Bollywood actor Varun Dhawan has publicly credited Aditya Dhar with the success of the spy action thriller Dhurandhar, calling the film a “director ki jeet” (a director's win). The comment, captured in a clip that has circulated widely online, has drawn a mixed reaction from fans of the film's lead, Ranveer Singh, and has briefly reopened a familiar Bollywood debate about how credit is distributed between cast and director on a hit ensemble film.
What Dhawan said
In the video, reported by Republic World and Pinkvilla, Dhawan says: “Today when you see a movie like Dhurandhar and Aditya Dhar, woh jis tarike se bana raha hai, woh toh director ki jeet huyi na.” The clip was widely shared on X and Instagram in the hours after it surfaced.
The reaction
Both outlets report that Ranveer Singh's fanbase reacted negatively, with social media users arguing Dhawan had sidelined the cast's performances in his framing of the film as primarily a directorial achievement. Some accused the actor of giving away “the entire credit” to Dhar without acknowledging the ensemble's work. Veteran filmmaker David Dhawan, Varun's father, partly disagreed in a separate comment quoted by Pinkvilla, noting that while a director is central, actors carry “a bigger role” in a film's outcome.
About the film
According to Wikipedia,Dhurandhar is a 2025 Hindi-language spy action thriller written and directed by Aditya Dhar — previously known for Uri: The Surgical Strike(2019). The ensemble cast includes Ranveer Singh, Akshaye Khanna, Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Rampal, R. Madhavan and Sara Arjun. The film released worldwide on December 5, 2025, with a runtime of 214 minutes. A sequel,Dhurandhar: The Revenge, is set for theatrical release on March 19, 2026, with Variety noting Singh's continued lead role.
For UAE audiences, where Hindi releases routinely open day-and-date with India, the sequel is already on the spring calendar.
