'Competitor ki film flop hone se khushi nahi honi chahiye': Bhushan Kumar says theatres can't run with 'handful of hits'

Bhushan Kumar talks about the perceived competition in Bollywood as his production, Border 2, makes a killing at the box office.

Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series has started 2026 on a high. His recent production, Border 2, has taken a winning start at the box office, minting over ₹150 crore worldwide in just three days. As the film sets box-office records, the filmmaker spoke with Hindustan Times about success, failure, and everything in between.

Bhushan Kumar's production Border 2 has opened well at the box office.

Bhushan Kumar on Bollywood’s competitiveness

Border 2 started the success count for Bollywood this year. But a handful of other films that released that week and in the three weeks before it, were not successful. As we mention how Indian cinema has a roughly 90% failure rate, Bhushan agrees. “I can count on my fingers the number of films that work each year, and that is sad,” says the T-Series top boss.

Addressing the perceived cut-throat competition in the industry, Bhushan adds, “People think competitor ki film flop hone se khushi hoti hai. Nahi honi chahiye (people think we get happy when a competitor’s film flops. That shouldn’t happen), because only when many films work, including those of other production houses, can we see our Bollywood and theatres truly grow. Just with a handful of films working, theatres cannot run.”

‘Everyone should get their due’

The filmmaker has a wishlist for the film industry he is a part of, and it is quite simple. “Good stories should come out, good films should work. Just like our film (Border 2) is doing well at the box office, everyone’s films should. This race of comparison should end. Everybody should get their due, and make good movies that can entertain people,” he says.

About Border 2’s box office run

Directed by Anurag Singh, Border 2 stars Sunny Deol, Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh, and Ahan Shetty in the lead roles. The spiritual sequel to JP Dutta’s Border opened at ₹30 crore at the domestic box office on Friday. Positive word of mouth then saw it grow to ₹54 crore in just two days. The film has earned ₹121 crore net domestically and ₹167 crore gross worldwide in just three days. The film is a joint production between Bhushan's T-Series and JP Dutta's production house, with Krishan Kumar and Nidhi Dutta also serving as producers.