Dhurandhar: The Revenge is set to arrive in cinemas on 19 March, but audiences in India may get to watch it earlier than expected. 

The makers are planning paid preview shows starting from 5 PM on 18 March, a move that could give the film a strong push even before its official release day.

The plan comes just after the film’s trailer launch. The trailer is scheduled to drop at 11:01 AM today, and ticket bookings for the preview shows are expected to open soon after that.

The strategy seems simple: turn the current buzz into ticket sales quickly.

The first Dhurandhar film ended with a “to be continued” message and a teaser for the sequel. 

Since then, the follow-up has become one of the most talked-about upcoming films. 

Industry watchers say the makers now want to make sure that excitement turns into big opening numbers.

The previews also solve a practical issue. The film reportedly runs for almost four hours, which means cinemas can show it fewer times in a single day. 

There is another timing advantage. Thursday is a national holiday for Eid, so the Wednesday evening previews may roll straight into holiday crowds. 

Paid previews were once common in Bollywood in the late 2000s and early 2010s. But the trend faded as the industry began focusing mainly on first-day box office numbers. 

Recently, with box office reporting now including preview collections, the practice may be returning.

Right now, Stree 2 holds the record for the biggest preview collections for a Bollywood film. 

Early trade chatter suggests Dhurandhar 2 could try to go past that mark.

The spy-action thriller, written and directed by Aditya Dhar, will release worldwide in five languages – Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada.