'Gadar 2' box office collection Day 1: Sunny's "dhai kilo ka haath" smashes records, delivers second-best opening of 2023

Sunny Deol is back on the big screen in the grandest manner possible. His action-packed 'Gadar 2' has taken the box office by storm.

Gadar 2, the sequel to his 2001 blockbuster film Gadar, minted Rs 40 crore on its opening day in theatres, as per trade analyst Taran Adarsh. It becomes the second-best opener of 2023 after Shah Rukh Khan's 'Pathaan'.

'Pathaan' collected a record-breaking Rs 55 crore at the Indian box office on the opening day.

Sharing the update, Adarsh tweeted, "#SunnyDeol unleashes his power… All pre-release calculations / estimations go for a toss… #Gadar2 RUNS RIOT at the #BO, is SENSATIONAL on Day 1… FLYING START all over… SECOND HIGHEST OPENER OF 2023… Fri Rs 40.10 cr. #India biz. Mass sectors and single screens are on a record-smashing spree… Unlike *most* films - which have major contribution from the national chains [#PVR, #INOX, #Cinepolis] and barely 20 per cent to 30 per cent from mass sectors - #Gadar2 is simply historic in mass pockets.Now imagine its potential on #IndependenceDay big holiday [on Tue]."

Helmed by Anil Sharma, the film also stars Ameesha Patel and Utkarsh Sharma in the lead roles.

In 2001, Anil Sharma-directed romantic-action drama 'Gadar' set during the Partition of India. It created history at the box office back then as well. The flick starred the late Amrish Puri in a pivotal role. The film mainly revolved around Tara Singh (portrayed by Sunny), a Sikh truck driver from Amritsar, who falls in love with Sakina (portrayed by Ameesha), a Muslim girl hailing from a political family in Lahore, Pakistan.

On the release day, Salman Khan gave a special shout out to Sunny for 'Gadar 2'.

Taking to Instagram, the ‘Tiger Zinda Hai’ actor shared Sunny Deol’s poster and wrote, “Dhai kilo ka haath equals chalis cr ki opening. Sunny paaji is killing it. Congrats to the entire team of Gadar 2.”