Dhamaal 4 Verdict: Did Ajay Devgn’s Gang Deliver, or Just Recycle the Old Playbook?

Director: Indra Kumar | Cast: Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi, Riteish Deshmukh, Jaaved Jaaferi, Ravi Kishan, Sanjay Mishra, Upendra Limaye, Sanjeeda Shaikh, Esha Gupta, Anjali Anand | Genre: Adventure Comedy | Runtime: 2h 23m | Rating: U/A 13+ | Release Date: July 10, 2026

We covered Dhamaal 4‘s pre-release buzz last week — now that it’s actually in theatres, here’s how it landed with critics and audiences, and where its opening day numbers stand.

Plot Overview

Guddu (Ajay Devgn) runs an antique store with his friend Johnny (Sanjay Mishra) when he learns that a man named Prithvi (Upendra Limaye) knows the location of a legendary treasure buried by the pirate Shaitan Singh. Before Prithvi can share the details, he’s captured by rival pirate Adhoora (Ravi Kishan), who accidentally burns the map — leaving Prithvi as the only person alive who knows where the treasure is. As Prithvi goes on the run to a hideout called Chamboli, Guddu and Johnny set off after him, forced to bring along Guddu’s girlfriend Aaliya’s (Esha Gupta) two children. Along the way, they cross paths with Adi (Arshad Warsi), Manav (Jaaved Jaaferi), and Lallan (Riteish Deshmukh), and the whole gang ends up in a chaotic race against Adhoora’s pirates to reach the treasure first.

Performances

The consensus across reviews is unambiguous: Ajay Devgn is the film’s biggest asset. Multiple critics singled him out for a restrained yet highly effective comic performance, with his chemistry alongside Sanjay Mishra producing some of the film’s funniest stretches. Arshad Warsi and Jaaved Jaaferi are widely called the film’s comic highlight, getting the bulk of the strongest material, and their emotional beats in the back half were also praised as landing well. Riteish Deshmukh was described as performing “like a pro,” while newer additions Anjali Anand and Sanjeeda Shaikh earned solid notices — Anand in particular was called out as genuinely first-rate in an adorable, well-judged part. Ravi Kishan and Upendra Limaye were both seen as well-cast in their roles.

Critical Reception

Dhamaal 4 has landed a genuinely mixed set of reviews, ranging from harsh dismissals to solidly positive notices, with very few outlets landing in the middle. On the more critical end, NDTV’s Saibal Chatterjee gave it 2/5, calling it “unfunny, tedious and dreadfully dunderheaded,” while Hindustan Times awarded just 1.5/5, arguing the film “recycles its story, music and even its brand of comedy, hoping nostalgia will do the heavy lifting.” News18 also landed at 2/5, criticizing the screenplay for over-explaining every joke and underlining every beat, leaving little for the audience to discover on its own. The Indian Express was similarly unimpressed, flagging unfunny jokes and shaky CGI as sinking points.

On the positive side, reactions were considerably warmer. Bollywood Hungama rated it 3/5, calling it “a decent, clean entertainer” that should appeal to families and kids, while flagging that the screenplay dips in places and some gags don’t land. PeepingMoon went further, awarding 4 Moons and praising the film as the franchise’s funniest treasure hunt yet, highlighting a steady screenplay pace and the mystery around the giant “M” as keeping audiences engaged throughout. Koimoi’s review noted the situational humor as the film’s strength, though it flagged the outrageousness as occasionally exhausting, and pointed out that only die-hard fans would catch some of the meta, self-referential jokes about the franchise itself. GlamSham’s review was more nuanced, praising an energetic opening stretch that plays like a celebration of Total Dhamaal‘s madness, but noting the back half shifts unexpectedly into a survival-drama tone that weakens the comic momentum built earlier. Trade veteran Taran Adarsh was firmly positive, calling it a film with strong laugh-out-loud moments in the first half and an “excellent” post-interval stretch, with a well-judged dose of emotion in the climax.

The one point nearly every review agrees on: Dhamaal 4 sticks closely to the exact template of Dhamaal (2007) and Total Dhamaal (2019), offering little narrative novelty for anyone who’s seen the earlier films — you can largely guess where it’s heading.

Box Office: Opening Day

Advance bookings closed on a decent but not spectacular note, with the film grossing roughly ₹2.57 crore (₹2.18 crore net) through day-1 pre-sales, on a wide release of over 11,000 shows nationally. Morning-show occupancy on release day came in at 8.38% — notably softer than Total Dhamaal‘s comparable morning numbers back in 2019 — and the film had crossed roughly ₹1.82 crore by early afternoon. Trade analysts had pegged a ₹15-17 crore net opening day as the target, needing to clear ₹16.5 crore to become the franchise’s biggest-ever opener (a record currently held by Total Dhamaal‘s ₹16.5 crore); based on the slower morning trend, most trade watchers now expect it to land short of that mark, likely finishing as the second-highest opener in the series rather than the highest. We’ll update this section once final day-1 numbers are confirmed.

Our Verdict

Dhamaal 4 delivers close to exactly what the franchise has always promised — loud, chaotic, family-friendly slapstick anchored by a cast that clearly still enjoys sharing the screen. Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi, and Jaaved Jaaferi carry the film through its funniest stretches, and the first half largely works. Where it stumbles is in the second half’s tonal shift into survival-drama territory, and in offering essentially zero surprises for anyone who’s seen the previous three films — this is comfort-food comedy, not reinvention. If you’re a franchise fan looking for two hours of nostalgic, mindless fun with the family, it delivers that. If you’re hoping for a fresher take on the “treasure hunt gone wrong” formula, this won’t be the one to convince you.

Rating: 3/5 — A reliably chaotic, cast-driven family entertainer that never tries to be more than that.

Where to Watch Dhamaal 4

Dhamaal 4 is currently a theatrical-only release, playing in cinemas nationwide since July 10, 2026. No OTT or digital release date has been announced yet — based on the standard 6-8 week theatrical window most Hindi films follow, a streaming release is realistically expected around late August to early September 2026. We’ll update this section the moment a platform and date are confirmed.

Quick Facts

• Franchise position: 4th installment, following Dhamaal (2007), Double Dhamaal (2011), and Total Dhamaal (2019)
• Marks Ajay Devgn and Riteish Deshmukh’s 6th on-screen collaboration, after Masti, Cash, Himmatwala, Total Dhamaal, and Raid 2
• Only one full song in the film (“Saree”), with “Chatni” and “Qeher” playing over the end credits
• Censor note: Certified U/A 13+ with no scenes cut, though some hand gestures and dialogue were modified for a family-friendly rating