Sunny Deol’s much-awaited sequel Border 2 has put up an impressive performance at the box office in its first week. The war drama earned an estimated Rs 213 crore India net in its first six days, and added around Rs 7.97 crore India net on day seven across all languages, taking its first-week total to approximately Rs 220 crore.With this, Border 2 has emerged as one of the strongest performers of the year so far, smashing multiple box office records in its opening week. The big question now is whether the film can sustain its momentum and eventually challenge the massive lifetime numbers of Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar.
Manoj Desai confirms strong single-screen performance
Speaking to ETimes, Manoj Desai, Executive Director of G7 Multiplex (Gaiety Galaxy) and Maratha Mandir Cinema, confirmed that Border 2 is performing exceptionally well at single screens.“It’s been seven days and the film is doing very well. We’re running it at Gaiety Galaxy and Maratha Mandir, and the response has been good everywhere,” Desai said.However, he also pointed out that show timings continue to pose a challenge, especially for longer films.“Morning shows don’t fill up easily because the audience isn’t used to longer duration. When big films release, we reduce one show and run three strong shows so the public comes in.”
Weekend and holiday surge boosts collections
According to Desai, Border 2 witnesses a noticeable spike during weekends and public holidays.“On Sundays or public holidays, the shows go housefull,” he said, adding that Sunny Deol and Varun Dhawan even visited the theatre during the film’s run, further adding to the buzz.
Can Border 2 beat Dhurandhar’s record-breaking run?
While Border 2 is enjoying a solid run, Desai remained cautious when asked if it could surpass the lifetime collections of Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar, which has earned an estimated Rs 835.76 crore India net over 56 days and Rs 1301 crore worldwide. “Right now, it’s doing well. Today’s audience thinks differently. If they can watch a film at home on OTT, many prefer that over travelling and dealing with traffic. These are the realities of today.”Directed by Anurag Singh, Border 2 features an ensemble cast including Sunny Deol, Mona Singh, Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh, Ahan Shetty, Sonam Bajwa and Anya Singh, among others.
Dhurandhar gears up for OTT release and sequel tease
Meanwhile, Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar has been dominating the box office for the past two months and is now set to drop on Netflix at midnight. The film stars Ranveer Singh, Akshaye Khanna, Sanjay Dutt, Sara Arjun, Arjun Rampal and Rakesh Bedi. Adding to the excitement, the teaser of Dhurandhar 2 is expected to be released on January 31, a day after the first part premieres on OTT.