Fighter | |
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Directed by | Siddharth Anand |
Story by | Ramon Chibb Siddharth Anand |
Screenplay by | Ramon Chibb |
Dialogues by | Hussain Dalal Abbas Dalal Biswapati Sarkar |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Satchith Paulose |
Edited by | Aarif Sheikh |
Music by |
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Production companies |
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Distributed by | Viacom18 Studios |
Release date |
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Running time | 166 minutes [1] |
Country | India |
Language | Hindi |
Budget | est.₹250 crore [2] |
Box office | est.₹344.46 crore [3] |
Fighter is a 2024 Indian Hindi-language action film directed by Siddharth Anand, based on a story he wrote with Ramon Chibb. Produced by Viacom18 Studios and Marflix Pictures, it stars Hrithik Roshan, Deepika Padukone, and Anil Kapoor, while Karan Singh Grover, Akshay Oberoi and Rishabh Sawhney play supporting roles. [4] The film is the first installment in a planned aerial action franchise. [5] [6]
The film was announced on 10 January 2021, marking Anand's production debut and his third collaboration with Roshan after Bang Bang! (2014) and War (2019). The pre-production was delayed due to COVID-19 pandemic. Filming began in November 2022 at locations such as Assam, Hyderabad, Jammu and Kashmir and Mumbai. Real life Indian Air Force personnel worked in the film, which wrapped up in October 2023. [7] The film is a fictionalized retelling of a series of military events occurring between India and Pakistan in 2019, including the 2019 Pulwama attack, 2019 Balakot airstrike and 2019 India–Pakistan border skirmishes. [8] [9] The film's soundtrack album composed by Vishal–Shekhar consists of five songs. Satchith Paulose serves as the film's cinematographer. The visual effects are handled by DNEG.
Fighter was originally scheduled for a theatrical release on 30 September 2022 but production delays caused the release date to slip to 25 January 2024, coinciding with the Republic Day weekend. Despite mixed reception, it grossed ₹237 crore (US$28 million) in India and ₹344.46 crore (US$41 million) worldwide to rank as the eighth highest-grossing Indian film of 2024 and fourth highest-grossing Hindi film of 2024. [3]
In Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, a terrorist organization led by Azhar Akhtar plans to attack India, targeting the Srinagar Air Force Station base of the Indian Air Force.
Group captain Rakesh "Rocky" Jai Singh is assigned to counter the threat and forms a team called "Air Dragons" consisting of skilled fighter pilots. The team includes squadron leaders Shamsher "Patty" Pathania, Minal "Minni" Rathore, Sartaj "Taj" Gill, Basheer "Bash" Khan, and Sukhdeep "Sukhi" Singh. During training, the team members bond, and Minni develops romantic feelings for Patty. However, Patty is haunted by his past after he lost his fiancée in a previous mission. The team learn of an attack on CRPF soldiers in Pulwama, organized by Akhtar.
In response, the Indian Air Force, along with RAW agent Zareena Begum, plan a counterattack on Akhtar's base in Balakot. Despite succeeding in the mission, the aftermath causes conflict between India and Pakistan. The Pakistan Air Force launches a retaliatory attack on the Indian base as a result. Despite Rocky's orders, Patty, Taj, and Bash cross the Line of Control. Taj and Bash's plane is shot down by Pakistan Air Force pilots, leading to their capture. Patty is removed from the team of Air Dragons by Rocky following a court of Inquiry. He is posted as a flying instructor at the Air Force Academy in Hyderabad. Rocky also reveales to Minni that he holds a grudge against Patty for letting his fiancée, Naina Jai Singh, call sign Enjay (revealed to be Rocky's younger sister), die in a previous rescue mission. At the AFA, Patty helps a flight cadet Neha Joshi (who also goes by the similar call sign NJ) to land safely after she panicked and lost control of her plane on her first solo flight. He feels a bit of atonement after helping Neha and then onwards pays special focus on her training.
The Government of Pakistan announces that they will be escorting Taj and Bash safely back to India. However, the Air Dragons team gets a shock as the chopper, which had gone to receive Taj and Bash, returns only with Bash's dead body. Sukhi tells Patty that Bash was brutally murdered by Akhtar and has imprisoned a badly injured Taj. Determined to rescue him, Patty and Rocky defy orders and joins a covert mission. The team successfully infiltrates the enemy territory and Patty is able to rescue Taj and kill Akhtar. After landing Patty and Minni embrace, celebrating their victory.
Siddharth Anand narrated the idea of making a big-budget action thriller against the backdrop of fighter jets while shooting the film War (2019). Hrithik Roshan loved the basic premise of the story. During COVID-19 lockdown in India, Anand worked on developing the story further and narrated it to Roshan, who later confirmed for the film. In December 2020, it was reported that Siddharth Anand and Hrithik Roshan are going to reunite for a film after War (2019). [15]
Fighter was officially announced on 10 January 2021, on the occasion of Hrithik Roshan's birthday. [16] The film is the India's first aerial action film. [17] It is the first installment in its franchise. [18] The film is produced by Siddharth Anand, Mamta Anand, Ramon Chibb, Anku Pande, Kevin Vaz and Ajit Andhare, under banners Viacom18 Studios and Marflix Pictures. [19] [20] The film was made on a budget of ₹250 crore. [21] [22]
The film is designed for a global audience, and would involve the use of latest technology and filming techniques. [23]
Ramon Chibb, filmmaker and writer, wrote the story along with Siddharth Anand. [24] Later, Chibb wrote the screenplay of the film under the supervision of Anand and Hrithik Roshan. [25] Akshay Oberoi said that the film has "much heavier" action scenes than Pathaan (2023). [26] Anand further retained most of his norm technicians including cinematographer Satchith Paulose, editor Aarif Sheikh, stunt choreographer SeYeong Oh, and action director Sunil Rodrigues. [27] [28] Raj Khatri designed posters of the film. [29]
In September 2022, Roshan started taking workshops and had continued 12-week simulator training and learned the nuances of playing a fighter jet pilot. [30] His training was supervised by Kris Gethin, developing his abdominal muscles and losing weight. [31] In November 2022, he visited the IAF air base in Tezpur, Assam. In the next phase he went to the Air Force Academy (India) in Dundigal. In both these establishments he spent time with the officers, airmen and flight cadets to observe their demeanour and understand the way that they function. [32]
Real-life Indian Air Force personnel including officers and flight cadets have worked on the film. Besides the Air Force personnel from the air base in Tezpur and Dundigal Air Force Academy near Hyderabad, the ceremonial guard of the IAF was brought in to Mumbai from Air Headquarters (Air HQ) in Delhi for shooting an important scene. [33]
In January 2021, Deepika Padukone and Hrithik Roshan were officially announced as the leads marking their maiden film together. [34] Roshan portrays Patty, an air force officer. [35] Roshan revealed his character as "young, spontaneous and short-tempered". [36] Padukone also plays an air force officer and has several action sequences in the film. [37] [38] Both Padukone and Roshan took martial arts training for their roles. [39] Anil Kapoor joined the cast in December 2021. [40] Karan Singh Grover and Akshay Oberoi were roped in by November 2022. [41] In March 2023, Talat Aziz joined the cast to play role of Patty's father in the film. [42] In May 2023, Sanjeeda Sheikh was confirmed to play a key role. [43]
Principal photography began on 14 November 2022 in Assam. [44] Roshan, Padukone, and Kapoor joined in the schedule, that took place in Tezpur Air Force Station. [45] The team returned to Mumbai on 28 November 2022 after wrapping the 10-day first schedule in Assam. [46] [47]
For the second schedule, the team moved to Jammu and Kashmir on 6 February 2023. Akshay Oberoi also joined this schedule. [48] The team returned to Mumbai on 12 February, after filming at Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, where a song and few action sequences choreographed by Sunil Rodrigues, were shot. [28]
The third schedule was held at the Indian Air Force Academy at Dundigal in Hyderabad, to shoot Roshan's character, as an Air Force cadet undergoing training. [49] The third schedule was wrapped in Hyderabad on 6 March. [50] [51]
On 19 March, Roshan began filming in a Chembur bungalow for the fourth schedule, in Mumbai. In this schedule, Talat Aziz joined and a few emotional scenes were shot. [52] It was reported that the month-long schedule would end on 24 April. [53] Kapoor, via Instagram, shared a behind-the-scenes video of his workout in -110 degrees Celsius for the schedule. [54] The team also shot a 25-minute long climactic scene that includes an action sequence, [55] which reportedly took 120 hours (5 days) to shoot. [56]
For the next schedule, production designer Rajat Poddarr and his team built an expensive set that housed the interiors of an air force base, classrooms, and offices at Yash Raj Studios, in Mumbai. [57] On 14 May, the next schedule was started with Padukone, Roshan, Kapoor and Grover joining the schedule. [58] On 19 May, the team shot combination scenes of Padukone and Kapoor at Mysore Colony, Chembur over 3 days. [59] From 22 May, emotional scenes between Padukone and Roshan were shot in Chandivali, with only 20–30 extras to avoid the film's footage leaks online. [60]
The Mumbai schedule was completed in mid-June. [60] Roshan shot inside an Sukhoi Su-30MKI for over 12 days. [61] [62] Dramatic scenes between Roshan and Kapoor was shot in late August in Mumbai. [63] In early September, a song featuring Roshan, Padukone, along with the entire cast, choreographed by the duo Bosco–Caesar, was shot at Yash Raj Studios. [64] Later in early October, the team wrapped two songs in Sardinia, Italy. [65] Principal photography wrapped by 30 October 2023 at Yash Raj Studios, with filming having lasted 87 working days. [66]
Post-production for the film begin by early-June 2023, once the film completed its shooting and was going for six months as the film involved extensive computer graphics and visual effects. [67] The VFX work of the film was done by DNEG. [68]
The original songs for the film were composed by Vishal–Shekhar whereas the original score was written by Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara. [69] The album consists of six songs, including one emotional song.[ citation needed ] The music rights are bagged by T-Series. The first single titled "Sher Khul Gaye" was released on 15 December 2023. [70] The second single titled "Ishq Jaisa Kuch" was released on 22 December 2023. [71] The third single titled "Heer Aasmani" was released on 8 January 2024. [72]
The teaser of the film was released on 8 December 2023. [73] The official trailer of the film was released on 15 January 2024. [74]
Fighter was released on 25 January 2024, coinciding with the Republic Day. [75] Earlier in January 2021, it was announced that the film was going to release on 30 September 2022. [76] In October 2022, the release date was announced as 25 January 2024. [77] The film was banned across the countries of the GCC. [78] [79]
Fighter has grossed ₹244.70 crore (US$29 million) in India, with a further ₹99.76 crore (US$12 million) in overseas, for a worldwide total of ₹344.46 crore (US$41 million). [3]
On its opening weekend, it topped the global box-office with a gross of $25 million, including debuting at the top-spot at the New Zealand box-office. [81] [82]
The film was declared a semi-hit at the box office and recovered its production cost. The film did not obtain a release in the Gulf countries due to its negative depiction of Islamic countries and extreme jingoism. [83]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 35% of 26 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.3/10. [84] [85] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 63 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. [86]
India Today gave the film 4/5 stars and praised the action and performances. [87] The Times of India gave the film 3.5/5 stars praising the performances and technical aspects. [88] NDTV.com gave the film 2.5/5 stars praising the technical aspects but criticized the cliched storyline. [89] Hindustan Times wrote "Watch Fighter for a pure paisa vasool experience, good looking performances and some gravity defying aerial action that won't give you a headache but leave you with a sense of pride." [90] The Indian Express gave the film 2.5/5 stars and criticized the film's excessive jingoism. [91] Film Companion gave a negative review criticising the storyline and dialogues. [92]
Multiple sources have criticized the film as propaganda. [93] [94] [95]
While writing the script, makers decided to make it a franchise. [96] In May 2023, it was reported that production of the sequel film Fighter 2 would begin after Anand finished shooting Tiger vs Pathaan . [97]
Deepika Padukone is an Indian actress who works predominantly in Hindi films. She is India's highest-paid actress, as of 2023, and her accolades include three Filmfare Awards. Time named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2018 and awarded her the Time100 Impact Award in 2022.
Siddharth Raj Anand is an Indian filmmaker. He is the grandson of screenwriter Inder Raj Anand and is primarily known for his work with Yash Raj Films. He first became known for directing the successful romantic comedies Salaam Namaste (2005), Ta Ra Rum Pum (2007), Bachna Ae Haseeno (2008) and Anjaana Anjaani (2010). He then established himself as a leading action filmmaker with Bang Bang! (2014) and the YRF Spy Universe films: War (2019) and Pathaan (2023). These films rank among the highest-grossing Hindi films.
Hrithik Roshan is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. He has portrayed a variety of characters and is known for his dancing skills. One of the highest-paid actors in India, he has won many awards, including six Filmfare Awards, of which four were for Best Actor. Starting from 2012, he has appeared in Forbes India's Celebrity 100 several times based on his income and popularity.
Sanjeeda Sheikh is an Indian actress who works in the Hindi films and television. Sheikh is best known for playing Namrata "Nimmo" Mathuria in Kyaa Hoga Nimmo Kaa, Ayesha Shergill in Kayamath, Nitya Goenka / Durga in Ek Hasina Thi and Kamini Mathur in Love Ka Hai Intezaar. Sheikh has since been part of the films Taish (2020), Kaali Khuhi (2020) and Fighter (2024) and the web series Heeramandi (2024).
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Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela, also simply known as Ram-Leela, is a 2013 Indian Hindi-language romantic tragedy film written and directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, who also composed its original soundtrack. The film was jointly produced by Bhansali and Eros International's Kishore Lulla and stars Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh in lead roles with Priyanka Chopra making a special appearance in the song "Ram Chahe Leela". The supporting cast includes Supriya Pathak, Richa Chadda, Sharad Kelkar, Gulshan Devaiah, Barkha Bisht Sengupta, and Abhimanyu Singh. Based on the tragedy Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Ram-Leela narrates the star-crossed romance between the two eponymous lovers from two gangster families, who fall in love with each other, but are forced to separate due to their families' centuries old rivalry.
Bang Bang! is a 2014 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed by Siddharth Anand and produced by Fox Star Studios. An official remake of the 2010 American film Knight and Day, it marks Anand's running foray into the action genre, and stars Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif, alongside Javed Jaffrey, Danny Denzongpa, Kanwaljit Singh, Deepti Naval, Vikram Gokhale and Pavan Malhotra. The soundtrack and background score were handled by Vishal–Shekhar and Salim–Sulaiman respectively, marking the latter's final collaboration with Anand, while the cinematography and editing were handled by Sunil Patel and Akiv Ali respectively. In the film, a mysterious thief encounters an unassuming bank receptionist, which sets off a chain of events resulting in a series of escapades.
Hrithik Roshan is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi-language films. As a child, he made uncredited appearances in three films directed by his maternal grandfather, J. Om Prakash, the first of which was in Aasha (1980). In 1986, Roshan played the adopted son of Rajinikanth's character in Prakash's crime drama Bhagwaan Dada. Roshan subsequently worked as an assistant director on four films, including Khudgarz (1987) and Karan Arjun (1995), all of which were directed by his father, Rakesh.
Indian actress Deepika Padukone primarily appears in Hindi films. Her first screen appearance was in Himesh Reshammiya's music video "Naam Hai Tera" in 2005. Padukone made her film debut by playing the title role in the Kannada-language film Aishwarya (2006). Her first Hindi film release came the following year with Farah Khan's melodrama Om Shanti Om, in which she played dual roles opposite Shah Rukh Khan. She won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut for it. Her sole film role in 2008 was as one of Ranbir Kapoor's love interests in Bachna Ae Haseeno. Padukone's first film release of 2009, the kung fu comedy Chandni Chowk to China, proved to be a box office flop, but her next release, Imtiaz Ali's romance Love Aaj Kal, opposite Saif Ali Khan, was a success. Of Padukone's five film releases in 2010, only the comedy Housefull was financially profitable. The series of poorly received films continued with both her 2011 releases, Aarakshan and Desi Boyz.
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Jai Hemant Shroff, known professionally as Tiger Shroff, is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. Born to actors Jackie Shroff and Ayesha Dutt, he made his acting debut with the action romance Heropanti (2014), for which he won the IIFA Award for Star Debut of the Year – Male. Shroff went on to star in the commercially successful action films Baaghi (2016), Baaghi 2 (2018), and War (2019). This was followed by a series of unsuccessful big-budget actions films such as Heropanti 2 (2021), Ganapath (2023) and Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (2024).
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Tamasha (transl. Spectacle/Drama) is a 2015 Indian psychological coming-of-age romantic drama film written and directed by Imtiaz Ali and produced by Sajid Nadiadwala from his studio, Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment. It stars Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone. The film score and soundtrack album were composed by A. R. Rahman, while the lyrics for the songs were written by Irshad Kamil. Tamasha was filmed in the Indian cities of Shimla, Delhi, Gurgaon, and Kolkata, with additional filming in Tokyo and Corsica. The film tells the story of character Ved Vardhan Sahni in three stages–as a 9-year-old child, a 19-year-old adolescent and a 30-year-old adult in a nonlinear narrative.
Major Ramon Chibb is an Indian Filmmaker, producer, writer and director known for his work in Hindi films and documentaries. He is also a retired Indian Army officer. He is the co-founder of Manomay Motion Pictures Pvt. Ltd.
War is a 2019 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed by Siddharth Anand, who co-wrote the script with Shridhar Raghavan, Abbas Tyrewala and Aditya Chopra, and produced by Chopra's Yash Raj Films. The film stars Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff in the lead roles, alongside Vaani Kapoor, Ashutosh Rana, Anupriya Goenka, Dipannita Sharma, Sanjeev Vatsa, Mashhoor Amrohi, Yash Raaj Singh, Arif Zakaria and Mohit Chauhan. It is the third installment in the YRF Spy Universe. In the film, an Indian RAW agent, is assigned to eliminate his former mentor who has gone rogue.
YRF Spy Universe is an Indian media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of spy action films, which feature various fictional RAW agents. The franchise also includes comic books, graphic novels and video games. The films are produced and distributed by Yash Raj Films.
Pathaan is a 2023 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed by Siddharth Anand and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films. Written by Shridhar Raghavan and Abbas Tyrewala on the basis of an original story by Anand, it serves as the fourth instalment in the YRF Spy Universe, and stars Shah Rukh Khan in the titular role, alongside Deepika Padukone and John Abraham, and Dimple Kapadia and Ashutosh Rana in supporting roles. The first instalment in the universe to observe a crossover among characters and officially instate the universe as a brand, it follows an exiled RAW agent, who works with ISI agent Rubina Mohsin to take down Jim, a former RAW agent, who plans to attack India with a deadly lab-generated virus.
Bang Bang! is the soundtrack to the 2014 film of the same name directed by Siddharth Anand starring Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif. Produced by Fox Star Studios, the film is an adaptation of the American film Knight and Day (2010). The film's musical score is composed by Salim–Sulaiman, while the five-song soundtrack accompanying the film is composed by the duo Vishal–Shekhar and lyrics written by Vishal Dadlani, Anvita Dutt and Kumaar. The soundtrack to the film was released by Zee Music Company on 12 September 2014.
War is the soundtrack to the 2019 Hindi-language action film of the same name directed by Siddharth Anand, starring Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff and Vaani Kapoor. The soundtrack to the film featured two songs composed by Vishal–Shekhar and three instrumental themes from the film score composed by Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara. It was released by YRF Music on 27 September 2019.
Fighter is the soundtrack album composed by Vishal-Shekhar for the 2024 Hindi film of the same name, directed by Siddharth Anand, starring Hrithik Roshan, Deepika Padukone, and Anil Kapoor in lead roles. The original score for the film was composed by Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara. The film was produced by Viacom18 Studios and Marflix Pictures.