Despite Dhurandhar 2 craze, Akshay Kumar confident about Bhooth Bangla; Priyadarshan says he never makes films that ’embarrass parents’ | Bollywood News
3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Mar 24, 2026 02:15 PM IST
Dhurandhar: The Revenge, the second installment of Aditya Dhar’s spy drama, has been dominating the box office since its release on March 19. Much like its predecessor, the film is expected to enjoy a strong and sustained theatrical run. Meanwhile, Akshay Kumar and Priyadarshan’s horror-comedy Bhooth Bangla is all set to release on April 10. While some speculate that Dhurandhar’s success could impact its performance, Akshay remains confident in his film’s appeal, noting that Bhooth Bangla caters to children and families, unlike the Ranveer Singh-starrer, which carries an adult rating.
ALSO READ: Dhurandhar 2 Worldwide Box Office Collection Day 5 LIVE Updates
In a conversation with PTI, Akshay Kumar made it clear that both are different kind of films and have different appeal.
“There are different kind of films (being made). ‘Dhurandhar’ is a great film, I’ve seen it. This (‘Bhooth Bangla’) is a different film. ‘Dhurandhar’ is an adult film, this (‘Bhooth Bangla’) is for kids and families. When we made this film, we don’t look at what the current trend is, we rather looked at whether the story was good or not and accordingly we made this film. We never thought about the trend,” Kumar told PTI in an interview.
Priyadarshan says Bhooth Bangla could be a good change for audience
Director Priyadarshan, who has earlier worked with Akshay Kumar in films like Hera Pheri, Garam Masala, and Bhool Bhulaiyya, said that audiences enjoying intense, large-scale films like Dhurandhar and Border 2 may actually welcome a lighter, more entertaining alternative in Bhooth Bangla.
“Films like ‘Dhurandhar’, ‘Border 2’ all are doing extremely well and all of a sudden when you take a break and do something different (it is great). People who watch films like ‘Dhurandhar’ can also enjoy it,” he said.
Highlighting what sets Bhooth Bangla apart, Priyadarshan said, “I think our area of exploitation is bigger and people like to see different things. That is our biggest plus point with ‘Bhooth Bangla’. Moreover, this is a pure entertainment, fun film it is not as intense as ‘Border’ or ‘Dhurandhar’. People enjoy every kind of film. I believe as long as the film is holding the attention and interest of people, every film will work. Any parent can proudly bring their children and watch my film because I never use double meaning (stuff) or (show) vulgarity (in my films). I never embarrass the parents. This is something I have been maintaining from the day I started my career.”
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Bhooth Bangla also features Wamiqa Gabbi, Paresh Rawal, Tabu, and Rajpal Yadav in key roles.
Dhurandhar 2 box office collection
Meanwhile, Dhurandhar The Revenge continues to rewrite box office records. The film has already crossed Rs 850 crore globally and is now racing towards the Rs 1,000 crore mark.
Released just three months after its record-breaking predecessor, which earned over Rs 890 crore in India and more than Rs 1,300 crore worldwide, the sequel reunites Ranveer Singh, Arjun Rampal, R. Madhavan, Sara Arjun, Sanjay Dutt, and Rakesh Bedi.
While audience response has largely been positive, some viewers feel the sequel doesn’t quite match the impact of the original.
