While Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar and Dhurandhar: The Revenge wreaked havoc at the box office, Ameesha Patel says her 2021 blockbuster Gadar: Ek Prem Katha and 2023 film Gadar 2 combined drew more “footfalls” than Dhurandhar and its sequel.
In an exclusive conversation with NDTV, she says, “We’ve come on this journey 25 years later, and we’re still iconic. We had a part two that created a tsunami at the box office and became iconic. And combined, Gadar 1 and Gadar 2 have the biggest footfalls, more than even Dhurandhar 1 and 2.”
“Just purely on footfalls – that means the number of people who have actually entered cinema houses to watch both films – is so heartening. To feel that I am part of cinematic history, to be privileged, to be blessed,” adds the actress.
Gadar: Ek Prem Katha led by Ameesha Patel and Sunny Deol completes 25 years on June 15, 2026.
On How Gadar Was A ‘Monstrous Hit’ On Day 1
Ameesha Patel recalls how Gadar: Ek Prem Katha’s humongous success was unprecedented when it was released.
She says, “It became the biggest hit on the first day of release itself because it got 100% opening all over India, single screens. They just lapped it up. It was a single-screen audience. And it was such a hectic time because in those days, actors used to do five films at a time in a year.”
“So I was juggling between set to set of other films. And I didn’t even have time to digest what a humongous, monstrous hit it had become,” Ameesha Patel adds.
About Gadar: Ek Prem Katha
Set against the backdrop of the 1947 Partition, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha revolves around a working-class Sikh truck driver, Tara Singh (Sunny Deol), who saves a young Muslim girl, Sakina (Ameesha Patel), during the chaotic riots. Sakina belongs to an aristocratic family.
The plot focuses on their dramatic separation and how he journeys to Pakistan to reunite with his family.
In Gadar 2, the narrative flips when Tara Singh goes to Pakistan again, this time to rescue his adult son Jeete who is held captive.
ALSO READ | Ameesha Patel To NDTV On Gadar’s 25 Years: ‘Pakistani Women Called Me Crying, Named Daughters Sakina’
