? It is no longer true.That OTT has killed theaters? DisableDoes marketing require large expenditures? Not necessarily.Adarsh puts it even more bluntly: “It’s a reboot and reset button for the industry. People will have to understand how they approach their audience.”
A cultural moment, not just a movie
In a striking comparison, Adarsh places Dhurandhar alongside the most important cinematic moments.“I remember the craziness of films like Sholay…that kind of craziness I see here. I’m not comparing it directly, but the impact, the buzz…it reminds you of those times.”He added, “Today, the number one Hindi film of all time is Dhurandhar 2, number two is Dhurandhar, and number three is Pushpa 2 (Hindi). It’s a great feeling to see Hindi cinema back on top.”And despite the muted reactions of some parties, it remains clear. “Whether people praise it or not, the truth is that Dhurandhar 2 is at the top. You can’t deny that. The numbers are there for all to see.”
Last carry out
If there’s one lesson the industry needs to learn, it’s this: clarity of vision over formula.Adarsh sums it up best: “Make a good film, make it with integrity and stick to your conviction. That’s very important. If you believe in what you’re doing, it will connect. Thousands of people stood up for that conviction for this film… and the audience is watching it, and watching it again. That repetition value is a very rare phenomenon.”
