Dhurandhar: The Revenge

In 2000, Hamza Ali Mazari, then known as Jaskirat Singh Rangi, leaves his hometown of Pathankot to undergo military training. During his absence, a violent land dispute involving local MLA Sukhwinder Singh leads to attacks on his family: his father is hanged and his sisters both gang raped, with his elder sister Harleen murdered and younger sister Jasleen abducted. Upon returning, Jaskirat, with the help of his friend Gurbaaz, murders Sukhwinder and the rest of his gang, and rescues Jasleen. He is subsequently arrested, tried, and sentenced to death. Before his incarceration, he entrusts Jasleen's future to Gurbaaz.^[14]

In 2002, Jaskirat is abducted during a prison transfer and brought before intelligence officials Ajay Sanyal and Sushant Bansal. By 2004, he is recruited into a covert programme to infiltrate Pakistani terror networks, given the identity of Hamza Ali Mazari, and deployed to Lyari via Kabul, where he severs ties with his past and operates under handler Mohammed Aalam.^[c]

By 2009, following the death of Rehman Dakait in Lyari,^[c] Hamza manipulates local factions to ignite a conflict between the Baloch and Pathan gangs, resulting in the death of Pathan gang leader Arshad Pappu and the arrest of Rehman's cousin brother Uzair Baloch, consolidating Hamza's influence in Karachi while advancing his mission. His actions draw him into the inner circle of "Bade Sahab" Dawood Ibrahim, who tasks him with facilitating narcotics operations to fund military operations. A group of Punjabi rebels is brought in to assist, including Gurbaaz, unknown to Hamza. During a party at Hamza's house, an intoxicated Gurbaaz confronts him and threatens to reveal his identity to the others, leading to a fight that ends with Gurbaaz dead. Aalam arrives to cover up the incident; when he is discovered, Hamza executes him in front of the guests.^[15]

As suspicion grows, SP Chaudhary Aslam begins investigating Hamza but is killed in a suicide attack orchestrated by Hamza through the Balochistan United Force (BUF). Yalina uncovers Hamza's true identity and confronts him, but agrees to remain silent for the sake of their son, Zayan. Sanyal grants Hamza autonomy to dismantle the remaining terror network and initiate Operation Green Leaf, leading him to assassinate several key operatives including a panicked terror financier and fake Indian currency maker Javed Khanani, and IC 814 hijacker Zahoor Mistry. Meanwhile, Aslam's second-in-command Omar uncovers Hamza's true identity by extorting Yalina after holding Zayan at gunpoint, and informs Major Iqbal.

When Dawood plans an attack on India, Hamza travels to Iqbal's madrassa to deliver weapons; during their meeting, Iqbal confronts Hamza as an Indian spy and stabs him, but a bomb planted by Hamza and the BUF in the weapons crates kills multiple militants. A firefight ensues between Iqbal's Mujahideen and the BUF (disguised as Pakistan Rangers); Hamza destroys Iqbal's transport with an RPG, has the BUF level the madrassa, and pursues Iqbal to a shipping yard, where they fight until Hamza kills Iqbal in a kerosene tanker explosion. After a final phone call with Yalina, Hamza is captured and tortured by Omar, until Sanyal coerces his release by blackmailing the head of Pakistani intelligence, Shamshad Hassan, with evidence of his dealings with Israeli intelligence. Uzair is used as a scapegoat and framed as India's spy.

Hamza is picked up by his father-in-law Jameel Jamali, who reveals himself as a longtime Indian asset who had been slowly poisoning Dawood while embedded in his network. Having completed his mission, Hamza abandons his alias, being forced to leave Yalina and their son behind for the sake of their wellbeing, and returns to India as Jaskirat Singh Rangi. Though commended for his service, Jaskirat disappears before his formal debriefing and returns to his childhood home, which he wistfully gazes from afar.^[16]

In the mid-credits scene, flashbacks depict Jaskirat's training with the Research & Analysis Wing (R&AW). In the post-credits scene, Shamshad orders Omar into a mental asylum after he threatens to reveal Shamshad's release of Hamza to the National Assembly.

The sequel was developed as the second and final installment of the Dhurandhar duology. Initially planned as a single film, the filmmakers later decided on a two-part release.^[22] Both parts were shot concurrently as a single production.^[23] The decision to divide the film was made during post-production, owing to the volume of footage and narrative complexity.^[24][25] Principal photography for both films took place between July 2024 and October 2025 across India and Thailand.^[26][27] Additional filming for the second part took place in January and February 2026.^[28][29][30]

The soundtrack was composed by Shashwat Sachdev, with lyrics written by Irshad Kamil and Kumaar.^[31] The music rights were acquired by T-Series for ₹27 crore, replacing Saregama.^[32][33]

The song "Aaahh Men!" by Doja Cat was featured in the teaser released on 3 February 2026, and also appears in the film.^[34] The first single, "Aari Aari", was released on 12 March 2026.^[35] The song is a remix of the 2003 eponymous track by Danish musical duo Bombay Rockers and featured in the film's trailer.^[36][37] The second single, "Main Aur Tu", was released on 17 March 2026.^[38] The full album was launched the same day at the NESCO Centre in Mumbai.^[39][40] An extended album with eleven additional tracks was released on 24 March 2026.^[41]

Reviewers generally found the soundtrack effective in enhancing the film's impact,^[42][43] though some noted it fell short of the energy of the first film's score.^[44][45][46]

A post-credits scene in the first instalment revealed the title and release date for the sequel.^[47] Initial reports suggested the teaser would be screened alongside Border 2 in theatres on 30 January 2026, but this did not materialise.^[48][49][50]

The film opens with a disclaimer stating that it is a work of fiction inspired by real events and should not be construed as an accurate depiction of historical fact.^[111][112] Despite this, the film incorporates several real-life terrorist attacks on India into its plot^[66] and reimagines events and public figures from recent Indian political history, including the 2016 Indian banknote demonetisation and a fictionalised version of slain politician and gangster Atiq Ahmed.^[113]

Several reviewers questioned the accuracy of specific factual claims. Dainik Bhaskar reported that the film's depiction of the Atiq Ahmed-based character as involved in a counterfeit currency racket was contradicted by chargesheets filed by Uttar Pradesh Police, and that the film's timeline of events surrounding his arrest was incorrect.^[114] The film also presents as established fact an unproven claim linking that character to weapons smuggling connected with Lashkar-e-Taiba and the ISI.^[114][115] The Federal noted that no documentation corroborated any Pakistani link beyond statements by Uttar Pradesh Police.^[116] The Indian Express described the director's approach as blending real events with fiction as a deliberate storytelling device.^[113]

The film attracted significant critical commentary regarding its political framing. Variety wrote that the film intensifies existing patriotic sentiment and that its level of violence places it above other recent examples of anti-Muslim narrative in Indian cinema.^[8] The Federal found that the film implies membership of any party opposed to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is tantamount to receiving Pakistani funding.^[116] The Economist noted that professional critics on Rotten Tomatoes broadly characterised both films as propaganda for Narendra Modi.^[9] Nissim Mannathukkaren, writing for The Hindu, argued that the film conflates the ruling party with the state, rendering other forms of political violence invisible while spectacularising nationalist violence.^[117] Prathyush Parasuraman, writing for Frontline, argued that the film instrumentalises both Pakistani and Indian minorities within a nationalist framework.^[118] Siddhant Adlakha, writing for IGN, argued that the film's repeated incorporation of real political events into its fictional narrative risks inflaming tensions around India-Pakistan relations and the treatment of Indian Muslims.^[119] Vineeta Kumar, writing for India Today, argued that the film's target is Pakistani state-sponsored terrorism rather than Pakistan or Muslims broadly, and that its position aligns with that of the Indian government.^[120]

The Independent reported divided audience opinion and suggested the film's commercial success may reinforce hypermasculine nationalism as a durable formula in mainstream Hindi cinema.^[6] The film received characterisations from professional critics including "naked political propaganda",^[119] "pro-establishment propaganda",^[10] "pro-government propaganda",^[121] and "brazen propaganda".^[122]

Not all commentators accepted the propaganda characterisation. Yasser Usman, writing for NDTV, argued the film should be understood within the tradition of the Bollywood masala film rather than treated as a political manifesto.^[123] Nirmalya Dutta, writing for The Times of India, questioned whether the propaganda label was being applied consistently across films.^[124] Writing for Open, a commentator argued that similarly partial readings could be applied to acclaimed Western films such as Saving Private Ryan and Zero Dark Thirty.^[125]

The dialogue "Mera Baccha Hai Tu" (transl. you are my child), spoken by the character Jameel Jamali (Rakesh Bedi) in both Dhurandhar films, gained circulation on social media and in memes and short-form video content. Several brands and agencies, including Delhi Police, Wai Wai, Haldiram's, and Vadilal, adapted the dialogue for marketing campaigns.^{[126][127][128]}