Dhurandhar: Ranveer Singh-starrer becomes most watched film on Netflix globally; ranks top in Pakistan, Gulf nations despite ban

Filmmaker Aditya Dhar's espionage thriller Dhurandhar has clinched the No. 1 spot on Netflix's global Top 10 non-English films list, registering strong viewership in India and other markets, including Pakistan where the film is mostly set. According to Netflix's Tudum weekly chart for January 26 - February 1, Dhurandhar topped the global chart among non-English films with 7.6 million views. The Ranveer Singh-starrer also ranked No. 1 on Netflix's Top 10 Movies list in Pakistan, a notable showing since Indian films do not get theatrical releases there and the film addresses cross-border terrorism emanating from the country. 

Dhurandhar, which released on December 5, turned out to be a blockbuster by earning over Rs 1300 crore at the box office. The movie started streaming on Netflix from January 30. Set in Lyari town of Karachi, an area known for its history of gang wars and violent turf battles, Dhurandhar revolves around covert intelligence operations at the background of geopolitical and terror events like Kandahar plane hijack, 2001 Parliament Attack and 26/11 Mumbai attacks. 

The film, which also features Akshaye Khanna, Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Rampal, R Madhavan and Sara Arjun, has further performed well across South Asia, including in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, the chart showed. Despite not being released in Gulf countries due to its alleged anti-Pakistan narrative, Dhurandhar is trending in several territories in the region. It ranks No. 1 in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman, is placed No. 4 in Kuwait, and at No. 6 in Saudi Arabia, according to the streaming platform's data. 

In Pakistan, the rest of the Top 10 movies list is also dominated by Indian titles. According to the chart, films such as Dhanush-Kriti Sanon starrer Tere Ishk Mein, Yami Gautam's Haq, Ajay Devgn-led De De Pyaar De 2, Rani Mukerji's Mardaani 2 and Mardaani, and Jolly LLB 3, starring Akshay Kumar and Arshad Warsi, feature among the most-watched movies in the country. 

The film's second part, titled Dhurandhar: The Revenge, is slated for a theatrical release on March 19 in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam. The film will carry forward the story of Singh's spy-turned-gangster character Jaskirat Singh Rangi, also known as Hamza Ali Mazari, charting his transformation into a killing machine while also delving into his backstory before he became a spy. Dhurandhar is produced by Dhar and his brother Lokesh Dhar through their banner B62 Studios alongside Jyoti Deshpande of Jio Studios.

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