‘Dhurandhar’ Composer Sachdev on Scoring Bollywood’s Biggest Duology

Composer Shashwat Sachdev didn’t score two films. He scored one.

When Sachdev sat down to work on the “Dhurandhar” films, there was no duology to speak of – just one sprawling script, one protagonist, one emotional arc. By the time the filmmakers decided during post-production to split the material into two releases, the music had already been built to travel the full distance. It shows. With “Dhurandhar: The Revenge” becoming one of the biggest Indian box office hits of all time and the tracks “Aari Aari,” “Jaiye Sajna” and “Jaan Se Guzarte Hai” charting on Spotify India, Sachdev’s score is pulling its full weight on both sides of the screen.

For Sachdev, however, the streaming numbers are a byproduct rather than an objective. “It is something we are aware of, but we don’t let it control us,” he tells Variety. “We want the audience to enjoy the music outside the film as well. So we think of it as songwriting too, not just score. But we don’t design repeat value. If the music is honest, people return to it naturally.”

“Dhurandhar: The Revenge” is directed by Aditya Dhar – who helmed the Ranveer Singh-starring first installment, released in December 2025 – and is produced by Jio Studios and B62 Studios. It follows an undercover Indian intelligence agent who continues to infiltrate Karachi’s criminal syndicates and Pakistani politics while confronting larger geopolitical threats, loosely incorporating real events. The sequel was released in theaters worldwide on March 19.

Both films were shot as a single integrated project. The original plan called for one film, but the volume of footage and the scale of the narrative led the filmmakers to split the material into two parts during post-production. Sachdev says that structure ended up shaping his entire musical approach. “Because the material was written as one script, the music naturally came from one unified idea,” he says. “We were never composing with the intention of dividing it into two films. It was always one emotional journey, one sonic travel.”

There was a central theme for the protagonist and a central tonality for the world, and everything was built around that larger arc. “So when the film split into two parts, the music already knew how to exist across both,” he says. Tracks like “FA9LA” carry that through-line across both releases. “The music was never written as two separate albums. It always existed as one evolving body of work. Identity comes from where the story is, continuity comes from intent.”

The sequel gave Sachdev more room to push the material further. A larger orchestra and a hundred-piece choir added scale – but he is quick to distinguish that from spectacle. “The real expansion was in detail,” he says. “The choir wasn’t just for grandeur, it colored emotion. So the music became more expansive, but also more internal.”

Cohesion across the album’s range of textures – cinematic orchestration, electronic production, and rooted Indian musical influences – comes, he argues, from a shared melodic and harmonic foundation beneath the surface variety. “Even with multiple genres and textures, they are held together by a shared melodic and harmonic identity,” he says. “On the surface, things may feel different, but underneath, it’s one emotional conversation.” The sequel also drew on a wider collaborative canvas, with multiple composers and artists contributing to the soundtrack alongside Sachdev’s overarching vision. Music rights were acquired by T-Series.

Film music in India today is expected to operate simultaneously as narrative architecture and as a standalone streaming product, and Sachdev navigates that tension consciously. “We always try to make albums that work outside the film as well,” he says. “At the same time, I sometimes get very immersed in the film’s world, and my directors pull me back to think about how it translates outside. So it’s always a balance between immersion and accessibility.”

Sachdev’s dual training – Hindustani classical music and Western classical piano – underpins his cross-genre fluency. “Western classical gives me structure and orchestration. Indian classical gives me emotional depth,” he says. “One builds the space, the other fills it with life. It’s not a style, it’s how I hear music.”

Maintaining a clear voice while collaborating across multiple artists and composers requires, in his view, a particular kind of resolve. “By being honest and a little fearless,” he says. “I stay true to what I believe the music should be. That honesty becomes your voice. At the same time, collaboration is important. You listen and adapt, but you don’t lose your core.”

Before establishing himself in India, Sachdev spent time working in Hollywood – an experience he credits with permanently recalibrating his internal standards. “Working with some of the best changes how you evaluate your own work,” he says. “That stays with you and pushes your detailing further.” The Indian National Film Award he received for Dhar’s “Uri” had a similar effect, though not in the way public recognition usually does. “It changed my expectations from myself,” he says. “It made me focus less on validation and more on growth.”

On where his own evolution has been most significant, Sachdev points to something less technical. “I’ve started enjoying the process more,” he says. “Earlier, I was more serious and controlled. Now I allow myself to explore and have fun. That shift has made the music feel more alive.”

His next ambitions are pointed outward. “International collaboration for me is about exchange – different musical worlds meeting without losing themselves,” he says. “That’s what I want to explore more.”