MUMBAI – The highly anticipated spy thriller Dhurandhar 2: The Revenge, starring Ranveer Singh and directed by Aditya Dhar, has officially taken the box office by storm, though its historic launch was nearly derailed by a series of unprecedented technical failures across the country.
A Record-Breaking Start
The sequel to the 2025 blockbuster has already etched its name in the history books. On its opening day, the film shattered records on BookMyShow, selling over 109,000 tickets in a single hour. This feat successfully surpassed the previous record held by Pushpa 2: The Rule, making it the fastest-selling Indian film in terms of hourly ticket sales.
Early trade reports suggest an “earth-shattering” opening, with the film eyeing a ₹100 crore+ debut globally. The hype has been further fueled by glowing reviews from industry heavyweights. Allu Arjun hailed the film as “patriotism with swag,” while popular creator Ashish Chanchlani and actor Vijay Deverakonda praised Ranveer Singh’s “beast mode” and “generational performance” as the fearsome spy Jaskirat Singh Rangi.
Technical Glitches and “Half-Movie” Chaos
Despite the critical and commercial euphoria, the rollout was marred by significant operational setbacks during paid preview screenings on March 18.
- The Interval Glitch: Multiple theaters in cities like Guwahati, Pune, and Chennai reported a bizarre technical failure where the film played perfectly until the interval but failed to resume for the second half. At a PVR outlet in Guwahati, frustrated fans were informed at 9:10 PM that the remaining portion of the movie could not be screened due to content delivery issues.
- Police Intervention: In a particularly chaotic scene documented by YouTuber Shivam Bajpai, police were reportedly called to a PVR cinema after angry crowds, who had been waiting for hours for delayed screenings, began protesting the lack of communication from theater staff.
- Regional Cancellations: The South Indian market faced the brunt of the issues. Many Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada screenings were canceled last minute as theaters failed to receive the digital “Key Delivery Message” (KDM) or the final content files in time.
Official Apology and Compensation
Director Aditya Dhar and the production team at Jio Studios issued a formal apology via social media to address the “unforeseen technical difficulties.”
“Dhurandhar is not just a film for us—it is something we have lived with and nurtured. We truly apologize for the inconvenience,” the statement read.
The makers clarified that while most Hindi screenings remained on track, the Malayalam and Kannada versions would be postponed to the following day. To appease disappointed fans, the producers offered two options: a full refund or the choice to watch the Hindi version with subtitles at no extra cost.
Despite the rocky start, trade analysts predict that the sheer momentum of the Dhurandhar franchise will carry it toward a record-breaking weekend, potentially crossing the ₹1,300 crore mark set by its predecessor.
