The advance booking of Border 2 has been encouraging, leading to jubilation in the industry. It is Sunny Deol’s second high-profile sequel in 3 years after Gadar 2 (2023). That film opened at Rs. 40.10 crores and went on to do a lifetime business of Rs. 525.45 crores. We asked trade experts if Border 2 can have similar opening and lifetime numbers.

Can Border 2 go the Gadar 2 way - open at Rs. 40 cr and have a lifetime of Rs. 500 cr plus? Trade experts share their views

Can Border 2 go the Gadar 2 way – open at Rs. 40 cr and have a lifetime of Rs. 500 cr plus? Trade experts share their views

Trade veteran Taran Adarsh explained, “It all depends on the ticket sales on Wednesday and Thursday. Also, the spot booking can change the tide. While opening is important, closing or the lifetime business is even more important. Gadar 2 started at Rs. 40 crores and it ended at more than Rs. 500 crores. That’s a feat and proved that it maintained the momentum. Gadar 2 had tremendous emotional and recall value. Ditto for Border 2.”

Girish Johar, producer and film business analyst, said, “I don’t think so (that it can open like Gadar 2). It’s a non-holiday on January 23. I would be happy if the film opens at Rs. 25 crores and then goes on to do higher numbers in the next three days.”

Trade analyst Atul Mohan stated, “The trending is okay; the hype is not as per the expectations. It’ll open at Rs. 15-20 crores. Though it’s a Republic Day release, the film arrives in cinemas on January 23, which is a working day. If it were a holiday, it would have collected Rs. 10 crores more.”

He added, “If the film is great, it’ll get an advantage of Republic Day. God forbid, if the word of mouth is not up to the mark, then the numbers will be underwhelming. Nevertheless, let’s hope the film works.”

Distributor and exhibitor Raj Bansal predicted, “Border 2 will have a very good opening, but I don’t think it will open the way the same people in the trade are expecting. Day 1 should be about Rs. 30-32 crores.”

He further said, “Rs. 30 crores opening is huge; there are films that don’t even have a lifetime of Rs. 30 crores! Hence, it’s not a small number in today’s times, that too in terms of opening.” When asked if it can collect Rs. 500 crores like Gadar 2, Raj Bansal replied, “I doubt.”

But Girish Johar said, “Why not? It has all the ingredients going in its favour. It all boils down to the audience’s expectations and the content.”

Atul Mohan agreed, “You never know. No one expected Gadar 2 to be a big hit either. But look how it generated a craze. People came on tractors to watch it in cinemas. Border 2 can go the same way due to tremendous nostalgic value. But the way criticism has come its way is very unfortunate, especially when it’s mounted on such a big scale.”

Raj Bansal noted, “We should not focus on the opening and instead on the collections of the four-day weekend and lifetime. The opening can sometimes misguide. A film can open with a bang and yet have a disappointing lifetime and vice versa. Dhurandhar (2025) is a classic example.”

Also Read: Border 2 Advance Booking: Sunny Deol and Varun Dhawan film sells 75,000 tickets already; Bumper opening loading