Hindi
Badmaash Company and Houseful rock at the BO
MUMBAI: Following on the heels of the good collections by Sajid Nadiadwala‘s Housefull last weekend, there‘s some cheer at the Bollywood box-office this week too.
While Housefull continued to pull in audiences, the Parmeet Sethi-helmed and Shahid Kapoor-starrer Badmash Company from Yash Raj Films grossed Rs 135 million as the weekend ended.
Apparently, the film had a relatively slower first day but then gathered momentum over the next two days as word-of-mouth helped the film attract audiences to both the single-screens and multiplexes.
Says Fun Cinemas COO Vishal Kapur, “The film opened better than expected especially for two reasons; first, it is a Yash Raj film and secondly, it is a Shahid Kapoor starrer. The opening weekend was good, given the fact that the film has tremendous youth appeal and that in turn witnessed in the youth turning out in huge numbers. The film will hopefully do even better in the whole first week.”
Meanwhile, Gurinder Chadha‘s It‘s A Wonderful Afterlife (Hai Mar Jawaan! in Hindi), the second release of the week, has had a disastrous start at the box-office, notwithstanding the fact that the film boasts the presence of Shabana Azmi.
“On Sunday, the English version of the film did decent business, garnering around 40 to 50 per cent footfalls while the Hindi one fared very poorly,” avers Kapur.
Housefull, which ended its first week with a worldwide box-office of Rs 950 million, continued with its good run into its second weekend. An industry observer points out that collections were between Rs 100-120 million just in India. “The film has been doing pretty well,” he says. “The film, already a hit, is destined to be a big grosser.”
Bollywood has had a run of bad luck with nearly 17 films bombing or doing less than average business since My Name is Khan was released in January. Housefull was the first film to break that run. And now with Badmaash Company also notching up a success, trade observers are happy that good times are back again.
Hindi
Dhurandhar 2 hit by YouTube leak amid record box office run
Cam-rip surfaces online but blockbuster streak continues at record pace
MUMBAI: It has been a dramatic week for Dhurandhar: The Revenge. Even as the espionage thriller smashes box office records, a piracy scare briefly threatened to steal its thunder after a full-length version surfaced on YouTube.
The leak emerged on March 30 via a channel titled “A2z movie”, which uploaded what appeared to be a cam-recorded print of the film. Clocking in at nearly three hours and 49 minutes, the footage was reportedly blurry but complete enough to spark spoilers and fan outrage online.
Soon after, users on X began flagging the issue, explicitly naming the “A2z movie” channel in their posts while tagging the film’s makers and urging swift legal action. Fans of director Aditya Dhar and lead star Ranveer Singh were particularly vocal, helping the issue gain rapid traction.
Within hours, the video was taken down, likely through a mix of platform detection systems and intervention by producers Jio Studios and B62 Studios.
Despite the leak, the film’s theatrical run remains virtually unshaken. As of March 31, the sequel has raked in an estimated Rs 872.17 crore net in India, with worldwide collections soaring to Rs 1,392.23 crore. Its Hindi opening day alone brought in Rs 102.55 crore, setting a new benchmark.
In a notable milestone, the film has matched Pushpa 2 as the fastest Indian release to cross the Rs 1,000 crore mark globally, achieving the feat in just seven days.
Interestingly, the version leaked online is believed to be an earlier cut. Midway through its theatrical run, the makers issued revised prints after eagle-eyed viewers spotted a fleeting editing error involving a cameraman’s reflection. The corrected version now plays across cinemas, adding an unusual twist to the film’s release journey.
Directed by Aditya Dhar, the high-stakes sequel stars Ranveer Singh alongside Sanjay Dutt, R. Madhavan, Arjun Rampal and Sara Arjun. The film has drawn praise for its scale and action sequences, though some critics have pointed to its intense violence and layered political themes.
For now, piracy may have made noise, but it has not slowed the juggernaut. If anything, the episode underlines the film’s cultural grip, proving that even a leak cannot derail a box office storm already in full force.
