Dhurandhar crosses ₹100 crore: Why Ranveer–Sara’s age gap mirrors a long Bollywood tradition few talk about

Bollywood’s age-gap conversations aren’t new, but the Dhurandhar buzz shows how quickly the internet jumps from excitement to outrage. Raj Arjun’s calm dismissal mirrors how veterans handle noise: let performance, not public panic, decide the narrative.

Like Ranveer–Sara in Dhurandhar, the industry has long paired stars decades apart—think Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma (22-year gap) in Jab Harry Met Sejal. Filmmakers argue chemistry is crafted, not calculated, but the debate never truly fades.

Raj Arjun’s clarity echoes choices made when Saif Ali Khan starred opposite newcomer Alaya F in Jawaani Jaaneman—a 26-year age difference that sparked questions until audiences embraced the mentor-protégé dynamic woven into the script.

Bollywood often banks on contrast—established star, fresh face. Akshay Kumar’s pairing with 22-year-old Manushi Chhillar in Prithviraj (a 25-year age gap) showed how producers prioritise scale, persona, and narrative impact over chronological symmetry.

Salman Khan’s long history of working with actors nearly half his age—in Dabangg 3 (a 33-year gap) for example—reveals a casting ecosystem shaped less by age norms and more by market expectations and role suitability.

From Nagarjuna–Rakul Preet to Rajinikanth–Amy Jackson, Indian cinema consistently matches contrasting ages to tell stories of reinvention, legacy, ambition, or nostalgia. Dhurandhar fits neatly into a tradition far older than today’s viral commentary.

Viewers celebrate the freshness of newcomer pairings yet question their appropriateness when numbers surface. Raj Arjun’s response hints at a deeper truth: audiences resist age gaps only until the film delivers a performance they can’t dismiss.

The Ranveer–Sara pairing has amplified curiosity around the film, intentionally or not. As chatter grows, Raj Arjun’s zen approach ensures the conversation doesn’t derail the narrative arc actors work months to build—silence, sometimes, is strategy.