Dhurandhar 2 replaces DDLJ’s iconic Maratha Mandir slot as theatres schedule midnight and early-morning shows

Owing to the increasing excitement around Dhurandhar: The Revenge, several theatres have already begun scheduling late-night and post-midnight screenings even before its release.

• Dhurandhar: The Revenge replaces DDLJ's morning show at Maratha Mandir
• Film sets record with 24-hour shows, Rs 123 crore pre-sales
• Advance bookings exceed 6.25 lakh tickets for over 13,000 shows

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The upcoming action sequel Dhurandhar: The Revenge is already rewriting records even before its theatrical release on March 19. According to the latest reports, the film will now be screened at Mumbai’s legendary single-screen theatre Maratha Mandir, replacing the long-running morning slot of the iconic film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge.

For decades, the classic starring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol has been screened daily at 11:30 am at Maratha Mandir. However, due to the enormous anticipation surrounding the sequel and its extended runtime, theatres have reshuffled show timings to accommodate the film.

Owing to the increasing excitement around Dhurandhar: The Revenge, several theatres have already begun scheduling late-night and post-midnight screenings even before its release. In fact, the sequel has become the first Hindi film to receive such early-morning and overnight shows prior to hitting the big screen.

Some cinemas have scheduled screenings as early as 5:30 am, while others have gone as far as adding shows as late as 3:15 am to meet the demand.

Starting March 18, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge will now be screened at 10:00 am at Maratha Mandir. The change has been made to accommodate the nearly four-hour runtime of Dhurandhar: The Revenge. The much-awaited sequel, which runs for 3 hours and 55 minutes, will be screened at 1:15 pm, 5:30 pm and 9:45 pm at the iconic theatre.

A source quoted by Bollywood Hungama shared insights into the scheduling change. According to the report, “The first part of Dhurandhar was 3 hours and 34 minutes long. Accordingly, DDLJ was shifted to 10:30 am, while Dhurandhar’s shows were scheduled at 2:15 pm, 6:00 pm and 9:45 pm. A similar adjustment had also happened during Pushpa 2 and Animal, both of which had similar runtimes. However, this is probably the first time in years that Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge will be screened as early as 10:00 am.”

The report further revealed that theatres across major circuits such as Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad have already opened bookings for shows beginning as early as 2:00 am on Thursday.

In Mumbai, cinemas such as MovieMax Sion and MovieMax Wonder Mall are leading the trend, scheduling multiple screenings between 2:15 am and 5:30 am. Multiplex chains in Pune and Ahmedabad have also added round-the-clock screenings to manage the massive ticket demand.

Industry insiders from the exhibition sector suggest that more cinemas are likely to adopt this 24-hour screening model over the next 48 hours as the release date approaches.

Apart from the buzz around show timings, the film is also dominating the box office through its advance bookings. For the paid preview shows scheduled on March 18, the film has already collected a gross of Rs 38.50 crore.

For its official Day 1 release on March 19, domestic advance bookings have crossed Rs 24.50 crore, with more than 6.25 lakh tickets sold across over 13,000 shows across India.

Dhurandhar: The revenge is witnessing a strong interest among the international audience Dhurandhar: The Revenge is witnessing strong demand overseas as well, with international pre-sales estimated at around Rs 60 crore for the opening weekend.

When the Indian premiere collections, Day 1 advance sales and overseas bookings are combined, the film’s global opening weekend pre-sales have already crossed a massive Rs 123+ crore (including block seats).

Also read: Dhurandhar 2 spoiler: Yami Gautam to play a doctor in Ranveer Singh’s film? Viral screenshot sparks buzz

With two days remaining before the official release, trade experts believe these figures are likely to grow further as additional midnight and early-morning shows are added in theatres across the country.

Directed by Aditya Dhar, Dhurandhar: The Revenge will star Ranveer Singh, Sanjay Dutt, R Madhavan, Sara Arjun, and Arjun Rampal in their reprised roles. It is set to release on March 19 worldwide and is available for paid preview on March 18.