Dhurandhar Joins ₹1000-Crore Club: Here Are the Films That Did It Before

Aditya Dhar’s latest spy thriller Dhurandhar, starring Ranveer Singh, has taken the Indian box office by storm, racing past the ₹1,000-crore mark in just 21 days. Released on December 5, the film shattered expectations and has quickly emerged as the highest-grossing Indian film of 2025. As the industry celebrates this milestone, it’s worth revisiting other blockbusters that previously scaled the coveted ₹1,000-crore peak.

The journey to the elite club began in 2017, when SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali 2: The Conclusion rewrote history by becoming the first Indian film to cross ₹1,000 crore, eventually collecting ₹1,788.06 crore worldwide. Not long after, Aamir Khan’s Dangal — released in China months later — eclipsed Baahubali 2’s numbers. Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, the film soared past ₹2,000 crore globally, ending with a staggering ₹2,070 crore, and still holds the title of highest-grossing Indian film ever.

Post these landmark successes, big-ticket films continued to chase the milestone. Rajamouli returned in 2022 with RRR, earning ₹1,230 crore worldwide, followed soon by Prashanth Neel’s KGF: Chapter 2, which collected ₹1,215 crore. The momentum carried into 2023, when Atlee’s Jawan and Siddharth Anand’s Pathaan joined the club with ₹1,160 crore and ₹1,055 crore respectively.

Interestingly, the makers of Dhurandhar opted for a low-key marketing approach, relying instead on strong word-of-mouth and critical acclaim after release. The strategy worked: despite stiff competition, the film has maintained remarkable box office stamina. Ranveer Singh’s intense portrayal of a spy has drawn appreciation from both audiences and critics.

Dhurandhar also marks a powerful conclusion to 2025 for Bollywood. It becomes only the second Hindi film after Chhaava this year to dominate both the box office and cultural conversation. While Vicky Kaushal’s Chhaava set the tone earlier, Dhar’s spy thriller delivers a spectacular finale, restoring optimism across the industry.

With its continued strong run, Dhurandhar has raised the bar for Hindi spy thrillers and proved that blockbusters can thrive even without massive pre-release hype. Its performance is likely to remain a major talking point in the weeks to come — and a benchmark for future releases.