Border 2 box office: Sunny Deols war drama opens big

Sunny Deol’s Border 2 opened to a thunderous start at the domestic box office, the makers said on Saturday.

The film, which was released in theatres across the country on Friday, is a sequel to Deol’s 1997 blockbuster Border, which was directed by J P Dutta.

Border 2 is helmed by Anurag Singh and backed by T-Series and J P Films. It also stars Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh and Ahan Shetty. According to the makers, the movie has collected ₹ 32.10 crore net on its first day

In a press note, the makers said the film witnessed strong footfalls from early morning shows, emerging as one of the biggest openings in recent times.

“‘Border 2’ made a colossal entry at the box office with a massive Day 1, opening to impressive numbers and standing tall at ₹32.10 CR NBOC (net box office collection), emerging as one of the biggest openings in recent times.

“From early morning shows onwards, cinemas witnessed massive footfalls, as audiences turned up in huge numbers to mark a monumental Republic Day opening,” read the note.

While the 1997 film was based on the events of the Battle of Longewala during the 1971 India–Pakistan war, Border 2 is also set against the backdrop of the same conflict.

The movie reportedly didn’t find a release in six Gulf nations — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — due its alleged anti-Pakistan narrative.

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It is the second Indian film in recent times to be denied clearance for theatrical release in the Gulf countries after director Aditya Dhar’s spy action movie Dhurandhar.

Border 2 is produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Dutta and Nidhi Dutta. It also features Mona Singh, Sonam Bajwa, Anya Singh, and Medha Rana in pivotal roles.