The Indian box office has witnessed a rare and telling shift with the arrival of Avatar: Fire and Ash. Despite massive hype, the third instalment of James Cameron’s landmark franchise has opened far below expectations in India. The film collected approximately ₹18 crore nett on its opening day, nearly 55 percent lower than what Avatar: The Way of Water had achieved on Day 1, which stood at around ₹40 crore nett.

What makes this underwhelming start more concerning is the market split. A significant portion of the opening-day business has come from southern states, while North India, traditionally a strong territory for Hollywood tentpoles -has shown muted response.

In a stunning and unprecedented contrast, Dhurandhar has delivered numbers on its fifteenth day that surpass Avatar’s opening day. Dhurandhar posted an extraordinary ₹23.50 crore nett on Day 15, a phase where most films witness steep declines. The film’s sustained momentum, powered by word of mouth and repeat audiences, has turned it into a box office juggernaut.

The situation places James Cameron’s directorial in a rare position of facing serious resistance in India. Screen counts, show allocations, and audience preference especially in North India are clearly tilting in favour of Dhurandhar.

With current trends, Dhurandhar is poised to outpace Avatar: Fire and Ash’s weekend totals by a significant margin. This extraordinary face-off, where a Hindi film in its third week dominates a Hollywood tentpole on opening weekend, is destined to be remembered as a historic moment at the Indian box office.