Sunny Deol is back at the cinema, and audiences have turned up in large numbers. Border 2 hit theatres on Friday as India’s main Republic Day release and wasted no time making its presence felt. 

Early trade estimates suggest the film earned between Rs 30–35 crore nett on its opening day, a solid start even before official figures land.

According to trade website Sacnilk, the Anurag Singh-directed film crossed Rs 30 crore nett on Day 1, comfortably beating the opening numbers of last year’s hits Chhaava and Dhurandhar. 

Chhaava had opened at Rs 33.10 crore nett, while Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar collected Rs 33.69 crore on its first day.

Yet, Border 2 couldn’t outpace the 62-year-old actor’s another sequel film  Gadar 2. Released in 2023, Gadar 2 stormed past the Rs 40 crore nett mark on its opening day and went on to deliver a historic run. 

That success is widely seen as the reason filmmakers felt confident returning to another Sunny Deol-led legacy franchise.

Like Gadar 2, Border 2 is also a festive release and now has a three-day national holiday window to build momentum. 

The film is expected to enter the Rs 100 crore club by Sunday, with Republic Day collections on Monday offering “an added bonus”.

Backed by the nostalgia of the 1997 classic Border, the sequel features Diljit Dosanjh, Varun Dhawan and Ahan Shetty.