'Dhurandhar' created waves globally, breaking several box-office records during its run. However, amid that, Pakistan released their version of the story with 'Mera Lyari'.
After the blockbusters Dhurandhar and Dhurandhar: The Revenge proved successful, there was a lot of noise in the Pakistani film industry about their alleged response to the film. The Pakistani film industry released a film titled Mera Lyari in response to Ranveer Singh's film. However, fans were not impressed by the result.
The numbers that came out after the release of Mera Lyari have left everyone shocked, to say the least. Instead of becoming a hardcore hit on Dhurandhar, it seems to have turned into a joke itself. The maker's plan to compete with Ranveer Singh-starrer seemed to have backfired completely. Reports say the film got zero response from the audience, and its condition was terrible from day one. In fact, it was so bad that many theatres pulled it down on the very first day.
For the unversed, Mera Lyari was released in Pakistani theatres on May 8, 2026. However, instead of becoming a trendsetter or an appropriate answer to Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar franchise, the film became the opposite of what was expected. According to Pakistani media, the film sold only 22 tickets on its first day, with people claiming they hadn't seen anything this disappointing before, leading many cinemas to remove it on day one. Meanwhile, the movie is being endlessly trolled on social media.
The film, Mera Lyari's story, is said to be based on the struggles of girls in Lyari. According to reports, the film tells the story of girls who fight against old-school thinking to make a name for themselves in society. However, instead of connecting with the audience through its emotional concept, this story completely failed to win them over. Reports say that while Dhurandhar was banned in Pakistan, its pirated version was widely watched in India's neighbouring land. It was after this controversy that talks of making films like Mera Lyari apparently began, to showcase local stories and switch the perspective on the gang-run system as shown in Dhurandhar.
The film, Mera Lyari was directed by Abu Aliha and stars Ayesha Omar, Dananeer Mobeen, Samiya Mumtaz, and Trinette Lucas. The movie even had the backing of the Sindh government in Pakistan, which openly promoted it. However, despite all these efforts, the film faced major embarrassment and turned out to be a disaster on its very first day.
Dhurandhar and Dhurandhar: The Revenge was released as a duology by the esteemed director, Aditya Dhar. The story followed Ranveer Singh in the lead role as 'Jaskirat Singh Rangi' aka 'Hamza Ali Mazari' and his spy operation as an Indian Spy. The first part of the film was released in December 2025, with the second part following in March 2026. The film made headlines for its impeccable screenplay, story, music, VFX, and performances by the entire cast.
According to reports, Dhurandhar earned Rs. 1,307 crore globally, whereas Dhurandhar: The Revenge has earned over Rs. 1,795 crore worldwide since its release. The cast of the film featured an impeccable cast, including Ranveer Singh as 'Hamza Ali Mazari'/ 'Jaskirat Singh Rangi', Sara Arjun as 'Yalina Jamali', Akshaye Khanna as 'Rehman Dakait', Arjun Rampal as 'Major Iqbal', Rakesh Bedi as 'Jameel Jamali', Sanjay Dutt as 'SP Chaudhary' and R Madhavan as 'Ajay Sanyal', among others.
What are your thoughts on Pakistan's answer to Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar with Mera Lyari? Let us know.
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