Jul 16, 2026 5:08pm IST
Why ‘Dhurandhar’ Failed In Japan Despite Emerging as a Global Blockbuster?
The “Dhurandhar” franchise shattered several records across the globe and raked in over 3100 crore in its theatrical run. While both films emerged as two of the highest-grossing Indian films worldwide, the first part didn’t find an audience in Japan.
“Dhurandhar,” which released on July 10 at the Japanese box office, failed to attract footfall, with only 900 admits across 80 locations on its opening day. Despite the makers’ efforts to create awareness around its Japanese release, it turned out to be a disappointing affair.
Variety India got in touch with prominent trade experts for their observations and opinions.
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Failure in Japanese Market Can’t Impact the Blockbuster Status of ‘Dhurandhar’
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh says that the poor performance of “Dhurandhar” in Japan can’t affect its blockbuster status, citing the example of “Baahubali 2.” “You can't expect every film to run everywhere. There could have been many reasons as to why, and I would not be able to pinpoint one particular reason. But I would like to add that a film like ‘Baahubali’ also did not really work in China. I mean, ‘Baahubali’ is a blockbuster in India and the rest of the world,” explains Adarsh, adding, “Ditto for ‘Dhurandhar.’ And if ‘Dhurandhar’ had not worked in Japan, and I'm not too sure; I've just read the media reports, maybe true, maybe false. But the fact remains that it's a universally accepted film. One market, two markets could be less, more, whatever, but that cannot take away the fact that ‘Dhurandhar’ is an epic."
No Cultural Connect
On the other hand, Ramesh Bala, industry tracker from Chennai, shares that “Dhurandhar” failed in Japan because there was no cultural connect. “If you look at the Indian movies that succeeded in Japan till now, includes Rajinikanth's ‘Muthu’ in the 90s, followed by ‘Baahubali 2,’ ‘RRR,’ ‘English Vinglish’ and ‘The Lunchbox.’ These films had either an emotional story or a cultural connect.” Explaining the nature of the Japanese audience's taste, he adds, “Japan as a market is not big for spy thrillers, especially when a movie is about a geopolitical Indian-Pakistani espionage spy thriller. That is not a subject they will cherish. If they make a movie about China-Japan rivalry, will we watch it in India? So, the movie has to be about our culture or human emotion. Something like that will only work.”
“Dhurandhar,” directed by Aditya Dhar, features Ranveer Singh, Akshaye Khanna, Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Rampal, R. Madhavan, Sara Arjun, Rakesh Bedi, Gaurav Gera, and Danish Pandor, among others.
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