'Dhurandhar was the most-watched non-English movie in the world this year': Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos praises global success of Ranveer Singh's Dhurandhar
Highlighting Netflix's broader viewing trends, Sarandos said Indian films and series have consistently featured among the platform's biggest global titles.
- Aug 6, 2026,
- Updated Aug 6, 2026 5:38 PM IST
Even after a blockbuster run in theatres, Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar has continued to find audiences around the world—this time on Netflix. The Ranveer Singh-starrer, whose two-part franchise has grossed over Rs 3,100 crore worldwide, has emerged as one of the streaming platform's biggest global successes this year, according to Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos.
In a conversation with The Indian Express, Sarandos highlighted the film's global performance while discussing the growing reach of Indian content.
"Dhurandhar was the most-watched non-English movie in the world this year," Sarandos said. He continued, "Bigger than every other English [movie] and second only to the US and the UK in terms of watching."
Sarandos said he is often asked when India will have a global breakout moment similar to South Korea's Squid Game or Spain's La casa de papel (Money Heist). However, he believes Indian content is already achieving that on a regular basis.
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"I hear a lot when I travel around the world, particularly in India, is like what happened with Squid Game, what happened with La casa de papel, when is India going to have that moment? And I say India has that moment all the time," he shared.
He also said Indian cinema is better positioned than television to make a global impact because of its long and rich filmmaking tradition.
"It's much more likely to be in cinema. I think, right now, because there is this enormous, beautiful, rich, long history of movies in India. I think when we came in and made Sacred Games, it was a whole different kind of television, so through most of the history and all that that's coming through, it's likely to come through in the form of cinema," he said.
Highlighting Netflix's broader viewing trends, Sarandos said Indian films and series have consistently featured among the platform's biggest global titles.
"We have had an indian movie or series in the global top 10 every week since 2024. And this is the result of an algorithm that helps you find things, and that's unintuitive, that I am going to love. So in that number, with 3.5 billion hours of watching Indian content on Netflix around the world this year," he said.
Dhurandhar Part 1 was released in theatres in December 2025 and began streaming on Netflix shortly before the release of the second instalment in March 2026. Dhurandhar Part 2 is currently streaming in India on both Netflix and JioHotstar.
Even after a blockbuster run in theatres, Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar has continued to find audiences around the world—this time on Netflix. The Ranveer Singh-starrer, whose two-part franchise has grossed over Rs 3,100 crore worldwide, has emerged as one of the streaming platform's biggest global successes this year, according to Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos.
In a conversation with The Indian Express, Sarandos highlighted the film's global performance while discussing the growing reach of Indian content.
"Dhurandhar was the most-watched non-English movie in the world this year," Sarandos said. He continued, "Bigger than every other English [movie] and second only to the US and the UK in terms of watching."
Sarandos said he is often asked when India will have a global breakout moment similar to South Korea's Squid Game or Spain's La casa de papel (Money Heist). However, he believes Indian content is already achieving that on a regular basis.
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"I hear a lot when I travel around the world, particularly in India, is like what happened with Squid Game, what happened with La casa de papel, when is India going to have that moment? And I say India has that moment all the time," he shared.
He also said Indian cinema is better positioned than television to make a global impact because of its long and rich filmmaking tradition.
"It's much more likely to be in cinema. I think, right now, because there is this enormous, beautiful, rich, long history of movies in India. I think when we came in and made Sacred Games, it was a whole different kind of television, so through most of the history and all that that's coming through, it's likely to come through in the form of cinema," he said.
Highlighting Netflix's broader viewing trends, Sarandos said Indian films and series have consistently featured among the platform's biggest global titles.
"We have had an indian movie or series in the global top 10 every week since 2024. And this is the result of an algorithm that helps you find things, and that's unintuitive, that I am going to love. So in that number, with 3.5 billion hours of watching Indian content on Netflix around the world this year," he said.
Dhurandhar Part 1 was released in theatres in December 2025 and began streaming on Netflix shortly before the release of the second instalment in March 2026. Dhurandhar Part 2 is currently streaming in India on both Netflix and JioHotstar.