- Actor Rajkummar Rao believes Aditya Dhar's two-part spy saga Dhurandhar is a disruptor for Hindi cinema
- He says filmmakers should feel empowered to tell their stories freely without worrying about the runtime
- Dhurandhar and its sequel, Dhurandhar: The Revenge, have emerged as box office juggernauts
Actor Rajkummar Rao believes Aditya Dhar's two-part spy saga Dhurandhar is a disruptor for Hindi cinema, one that has altered its "grammar", and says filmmakers should feel empowered to tell their stories freely without worrying about runtime.
Dhurandhar and its sequel Dhurandhar: The Revenge, headlined by Ranveer Singh, have emerged as box office juggernauts, earning over Rs 1,300 crore worldwide each, with the duology's combined gross of over Rs 3,000 crore making it the highest-grossing Indian film franchise of all time.
"Every decade or every five years, a film comes along that changes the grammar and shifts the entire perspective towards filmmaking. I'm glad Dhurandhar has done that," Rao told PTI.
The actor said he watched both parts and "absolutely loved" them.
"I think Aditya's language of cinema and the way his craft evolves is phenomenal. I have never seen a spy film like this come out of India in my entire life. The way he has portrayed Ranveer in it was absolutely brilliant. His passion, storytelling, use of music, shot-taking - everything. There was so much to learn from it. It's a very new kind of filmmaking," he added.
Rao also addressed the long-standing fixation on runtime in filmmaking.
Both Dhurandhar and Dhurandhar: The Revenge had runtimes of over three hours, but this did not deter audiences from turning up in huge numbers.
"I think this whole idea of keeping films under two hours or two-and-a-half hours doesn't matter. A good film is a good film," he said.
He cited examples such as Aamir Khan's Lagaan and Sandeep Reddy Vanga's Animal.
"A good film is a good film. 'Lagaan' was pretty long, I know. So was 'Animal', so were so many other films. But if a film holds, it holds. It doesn't matter how long it is. So it should empower your directors, it should empower your makers to let them make the film that they want to make, and don't interfere, thinking some perception that you have of the industry and the audience. That this is how it is, no one knows how it is. There is no formula, and 'Dhurandhar' has proved it. The only formula is your passion and your filmmaking," he added.
The actor currently stars in the Netflix comedy Toaster, which marks his debut as a producer alongside his wife, Patralekhaa. They have produced the film under their banner, Kampa Film.
Patralekhaa said she watched Dhurandhar and its sequel twice and was "completely blown away".
"The first time I watched the films, I was simply enjoying the ride. The second time, I focused on understanding the technical aspects and storytelling. Aditya is truly a gem in filmmaking today - he has genuinely changed perceptions," she said.
Actor Sanya Malhotra, Rao's co-star in Toaster, said she has seen the first part but is yet to watch the sequel.
"It has some amazing performances, a compelling story, and the music - I'm a huge fan. I can't stop listening to the album. Everything about the film is perfect," she said.
Dhurandhar, released in December 2025, follows a decade-long Indian intelligence operation in which an undercover agent infiltrates Karachi's criminal and political underworld. Ranveer Singh plays the covert operative who rises through the ranks of the ISI-underworld nexus from within, with the mission of dismantling it.
The second instalment, Dhurandhar: The Revenge, released on March 19, picks up the story from where the first film left off. Both parts were shot concurrently.
