The dubbed premiere shows of Dhurandhar: The Revenge in several South Indian states were cancelled just hours before release on Wednesday, reportedly due to a delay in the delivery of the final film content.

The film, directed by Aditya Dhar and starring Ranveer Singh, is scheduled to release in theatres on March 19. However, special paid premiere shows planned for March 18 evening in languages such as Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam were called off after theatres said they had not received the dubbed versions in time.

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Theatres announce cancellations and refunds

Reports of the delay began circulating on Wednesday afternoon, when theatre owners in states including Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala said they had not received the final version of the dubbed content.

Several cinema chains confirmed the cancellations on social media. Vishnu Kamal of Kamal Cinemas said the Tamil version had not been delivered to theatres on time.

“The Tamil version of Dhurandhar 2 has not been delivered to theatres by the producers today. All tickets booked for the Tamil version will be screened in Hindi at the same time and screen. Patrons who do not wish to watch the Hindi version may opt for a refund at our box office,” he wrote.

Other theatre chains, including Broadway Cinemas, KSPS Cinemas and Rakki Cinemas, also confirmed the cancellation of Tamil-language premiere shows and offered refunds or alternative screenings of the Hindi version.

Ticketing platforms such as BookMyShow also removed several previously listed shows for March 18 evening.

Box office impact of cancelled premieres

Trade website Sacnilk reported that Dhurandhar: The Revenge had sold more than 9 lakh tickets in India for premiere shows across multiple languages, generating approximately ₹42.71 crore in advance collections.

Of this amount, over ₹1 crore came from Telugu premieres, while Kannada and Malayalam shows contributed more than ₹8 lakh each and Tamil shows generated over ₹80 lakh.

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Industry estimates suggest that the cancellation of the dubbed premieres could result in a loss of more than ₹2.25 crore in early box-office revenue. The Hindi premiere shows were also reportedly delayed by around 40 minutes, amid discussions about a delay in subtitling.

Film set for nationwide release

Dhurandhar: The Revenge is the sequel to the 2025 action film Dhurandhar and follows the story of Hamza, an Indian spy operating in Pakistan.

Apart from Ranveer Singh, the film also features Sara Arjun, Arjun Rampal, R. Madhavan, Sanjay Dutt, and Rakesh Bedi in key roles. The film has received an ‘A’ certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification for its violent content and is expected to release worldwide on March 19.