In the last six months, there has been a stir at the Indian box office due to the tremendous earnings of Ranveer Singh starrer and Aditya Dhar directed ‘Dhurandhar’ and ‘Dhurandhar 2’. Especially, Dhurandhar 2 has earned a profit of around Rs 950 crore so far and has given around 400% return on investment. This franchise of Ranveer Singh is earning huge profits. But the profits of Rishabh Shetty’s franchise Kantara have also been left behind. Still, the profit of one part of Shetty’s franchise is much more than 2.

Profit of ‘Kantara’ is more than ‘Dhurandhar 2’
The original part of Rishabh Shetty’s folk thriller film had collected Rs 81.10 crore in the Hindi version with a budget of just Rs 7.5 crore. It gave a tremendous return of 981% on investment. Its Hindi version had a total net collection of Rs 81.1 crore in its lifetime. The return on investment of the film is approximately 132% more than that of Ranveer Singh’s spy thriller sequel.

Dhurandhar franchise overshadows Kantara franchise
While on one hand the profit of the Hindi version of ‘Kantara’ is almost 2.3 times more than that of ‘Dhurandhar 2’, on the other hand Ranveer Singh has beaten Rishabh Shetty’s two-part thriller film by a margin of just 2%. The total return of the ‘Dhurandhar’ franchise is 360.13%, while the ‘Kantara’ franchise has recorded a cumulative profit of 353% across its two parts.

Although Kantara won in individual records, the blockbuster franchise has consistently shown the power of big budget success and has left Kantara behind by a slim margin.

Also read:-Raja Shivaji BO Day 6: There is a decline in the earnings of ‘Raja Shivaji’ on the sixth day, but it is going to be the third biggest film of Marathi, only so many crores are needed

Dhurandhar 2 is earning money even after 49 days
Let us tell you that it has been more than one and a half months since the release of Dhurandhar 2, but its earnings are still going on. However, in the weekdays of the seventh week it is now collecting only in lakhs. According to the data of SACNILC, on the 49th day of its release i.e. seventh Wednesday, this film added Rs 52 lakh. With this, the net collection of Dhurandhar 2 in India for 49 days has now become Rs 1140.17 crore.

Also read:-After getting into legal trouble, Palash Muchhal was seen bowing his head in the temples of Rajasthan, shared the pictures and wrote – Where the head bowed, there…’

In 2025, many Bollywood and South films like Dhurandhar, Chhaava, Kantara, Mahavatar Narasimha were released. These films entertained the fans and printed crores of rupees. However, despite the blockbuster earnings of Dhurandhar and Chhaava, Bollywood is lagging behind in the list of top 10 highest earners of 2025. South cinema has dominance there. Let us know which films were ahead in terms of earnings in 2025.

• 1- Dhurandhar (Bollywood)

At the top of this list is Dhurandhar. According to Bollywood Hungama, Dhurandhar earned Rs 1046.1 crore (22 January 2026). This is the only film of last year which has earned more than Rs 1000 crore at the domestic box office. Ranveer Singh was in the lead role in the film. Stars like Akshay Khanna, Sanjay Dutt, R Madhavan, Arjun Rampal were also seen in important roles. The film was made by Aditya Dhar.

• 2- Kantara Chapter 1 (South)

The film collected Rs 724 crore. This film was made by Rishabh Shetty. The film was liked very much. The climax of Kantara impressed the fans.

• 3- Chhava (Bollywood)

This film of Vicky Kaushal had collected Rs 708.50 crore. Vicky Kaushal was in the role of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj in this film. The film was directed by Laxman Utekar. Vicky Kaushal was very much liked in the film.

• 4- Sayara (Bollywood)

This film created a tsunami at the box office. The film had collected Rs 409.18 crore. Ahaan Pandey and Aneet Padda debuted with this film.

• 5- Coolie (South)

This film of Rajinikanth got good response. The film had earned Rs 325 crores.

• 6- Mahavatar Narasimha (South)

This film had collected Rs 301 crore at the box office. This was an animated film and was highly appreciated.

• 7- Avatar: Fire and Ash (Hollywood)

This film had a box office collection of Rs 243 crore. This film was the third installment of the Avatar series. However, the film could not live up to the expectations compared to the previous two films.

• 8- They Call Him OG (South)

This film did a business of Rs 224 crore at the box office. Pawan Kalyan was in the lead role in the film.

• 9- Sankranthiki Vasthunam (South)

This film earned Rs 222 crores. The film had stars like Daggubati, Meenakshi Chaudhary.

• 10- War 2 (Bollywood)

War 2 had stars like Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR. The film had collected Rs 220.39 crore. Despite earning more than Rs 200 crore, the film was a flop. The budget of this film was 300 to 400 crores, that is why the film could not become a hit.

Of the top 10 highest-grossing films of 2025, five are from South and four are from Bollywood. There is a Hollywood film there.

Actor Rajkumar Rao recently talked about the current condition of films in the 12th CII program held in Mumbai. He said that nowadays even good films do not work and many times mediocre films become hits.

Success of films now depends on data, not heart – Rajkummar Rao
According to Rajkumar, sometimes even good films do not run in theatres, whereas films with simple stories collect more than expected. He has clearly said, ‘Sometimes very simple films work and sometimes good films do not make any sense. To be honest, even I am not able to understand how all this happens. It seems as if this whole game is of data and algorithms, which we creative people are not able to understand.

‘The story of the heart got lost somewhere in the noise of data’
Recalling the old times, he said that earlier directors and actors used to make stories only from their heart. Without thinking who will like it and who will not. According to Rajkumar, now we have started seeing so much data that the real meaning of the story has started getting lost.

Rajkumar Rao praised Kantara

Praising Rishabh Shetty’s film ‘Kantara’, Rajkumar Rao said that this film is an example of the fact that a story created from the heart always reaches the audience. He said that Rishabh told the story with full passion, without any big formula and people accepted it wholeheartedly. The actor believes that true hard work and honesty always reaches the audience.

Talking about Rajkumar Rao, he is in the news these days for his upcoming biography. He will play the role of Ujjwal Nikam in this biopic. The shooting of the film is expected to take place this year and the film may be released in 2026. Rajkumar says that this character is very special for him and he is very excited for this film.

Rishabh Shetty’s film Kantara Chapter 1 has been on everyone’s lips since its release. Whoever has seen this film is not tired of praising it. Not only the audience and critics but many celebs from the entertainment industry have also praised the film. If you are also interested in watching similar folk tales, then here is a list of some of the best films.

Must watch films based on folklore on OTT

1. Kantara
This Rishabh Shetty starrer film took its name in the limelight as soon as it was released in 2022. The story of this film depicts the old culture and folklore of South India. Its story revolves around a special dance form named Bhuta Kola.

This special dance form is an integral part of the culture of Tulu speakers. To save their culture and traditions, the rural residents here even clash with the government. You can enjoy this blockbuster film of Rishabh Shetty on Netflix and Prime Video.

2. Nightingale
This supernatural film starring Trupti Dimri can also become a perfect option for you. The theme of its story is of rural area of ​​Bengal. This film of Trupti Dimri and Avinash Tiwari will keep you spinning in the web of suspense and mystery.

Produced by Anushka Sharma and directed by Anvita Dutta, its story is set in 19th century Bengal and is based on the stories of female ghosts and black cults. This is the story of rebellion of a girl who is tied in the chain of rules made by the society by getting her married as a child.

In this film, Trupti Dimri has played her character so passionately that she will make her place in your heart. You can enjoy this film on Netflix.

3. Brahmayugam
This Malayalam thriller will give you goosebumps. Given its storyline and perfect cinematic shots, you will not be able to stop yourself from praising this film. This is such a horror film that will settle in your mind and along with it, Mammootty’s villain character will make you crazy about the actor.

The story of the film focuses on a spirit named Yaakhi who is so beautiful that no one can stay away from her but whoever comes close to her, she makes him her victim. The story of this film is completely new and it will keep you so engaged that you will want to watch it till the end. This masterpiece is available on Sony Liv.