Imtiaz Ali praises 'Dhurandhar' for breaking rules: 'People thought that this is the most impractical'

NewsentertainmenthindibollywoodImtiaz Ali praises Ranveer Singh's 'Dhurandhar' for breaking rules; says, 'People thought that this is the most impractical, a film with the least likelihood of success' Imtiaz Ali praises Ranveer Singh's 'Dhurandhar' for breaking rules; says, 'People thought that this is the most impractical, a film with the least likelihood of success' TOI Entertainment Desk / etimes.in / Nov 14, 2026, 23:49 IST Imtiaz Ali praises Ranveer Singh's 'Dhurandhar' for breaking rules; says, 'People thought that this is the most impractical, a film with the least likelihood of success' Filmmaker Imtiaz Ali has said the Hindi film industry is going through a period of rethinking, with the success of ‘Dhurandhar’ showing that old formulas no longer hold.

He was speaking at an event, where he discussed how Bollywood is changing.Imtiaz Ali on the changing Hindi film industry Imtiaz Ali, whose latest film, ‘Main Vaapas Aaunga’, turned out to be a surprise box office hit, spoke at Hindustan Times Summit.

He used ‘Dhurandhar’ as an example of a film that dared to go against accepted norms.He said, “I feel something very interesting is happening in the film industry. We are in that delicious phase where people are saying that nothing is working.

Should we go with the big star, non-star… what is going to work? People are saying that attention span is missing in the audience, but the films which are doing well are three hours long. Nothing long is working. People are citing Dhurandhar as an example of what is successful, but look at the length of that film!"Why Imtiaz Ali called ‘Dhurandhar’ a rule breaker The director pointed out that the film was once seen as a risky bet by studios.He added, “Forgetting the fact that when Dhurandhar was actually conceived and it was doing its run around those studios, people thought that this is the most impractical, a film with the least likelihood of success!

But it broke all the rules, and after that everybody wants to make that. All of us are thinking what will work. The language might change, but I feel it's a phase of introspection that the film industry is going through.Join conversation Written and directed by Aditya Dhar, ‘Dhurandhar’ is a spy thriller in which Ranveer Singh plays an Indian agent who infiltrates gangs and terror networks in Pakistan.

The cast also includes R Madhavan, Akshaye Khanna, Arjun Rampal, Sanjay Dutt, Rakesh Bedi and Sara Arjun.While the first film earned strong reviews, the second got a more mixed response. Even so, both are now the two highest-grossing Hindi films in India.

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