It seems that the phenomenal success of the Dhurandhar franchise has not only benefited its viewers and distributors but also its lead actor and director.
According to Jyoti Deshpande, the producer of Jio Studios, Ranveer Singh and the director of the movie, Aditya Dhar, chose to go for a revenue-share plan rather than charging exorbitantly for making the movie.
This information provides an insight into one of the emerging trends in the film industry wherein actors and directors have chosen to earn money based on how their movies performed.
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Risk-sharing model paid off
Speaking to The Economic Times, Deshpande said both Ranveer Singh and Aditya Dhar accepted smaller fixed fees while negotiating backend profit participation.
“In Dhurandhar, Ranveer came with a smaller fixed fee and a backend deal, and therefore benefited from that arrangement. The same was true for Aditya, who also came in with a smaller fixed fee and a backend,” Deshpande said.
She added that the arrangement allowed risks and rewards to be distributed more evenly among stakeholders. The strategy ultimately worked in favour of all parties involved as the franchise grew into one of the biggest commercial successes in Hindi cinema.
Budget expanded as franchise evolved
Deshpande also revealed that the project eventually exceeded its original financial estimates. According to her, the makers significantly increased their investment during production, resulting in a larger-scale project that ultimately expanded into a two-part franchise.
“On Dhurandhar, we went all in. The film ended up being made for almost double the amount we had initially set out to spend,” she said. The gamble appears to have paid off, with the films generating strong theatrical returns and attracting significant interest from streaming platforms.
OTT strategy grabs attention
Apart from its theatrical success, Dhurandhar 2 has also made headlines for its unconventional digital release plan. The film's international streaming rights were acquired by Netflix, which began streaming a special "raw and undekha" version globally on May 22. However, Indian audiences will receive a different version.
The domestic streaming rights have been secured by JioHotstar in a deal reportedly valued at nearly ₹150 crore, making it one of the biggest OTT acquisitions for an Indian film in recent years. The Indian version is scheduled to premiere on June 4 and is expected to include extended scenes not available in the international release.
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A growing trend in Bollywood
The success of the Dhurandhar profit-sharing formula is indicative of changes occurring within the Bollywood business model, where instead of asking for fixed payment for themselves, several actors and directors are opting to go for profits shares, which would increase their revenue based on the success of their venture.
Profit sharing in the case of a successful venture could lead to substantial income for the participants without putting too much financial pressure on them at the time of production. This strategy has definitely proved its worth in the case of Dhurandhar and his crew.
