Actor Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar franchise has smashed box-office records, but the film has found itself at the centre of a growing debate, with a section of viewers branding it “propaganda”. Now, actor Rakesh Bedi, who has been earning praise for his portrayal of Jameel Jamali in the film, has dismissed the criticism.
The actor has suggested that the backlash is driven more by jealousy than genuine concern, especially given the film’s roaring commercial success.
Rakesh Bedi on propaganda label
In an interview with Zoom, Rakesh came out in support of Aditya Dhar’s spy thriller, dismissing claims that the film carries a propaganda-driven narrative.
He said, “It was timely. Timely matlab in the sense ki char din panch din das din aapke comments aaye but log toh kuch aur hi bol rahe hai. Log toh aaj bhi bol rahe hai ki housefull hai. I did a theatre in Delhi when the film first released and I asked one fan who was doing hand gestures what you were doing toh woh kahe 10 bar dekh liye. Sachai dekhni samjhne mein mushkil hota hai aur main tab isko galat manta jab inhone dikhaya hota jo nhi hua enlarge karke dikhaya hota (It was timely– timely in the sense that for four, five, even ten days you received comments, but people are saying something completely different. Even today, people are saying the shows are housefull. I went to a theatre in Delhi when the film had just released, and I asked a fan who was making hand gestures what he was doing – he said he had watched it ten times. The truth is hard to see and understand, and I would have considered it wrong only if they had exaggerated or shown something that never actually happened).”
Rakesh added, “Yeh agar documentary hoti toh toh aap bolte wah wah kya baat hai. Aab kyunki yeh film hai aur paise kama rahi hai toh aapko digest nhi hua lekin jhut toh kuch bhi nhi hai (If it had been a documentary, people would have called it a great piece of work, but since it was a film making money, many were finding it hard to accept – despite there being no falsehood in it).”
More about Dhurandhar
Dhurandhar 2 is a sequel to the spy-action thriller Dhurandhar, which was released in theatres in December 2025 and grossed over ₹1300 crore worldwide. The sequel was released on March 19, 2026. The franchise follows an undercover Indian intelligence agent, played by Ranveer Singh, who infiltrates Karachi’s criminal syndicates and political power structures in Pakistan in an effort to dismantle a terror network targeting India. The movie also features Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Rampal, R Madhavan, Sara Arjun and Rakesh Bedi.
While the film has largely received positive feedback, it has also ignited a debate, with several viewers labelling it a propaganda vehicle. Several celebrities, from Anupam Kher to Piyush Mishra, have come forward to dismiss the tag, saying they don’t believe the film is a propaganda vehicle.