After fans waited for months through teasers, trailers and endless buzz online, 'Dhurandhar: The Revenge' finally arrived in theatres on March 19, and if the reactions pouring out of cinemas across the country are anything to go by, the much-anticipated sequel has clearly struck a chord with audiences.
Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar 2 has stormed the box office, with the Ranveer Singh-starrer delivering one of the biggest openings in Indian cinema history.
According to early estimates from trade tracker Sacnilk, the film earned more than Rs 43 crore from paid previews on Wednesday - the highest ever for an Indian release - before collecting approximately Rs 102.55 crore on its opening day on Thursday. This takes its total India earnings to around Rs 145 crore within just two days.
The film has already surpassed the opening day collections of recent Hindi blockbusters such as Shah Rukh Khan's Jawan (Rs 75 crore) and Pathaan (Rs 57 crore), as well as the horror-comedy Stree 2 (Rs 54 crore).
Globally, the film is expected to cross Rs 200 crore swiftly, fuelled by strong advance bookings that saw more than 15 lakh tickets sold, including previews.
Titled Dhurandhar: The Revenge, the sequel follows the success of its predecessor, which grossed around Rs 1,300 crore worldwide after its release in December 2025.
Produced by Jyoti Deshpande and Lokesh Dhar, the film features Ranveer Singh as Jaskirat Singh Rangi, who transforms into undercover operative Hamza Ali Mazari operating deep inside Pakistan. The story traces his rise within Karachi's underworld while exploring the origins of his covert identity.
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The ensemble cast also includes R Madhavan, Arjun Rampal, Sanjay Dutt, Sara Arjun and Rakesh Bedi. The film has been released in multiple languages, including Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam.
People's reaction
For many moviegoers stepping out of theatres after the early screenings, the film seemed to deliver on the hype. Viewers, after watching the film, shared their excitement, with some even going as far as calling it one of the "greatest" Indian films they had watched.
Agrima, a viewer from Bhopal, said the film impressed her with its action and suspense. Speaking about the "fantastic" performance by Ranveer Singh and the film's strong detailing, she said, "Action and fighting scenes are really good. Ranveer Singh's acting is fantastic... The suspense buildup is really good... Detailing in the film is really good..."
Similar enthusiasm was seen among moviegoers in Lucknow, where viewers appreciated the film's theme and scale.
One viewer said the movie handled the subject of terrorism in a "positive" way and felt the sequel was better than the first film.
"The movie was very good on the subject of terrorism. This movie works in a positive way. This movie is better than the first part of the same film," he told ANI.
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However, the film's runtime, an imposing three hours and 55 minutes, has also become a talking point among audiences. While some viewers felt the length was a bit "too long," others said the film's pace kept them engaged throughout.
In New Delhi, a fan who arrived wearing a Dhurandhar-printed T-shirt said he had already watched the first film several times and had high expectations from the sequel. Describing the experience as "amazing," he said the film was worth every penny and even revealed plans to watch it again the next day.
He added that despite the nearly four-hour runtime, the film never felt slow. According to him, the story kept moving at a pace that didn't make the duration noticeable.
"I'm a huge fan of the first part. I had already watched it six or seven times in theatres. I came in with expectations that the movie would be amazing, and Part 2 turned out to be even more spectacular. We've even decided that we're going to watch it a second time tomorrow. So "amazing" basically means it was totally worth the money."
"We didn't feel bored at all. Not even for a second did it feel like a 4-hour movie. It didn't feel that way in the first movie either, and it didn't feel that way in this one as well," he added.
Not everyone, however, felt the same. Another viewer said he found the film "okay" but preferred the first instalment, adding that the long runtime sometimes made him check the time during the screening.
"The movie was okay, but I liked Part 1 more. I didn't find this one as special. I feel that when you have to keep checking the time to see when the movie will end, your interest doesn't stay as high," he told ANI.