Sunny Deol's highly anticipated film, "Border 2," is generating significant buzz ahead of its theatrical release. The war epic recorded a remarkable 36% jump in advance ticket sales on BookMyShow within the last 24 hours. This surge positions "Border 2" to surpass the pre-sales figures of Ranveer Singh's 2025 blockbuster, "Dhurandhar." The film is set to open in cinemas worldwide on January 23, 2026, coinciding with the Republic Day holiday weekend.[koimoi+2]
Strong Pre-Release Momentum
"Border 2" has demonstrated impressive momentum in its advance bookings. Just one day before its release, the film breached the 224,000 ticket mark on the BookMyShow platform. Industry trackers indicate that ticket sales reached a rapid pace, with nearly 50 tickets sold per minute in the final hours of advance bookings. This strong interest highlights the enduring appeal of Sunny Deol and the patriotic war genre for Indian audiences.[sacnilk]
The film's pre-sales for its opening day have already crossed the ₹12.5 crore mark. This includes over ₹5 lakh gross from premium formats such as IMAX, 4DX, and DOLBY CINE. The advance booking gross for the first day doubled from ₹6 crore to ₹12 crore in just 12 hours on Thursday.
Surpassing Dhurandhar
"Border 2" has officially overtaken the final pre-sales figures of "Dhurandhar," which was a benchmark for spy-action film pre-sales in late 2025. "Dhurandhar," starring Ranveer Singh and Akshaye Khanna, had collected slightly over ₹9 crore in day-one advance bookings. By surpassing this figure, "Border 2" has entered an elite category of blockbusters in terms of pre-release performance.
"Dhurandhar" itself was a major commercial success, grossing over ₹1,328.23 crore worldwide as of January 18, 2026. Its India net collection stands at an impressive ₹830.5 crore. The film had aimed to cross the ₹1,000 crore mark in India, facing "Border 2" as a significant hurdle.[sacnilk+2]
Comparing to Gadar 2's Record
While "Border 2" shows immense promise, it still trails Sunny Deol's personal best for advance bookings, set by his 2023 blockbuster, "Gadar 2." "Gadar 2" amassed a record ₹17.5 crore in advance bookings for its opening day. It sold a staggering 722,000 tickets through advance booking and grossed ₹17.6 crore through opening day pre-sales.
"Gadar 2" went on to become a massive commercial success, grossing over ₹691.08 crore worldwide. It was the fourth highest-grossing Indian film of 2023 and the tenth highest-grossing Hindi film of all time. The film's success, even with a clash against "OMG 2," showcased Sunny Deol's enduring star power.[hindustantimes+2]
Industry Impact and Outlook
"Border 2" is set for a wide release across India, with over 5,500 screens domestically and an additional 1,500 screens in international markets. This extensive rollout positions the film for a strong box office performance. Trade analysts predict an opening day collection that could challenge the ₹35 crore mark. They expect the total four-day Republic Day weekend collections to exceed ₹125 crore.
The film, directed by Anurag Singh, stars Sunny Deol alongside Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh, and Ahan Shetty. Its release capitalizes on the patriotic fervor surrounding Republic Day and the nostalgia for the original 1997 "Border" film. The early morning shows across North India are reportedly seeing housefull boards, indicating strong audience enthusiasm.[sacnilk]
The robust advance booking for "Border 2" signals a promising start for the film. It builds on the recent success of Sunny Deol's "Gadar 2," reinforcing his status as a major draw for audiences. The film's performance will be closely watched as it aims to set new box office benchmarks.[sacnilk+1]
