Four films in recent times—Baahubali—The Beginning (2015), Stree (2018), Pushpa—The Rise: Part 1 (2021) and Dhurandhar (2025) have had sequels with gargantuan expectations from audiences that have been fulfilled—and how! These second outings have rocked, with their businesses hitting the roof!
The business of Bahubali itself was magical for the time: no South film had crossed Rs. 100 crores until 2015 in Hindi. Stree decimated the Deol-athon, Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 and became a smash Rs. 100 crore-plus hit. Pushpa came at the end of the pandemic and again crossed the century mark. Finally, Dhurandhar (2025) did the kind of dream business Hindi films had always dreamt of doing—an Indian net of almost Rs. 900 crores.
But now, with the 100-crore club (which began what now seems eons ago) is now almost effete. And three of these four films got sequels that made their prequels look ordinary! And the fourth one’s paid previews and advance bookings reflect the same ‘picture’. Clearly, the audience is in the right mood as they expect great things from the Dhurandhar sequel just like with the other three films.
As veteran exhibitor Raj Bansal puts it, “The craze is high! Can you imagine people just devouring tickets even priced at Rs. 2000 plus in small towns?”
Bahubali 2—The Conclusion (2017) became the first film to cross Rs. 500 crores nett in Hindi. Pushpa 2: The Rise (2024) crossed Rs. 825 crores, Stree 2 in the same year achieved a whopping Rs. 627-plus crores. And as per advance reports, Dhurandhar—The Revenge has reaped a bonanza from its paid previews alone—of Rs. 60 crores as per Times Entertainment, and has sold over 4.5 lakh tickets! The paid previews begin on March 18 from 5 pm.
Says Bansal, “Every hit film needs to have a sequel as per the producers, but not all fare well. In the past, however, we saw every film in the Dhoom and Golmaal franchise better the business of the older film, as expectations are sky-high!” However, he agrees that the success of these two franchises is far less compared to the four films under discussion.
Says trade analyst Taran Adarsh, “What happens is that the first part is a success. But when they are played on television or aired on digital platforms, those who have not watched it get to do so and adds a new huge audience. This cultivates a mammoth fan base. And over a period of time, and if there is a gap between the two releases, the films tend to grow and when the second instalment comes in, there is enormous craze for that new film. The first film is also very, very fresh in their memory.”
He adds, “Here, the most important point is that the second one should carry on the legacy and have a better story. And if that is achieved, then I think the sky is the limit! Then there are certain films that come out that are forced sequels. The sequel to Son of Sardaar was trash! And people knew that from the promo. The promo is very important. Because you need to check only one or two grains from a vessel of rice to know whether it is properly cooked or not—and those grains are the promos!”
But isn’t it relevant that Bahubali, Pushpa and Dhurandhar were always supposed to be one part of a story and the second was in the works anyway? “No! The content decides the result. Dhurandhar ended with Ranveer Singh killing Akshaye Khanna. Now what happens in the story after that? In the trailer comes the poser, ‘Ab Lyari ka raja kaun banega’? Or there was that massive curiosity on ‘Katappa ne Bahubali ko kyoon maara?’ Over a period of time such a query becomes legendary! In that sense, a sequel where the story continues has better prospects, as in Pushpa and now Dhurandhar.”
So, was Stree 2 an exception, even if the same characters were there? Director Amar Kaushik admits, “It’s true that we never thought of a sequel when we decided to make Stree. But when I was shooting the climax, the concept of Stree’s choti (braid) made me think that the story could continue. But I never took the audience for granted when thinking of follow-up. We kept the same milieu, style of storytelling and the characters. We kept the emotions intact and worked on Stree 2 with the same responsibility and honesty! Yes, we are planning Stree 3, but we will take the same responsible path again!”
So the secret is in what Bansal concludes, “Sequels are a trend set by Hollywood. But we have abused this tradition from the West just for profits. We must only make sequels with great content.”
More Pages: Dhurandhar The Revenge Box Office Collection , Dhurandhar The Revenge Movie Review
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