Ranveer Singh Took Smaller Fee For Dhurandhar Earned More Through Backend Deal

Ranveer Singh's Dhurandhar emerged as one of the biggest box-office successes in recent years, with both Dhurandhar and its sequel Dhurandhar: Revenge collectively earning over Rs 3,000 crore worldwide and cementing the franchise's place among Indian cinema's biggest commercial successes. Jyoti Deshpande, who co-produced the franchise under Jio Studios, has revealed how the makers navigated escalating production costs, adopted a risk-sharing model with Ranveer Singh and director Aditya Dhar, and took the decision to split what was originally conceived as a single film into a two-part saga. In a conversation with ET Digital, Deshpande opened up about the creative and business decisions that played a key role in shaping the blockbuster franchise. Ranveer Singh and Aditya Dhar opted for backend deals Jyoti Deshpande revealed that both Ranveer Singh and Aditya Dhar chose to take smaller upfront fees and instead participated in the film's profits through backend deals. "In Dhurandhar, Ranveer came with a smaller fixed fee and a backend deal, and therefore benefited from that arrangement. The same was true for Aditya, who also came in with a smaller fixed fee and a backend. He ended up making a significant upside along with us. That's how you distribute both the risk and the reward." She added that the strategy ensured that everyone involved in the project had a stake in its success rather than relying solely on large upfront payments. Dhurandhar's budget nearly doubled According to Jyoti Deshpande, Dhurandhar eventually cost almost twice as much as originally planned. "On Dhurandhar, we went all in. The film ended up being made for almost double the amount we had initially set out to spend. Of course, we eventually ended up with a two-part film, so it became a journey. In the end, all of us went laughing to the bank." The producer explained that the increased scale of the project ultimately paid off, with both films going on to become major box-office successes. ALSO READ: Dhurandhar star Gaurav Gera had only Rs 84, bowed to the bank everyday: ‘Take care of me’ Why the makers decided to split the story into two films Durng the interview, Jyoti Deshpande revealed that Dhurandhar was originally conceived as a standalone film and not as a franchise. "Dhurandhar was written as one story. It was envisioned as one film and budgeted as one film. But after we completed the first shooting schedule, we realised the budget had already exceeded what we had planned." She said the footage from the first schedule convinced the team that the story had the potential to be expanded. "The footage that came out of that first schedule was beautiful. The pace of the storytelling made us feel the story had the legs to become a two-part film." However, she stressed that the decision was far from certain in the early stages. "When we first decided to fund it, making it into two films was not a certainty. We took that call somewhere along the journey. We had to commit capital before it became a slam dunk, although we felt there was a strong possibility and worked towards making it happen." What convinced Jio Studios to back Dhurandhar? Speaking about the script of Dhurandhar, Jyoti Deshpande said the film's themes immediately stood out. "It was fully set in Pakistan to begin with. We were talking about the deep state, and that is a concept that has existed in reality for years and years." She said the challenge of explaining a complex geopolitical concept to mainstream audiences was one of the reasons she was drawn to the project. "However, it's abstract enough that you have to explain what the deep state means to the common viewer. And it was going to break every conventional norm of storytelling. That idea excited me." Deshpande also praised the film's unconventional narrative structure, which departed from traditional Bollywood storytelling. "The chapterised format excited me. I'm a fan of that kind of storytelling, and Western films have done it very well. People today are used to watching content on OTT platforms. It's episodic, immersive and allows viewers to spend more time in those worlds and with those characters. So I liked the idea of making a film that wasn't simply a beginning, middle and end story but something that truly immerses audiences in that world." 'A franchise that could last for years' Jyoti Deshpande said the makers believed Dhurandhar had the potential to become a long-running franchise. "We felt that if we got it right, this could become a franchise that remains compelling for years to come. Look at Bond or Mission: Impossible — those are franchises that have stood the test of time." She also revealed what ultimately convinced her to support the project. "Although it may look like a gangster film on the surface, I found it deeply moving and deeply patriotic. That gave me the purpose to make this film."