Dhamaal 4 Gets CBFC Clearance With Minor Cuts Before Release

If there is one Bollywood franchise that has survived purely on the strength of its chaos, it is Dhamaal, and with the fourth instalment officially through the CBFC process, the madness is about to go theatrical.

Dhamaal 4 has received its censor certificate with a U/A 13+ rating, which honestly feels about right for a series that has always walked the fine line between family-friendly slapstick and the kind of humour that makes aunties pretend not to laugh. The modifications required were relatively minor — a couple of hand gestures deemed obscene were replaced, and seven words across the film were swapped out. No full scenes were cut, which is a relief for fans who have watched the franchise stretch its brand of absurdist comedy across three films already. At 2 hours and 23 minutes, this is a proper full-length comedy experience, not a trimmed-down crowd-pleaser.

What makes this CBFC clearance interesting is the timing. Bollywood has been on a bit of a comedy run lately, with multiple ensemble comedies jostling for multiplex space in recent weeks. Dhamaal 4 enters this landscape with the advantage of an established fan base and a cast that audiences already have affection for. Ajay Devgn, Riteish Deshmukh, Arshad Warsi, Sanjay Mishra, and Jaaved Jaaferi together are essentially a guarantee of a certain kind of rowdy, loveable energy on screen. These are actors who have done enough serious work to make their comedy land with extra weight.

For the South Asian diaspora in Australia, the UK, Canada, and the US, the Dhamaal films have always been reliable watch-with-the-family options during holidays and long weekends. There is something deeply nostalgic about this franchise — it taps into a very specific kind of desi humour that does not require subtitles to feel, even if you cannot catch every joke. The addition of newer faces like Esha Gupta, Sanjeeda Shaikh, and Anjali Anand alongside the original crew suggests the makers are trying to both honour the loyal base and pull in a slightly younger crowd.

Director Indra Kumar has been the constant thread through the Dhamaal universe, and while critics have not always been kind to the sequels, audiences have repeatedly shown up. Dhamaal 4 carries the weight of that commercial legacy but also the pressure of a changed multiplex environment where comedies need word of mouth to survive beyond the opening weekend. The CBFC passing the film with minimal changes and no scene deletions means the creative team’s vision has largely made it to screen intact, which should at least give the cast and crew some satisfaction going into release.

With a July 10 release date confirmed and the censor certificate in hand since July 2, the promotional machinery is now fully in motion. Backed by the heavy hitters of T-Series and Panorama Studios alongside Devgn Films, this one has solid distribution muscle behind it. Whether the laughs land will ultimately be decided by audiences in cinemas next week.

So here is the question worth asking — is the Dhamaal franchise still fresh enough to win over today’s multiplex crowd, or has this brand of ensemble comedy had its moment?