Actor Rakesh Bedi is receiving widespread praise for his performance in Dhurandhar: The Revenge. While the film has largely garnered positive reviews, a section of viewers has criticised it as “propaganda.” Addressing the backlash in an interview, the actor defended the film and appeared to take an indirect dig at Kangana Ranaut’s Emergency.
“I don’t believe in politics, I believe in cinema,” he said, adding that while audiences are free to like or dislike a film, labelling it as pro- or anti-establishment is unfair. “The verdict is clear—people are loving it.”
Speaking about the film’s strong buzz, Bedi noted that recent films based on leaders like Indira Gandhi and Narendra Modi failed to sustain themselves in theatres, whereas Dhurandhar stands out due to its writing and screenplay. “Audiences haven’t seen something mounted on this scale before,” he said.
His remarks come amid ongoing debates around the film’s themes and reception on social media. Despite the criticism, the film continues to perform strongly at the box office. For context, Emergency, in which Ranaut portrayed Indira Gandhi during the 1975–77 Emergency period, struggled commercially, reportedly earning ₹18.40 crore worldwide, as he mentioned during an interview with NDTV.
Meanwhile, Dhurandhar 2, directed by Aditya Dhar, released globally on March 19 after record-breaking paid previews. The Ranveer Singh-starrer had a massive start, earning ₹43 crore net domestically and ₹75 crore gross worldwide from previews alone, crossing the ₹100 crore mark on its release day.
The momentum continued on Thursday, with the film collecting ₹102 crore net domestically—the highest single-day total for a Hindi film—taking its one-day domestic total to ₹145 crore net (₹174 crore gross).
Overseas, the spy thriller also performed impressively, earning nearly $7 million on the day despite no holiday advantage, pushing its international total past $9 million. Globally, the film has grossed ₹240 crore on its opening day, including ₹165 crore earned on the day alone.
For comparison, the previous record for the biggest Bollywood opening stood at ₹129 crore, held by Jawan starring Shah Rukh Khan. Only two other Hindi films—Pathaan (₹104 crore) and Animal (₹101 crore)—had crossed the ₹100 crore mark on opening day, making Dhurandhar 2’s ₹240 crore debut a record-shattering feat.
Olivia Sarkar is a Senior Content Producer on the Entertainment and Lifestyle desk with 6 years of experience. In 6 years, she worked with ANI, IANS, Zee News. Known for covering trends and engaging storytelling, she covers a wide spectrum of topics including entertainment news, fashion, fitness, health, food, travel, astrology. From major film announcements to industry controversies. Throughout her career, she has interviewed several notable personalities such as Femina Miss India World 2022 Sini Shetty, Miss World 2024 USA contestant Victoria DiSorbo, Miss France 2020 Clémence Botino.Her interview portfolio also includes celebrities like Milind Soman, Tiger Shroff, and Vikrant Massey, along with acclaimed singers Shubha Mudgal and Padma Shri awardee Dr. Jaspinder Narula. Beyond work, Olivia enjoys exploring new food joints, being wanderlust, and writing poetry. You can reach her out on X: @OliviaSarkar11
