Dhurandhar – External Reviews

Thumbs up
by Subhash K Jha,

Bolly Spice

…Since the film gives us no reason to disbelief, I will take its word for it. The showcasing of the political italics is done with so much integrity, Dhurandhar feels like an unclothed romp in the raw: unalloyed, liberating with a natural aversion to jingoism and drama….

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Bollywood Life

…Dhurandhar is a brilliant, mind-boggling triumph-a masterly thriller which mixing the elements of intensity, emotion, scale and great finds of the cast of the movie. With Dhar giving his best direction, and Ranveer Singh shining as he never did before, the film is like a skyscraper in the field of the cinema, one of the boldest and most exhilarating events of the year….

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by RIDDHIMA KANETKAR,

DNA

…Despite a 196-minute runtime, the film doesn’t drop its tempo or turn into monotonous at all. Dhar keeps his pace hard-hitting, ensuring that every scene and sequence depicts an action or event of the movie….

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Filmi Beat

…Technically, Dhurandhar is a towering achievement. The cinematography creates a world that feels lived in, dangerous and visceral. The action sequences are brutal yet elegant, crafted with a clarity and rhythm that make every punch, bullet and explosion mean something. The background score is a living organism. It breathes, throbs and stalks you through the runtime….

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by Lachmi Deb Roy,

FirstPost

…The way Dhurandhar’ ends, makes you want the second part and I am sure Aditya Dhar is soon going to come up with it. For the theatre going audiences, this film is a complete package and an absolute value for money. And the best thing about the film is not a single dialogue or scene looks forced or irrelevant….

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Free Press Journal

…Yet despite these issues, Dhurandhar remains an arresting film, bold in its scale, muscular in its action, textured in its craft, and powered by performances that elevate even its weaker stretches. It is imperfect, overlong, but never dull. And in Akshaye Khanna, it gives Hindi cinema one of its most memorable antagonists in recent years….

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by Baradwaj Rangan,

galatta.com

…The behind-the-scenes work is brilliant, from the throbbing score and songs by Shashwath Sachdev to Shivkumar Panicker’s insanely creative editing choices to Vikash Nowlakha’s cinematography that ranges from stately wide shots to shaky close-ups. This film is one of the best examples of collaboration in recent times, and even the term “protagonist” is a collaboration between Hamza and the character played by Akshaye Khanna….

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by Rishabh Suri,

Hindustan Times

…Aditya’s direction is solid and his grip on the subject clear, although the dialogue occasionally overwhelms the action. There is a romantic track between newcomer Sara Arjun and Ranveer that begins well, but the sheer volume of events creates fatigue by intermission….

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by Vineeta Kumar,

india today

…Dhurandhar is a sprawling, muscular, politically sharp thriller that bites off a lot, and thanks to Khanna’s explosive brilliance, chews most of it successfully….

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by Priya Shukla,

India TV

…It wouldn’t be wrong to say that the background score of Dhurandhar is its very soul. It isn’t just music – it feels like a resonating war cry. Whether it’s an explosion, a victory, or a major reveal, the background score amplifies every moment and makes each scene feel even more powerful.
At several points, songs from the 80s and 90s are used in a fresh, innovative way, breathing new life into the sequences and boosting the adrenaline of the audience….

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by Kunal Kothari,

India-Forums

…Dhurandhar is a rare contemporary commercial film that marries scale with craft and control with imagination. It doesnot behave like the action showpiece it was marketed as, and that becomes its biggest triumph. The film experiments without apology and trusts its audience enough to follow its unusual rhythm….

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by Trisha Gaur,

koimoi

…Dhurandhar, despite its flaws, is a really good film. In fact, if you have patience, you will start enjoying it after an hour or so! But yes, you will need that 1 hour patience that is allotted to the premise building done very patiently by Aditya Dhar!…

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Movie Talkies

…The screenplay is consistently engaging. Even though the runtime stretches to a long 3 hours and 34 minutes, there are enough twists to maintain viewer interest. The final 30 minutes, in particular, shift into an explorative zone that hints toward a bigger vision for the franchise. The action set pieces are designed well, offering gritty and realistic combat rather than over-the-top heroism. The technical craft enhances the experience—cinematography is sharp, and the background score heightens the tension in all the right places….

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by TITAS CHOWDHURY,

News18.com

…Dhurandhar is definitely about testosterone-pumped spies who suffer silently and about the cost of wars. At the same time, it’s emotionally rich and gritty. And this cinematic marathon is absolutely worth your time. You’ll go back home with the anticipation surrounding a high-voltage second part. No, there’s no cliffhanger. You do know what lies ahead. But what we’re intrigued about is Aditya’s lens, the textured narrative, more of these delicious performances and a little more taste of Shashwat’s musical landscape….

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by Gayatri Nirmal,

Pinkvilla

…Acting performances in Dhurandhar
Ranveer Singh delivers one of his most powerful performances, intense, emotional, and completely controlled. It may even top his work as Alauddin Khilji.
Akshaye Khanna is chilling as Rehman Dakait. He owns the screen every time he appears and makes the character unforgettable.
R. Madhavan brings quiet strength to his role as the IB Chief. He’s sharp, confident, and compelling….

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by ANISH MOHANTY,

Planet Bollywood

…With ‘Dhurandhar’, Aditya Dhar proves, yet again, that he is one of the finest filmmakers around. The film also serves as a testimony to the fact that if the content is engaging, the length (3 hours and 32 minutes) does not matter. With the first part offering high-octane drama, action and thrills in generous doses, one now looks forward to see how the second part pans out….

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by Renuka Vyavahare,

Times of India

…Ranveer Singh returns to claim his number one spot in a layered, restrained avatar that plays to his strengths. His look — long locks, a grungy beard, and a piercing stare — may evoke comparisons to Ranbir Kapoor’s Animal, but the performance and tone are entirely different. Sanjay Dutt, Akshaye Khanna, Arjun Rampal, Rakesh Bedi and Danish Pandor deliver solid supporting turns that enrich the narrative. Sara Arjun is likeable in her part….

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So-So
by Taher Ahmed,

Deccan Herald

…Overall, one could say that this is a Ranveer and Akshaye show, as it gives a glimpse into the world of our unsung heroes….

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So-So
by Satish Sundaresan,

Free Press Journal

…The film’s action has been choreographed by Aejaz Gulab, Sea Young Oh, Yannik Ben and Ramazan Bulut. All those who love action, this film is a fest and a feast! The film’s cinematography (Vishal Nowlakha) is topnotch. Stunning camera angles simply elevate the visual experience of the film….

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So-So
by Iqbal Pervez,

Glamsham.com

…In the end, Dhurandhar stands as a film of strong intent and impressive ambition—rooted in real events, backed by scale, and powered by committed performances—but it never completely becomes the tense, immersive spy thriller it sets out to be. It remains a respectable attempt with enough positives for a one-time watch, though its overall impact stays closer to “just okay” than exceptional….

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So-So
by Uday Bhatia,

Live Mint

…Uday Bhatia…

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So-So
by Athulya Nambiar,

MiD DAY

…he Dhurandhar title track was one of its biggest pre-release USPs. The remixed version with HanumanKind’s vocals had created quite a buzz. However, the track is severely underused in the film, even in moments where it could have elevated the narrative. Composer Shashwat Sachdev does a good job reimagining old classics, but the utilisation of the songs is questionable and often hampers a scene instead of enhancing it….

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So-So
by Radhika Sharma,

NDTV

…Aditya Dhar once again entrusts the film’s background score to his Uri collaborator Shashwat Sachdev, who doesn’t disappoint. Shashwat Sachdev cleverly uses classic Pakistani songs like Hasan Jahangir’s Hawa Hawa, and ghazals like Ghulam Ali’s Chupke Chupke, and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s Afreen Afreen, along with Indian bangers like Piya Tu Ab To Aaja and Rambha Ho! as the story flows. The film’s jukebox has gems such as the title track, the reimagined Karvan qawwali, and Ez-Ez that should be checked out….

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So-So
by Sakshi Salil Chavan,

Outlook India

…The overall visual worldbuilding and cinematography by Vikash Nowlakha is fantastic and pulls one in immediately. The pacing falters at moments, yet he sustains enough narrative pull to keep the viewer invested and occasionally disarmed. With part two arriving on March 19, 2026, Dhurandhar feels like an extended setup—laying out ruthless villains and key players, priming us for the second part where Hamza takes the reins….

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by Deepa Gahlot,

Rediff

…In the meantime, script writers and directors feeling the nationalistic vibe, can look into other R&AW files. We need a government that allows us to act, says Sanyal/Doval.

The signal flare has been fired….

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So-So
by Nandini Ramnath,

Scroll.in

…Dhurandhar is the result of Dhar’s directing skills mating with a Research and Analysis Wing PowerPoint presentation. Dhar’s proficiency with Hollywood-style carnage and talent for creating distinctive characters, coupled with the literal anti-Pakistan bashing, make Dhurandhar appear a lot more momentous than it actually is….

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So-So
by Anuj Kumar,

The Hindu

…In the run-up to the release, Aditya felicitated young Ojas Gautam for editing the explosive trailer, which generated hype for the film. While the enterprise’s pacing and plot fall short of its own hype, its sustained firepower ensures audiences…

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So-So
by Suchin Mehrotra,

The Quint

…Dhar’s sprawling narrative weaves a turbo-charged, Mirzapur-style rise of a gangster tale with a spy saga that spans the planning of every horrid terrorist attack on Indian soil since the early 2000s. The fate of the entire country is literally intertwined with the actions of one man and his rise to power within a world of lawless, thunderous gangsters. If that isn’t a “winning, crowd-pleasing” commercial formula, I don’t know what is….

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by Anas Arif,

indian express

…To cap it all, Aditya Dhar flaunts his craft with some serious ingenuity. He understands the architecture of anticipation, the careful accumulation of tension, and the satisfaction of a delayed payoff…

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