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Even when the film was launched, Aditya Dhar had asked for something to the tune of around Rs 200 crore.

Films with a budget of over Rs 300 crore seem to be the flavour of the season. And sometimes, a bit of charm helps in increasing the budget too. Take the example of the most successful Hindi film of all time, the Dhurandhar duology. An insider confirms, “It allegedly cost the studio which bankrolled it somewhere between Rs 265-270 crore.” Fair enough. The trade knows that even when the film was launched, Aditya Dhar had asked for something to the tune of around Rs 200 crore. During filming, especially because he didn’t anticipate he was going to end up making eight hours, he realised even Rs 220 crore was less.

Rumour has it that Ranveer Singh, who was chuffed about this film (in hindsight, rightly so), realised that Dhar’s Dhurandhar would make history. So, he used his charm to get an additional budget sanctioned from the studio. The Dhurandhar duology went on to earn Rs 895.96 crore (Part I) and Rs 1108.09 crore (Part II). So, it more than justified its investment and also allowed Dhar and Singh (reportedly 25 per cent partners) each to take home a neat profit of an alleged Rs 325 crore.

But Dhurandhar is the exception in cinema rather than the rule. Yet, every other filmmaker/star who wants to measure his own success by his own scale keeps harping loosely about how their next venture is this “Rs 300 crore budget film.” The trade experts collectively pooh-pooh this lofty claim.