As ‘Dhurandhar: The Revenge' hit theatres across India on March 19, audiences walked out buzzing not just about spy thrills and Ranveer Singh's performance, but about a fizzy, creamy drink they had never heard of -- or had long forgotten.

Doodh soda, a simple mix of chilled milk and lemon-lime soda, has become 2026's first breakout food trend, propelled from street stalls to cinema lobbies and Instagram reels by the blockbuster sequel.

The craze traces back to a scene featuring actor Gaurav Gera as Mohammad Aalam, a juice vendor in Karachi's Lyari neighbourhood, who delivers the now-ubiquitous line: "Darling, darling, dil kyu toda. Peelo peelo, Aalam soda."

That moment first went viral after the original ‘Dhurandhar’ released in December 2025, sending food bloggers and home cooks scrambling to recreate the drink. The sequel's arrival has supercharged the phenomenon.

Cinema halls have seized the moment. Broadway Cinemas began selling doodh soda for ₹250 a glass, posting on social media that orders were pouring in "from Lyari to Coimbatore and Tiruppur."

A theatre in Purnia set up a stall mimicking the film's vendor, complete with a costumed seller hawking the drink "in Aalam style." Gera himself recreated the scene on the reality show Wheel of Fortune, hosted by Akshay Kumar, further fuelling interest.

Pre-Partition classic resurfaces

Despite its sudden fame, 'doodh soda' is far from new. The drink has roots in Victorian England, where milk and carbonated water were first combined, and made its way to the Indian subcontinent during British colonial rule.

Street vendors across undivided Punjab adopted it, and after Partition, the recipe evolved on both sides of the border. In Pakistan, it became a staple at iftar during Ramadan, sometimes enriched with Rooh Afza rose syrup. In India, it remained a summer fixture in pockets of Old Delhi, Amritsar, and Punjab.

How to prepare doodh soda?

The 'doodh soda' preparation is deceptively simple: equal parts chilled milk and a lemon-lime soda such as Sprite or 7-Up, with sugar to taste, but technique matters.

Vendors pour the soda slowly along the side of the glass to prevent the milk from curdling, preserving the drink's creamy fizz.

'Dhurandhar: The Revenge', directed by Aditya Dhar and produced by Jio Studios and B62 Studios, earned over ₹50 crore from paid previews alone and crossed ₹100 crore on its opening day, according to the Times of India.

The first film grossed ₹1,300 crore worldwide. Whether Doodh Soda's second wave of fame outlasts the box office run remains to be seen, but for now, the humble street drink is enjoying a spotlight that no marketing budget could buy