The Vaccine War

Last updated

The Vaccine War
The Vaccine War.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Vivek Agnihotri
Based on"Going Viral" by Dr. Balram Bhargava
Produced by Pallavi Joshi
Starring
CinematographyUdaysingh Mohite
Edited byShankh Rajadhyaksha
Music bySongs:
Rohit Sharma
Vanraj Bhatia
Swapnil Bandodkar
Shryea Kaul
Background Score:
Rohit Sharma
Production
company
Distributed by Pen Marudhar Cine Entertainment
Release date
  • 28 September 2023 (2023-09-28)
Running time
161 minutes [1]
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Budgetest.₹10 crore [2]
Box officeest.₹9.47 crore [3]

The Vaccine War is a 2023 Indian Hindi-language medical docudrama film directed by Vivek Agnihotri and produced by Pallavi Joshi. [4] It tells about the development of Covaxin during the COVID-19 pandemic in India, shedding light on the efforts of scientists involved in its creation. It is based on the book "Going Viral" by Prof Balram Bhargava of Indian Council of Medical Research.

Contents

The film features Nana Patekar, Pallavi Joshi, Raima Sen, Anupam Kher, Girija Oak, Nivedita Bhattacharya, Sapthami Gowda, and Mohan Kapur. [5] The Vaccine War was theatrically released on 28 September 2023. The Film received mixed reviews from critics mostly negative. Against its ₹10 crore (US$1.3 million) budget, the film generated a total revenue of ₹9.47 crore (US$1.2 million) in worldwide box office and declared a flop at the box office. [6] It was featured at the 54th IFFI Indian panorama section where it received a standing ovation. [7]

Plot

Scientists at the Indian biomedical lab roll out an indigenous vaccine at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in the race against time. The Director General of ICMR Dr. Balram Bhargava spearheads the vaccine development project. A high level expert committee is set-up by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, ICMR, and Bharat Biotech.

A scientific team of bioengineers led by Dr. Priya Abraham, Director of ICMR-National Institute of Virology, consists of Virologists Dr. Sreelekshmy Mohandas, Dr. Nivedita Gupta, and Dr. Pragya Yadav; Epidemiologists and Infectious Disease Scientists Dr. Rajni Kant Srivastava, Dr. Raman Gangakhedkar, Dr. Samiran Panda, Dr. Varsha Potdar and Dr. Enna Dogra Gupta.

The SARS-CoV-2 strain (NIV-2020-770) used in developing the BBV152 vaccine is retrieved from tourists who arrive in New Delhi, India. The scientific team sequences the ‘Vero CCL-81’ cells and the genome sequence is deposited in the GISAID database. The team then reports the development of an inactivated whole-virion SARS-CoV-2 vaccine BBV152, which elicits a neutralizing antibody response in animal studies, and phase I clinical trial against hCoV-19/India/2020770.

Cast

Production

The film was announced in November 2022, last schedule started in June 2023 and the shoot wrapped up on 13 August 2023. [9]

Release

Theatrical

The theatrical release date was announced via teaser on the 77th Independence Day of India. [8] The film will be released on 28 September 2023. [10] Earlier it was set to be released on 15 August 2023 and then 24 October 2023. [9] It is planned to be released in eleven Indian languages [11] including Hindi, English, Bengali, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Punjabi, Malayalam, Gujarati and Bhojpuri. [9]

The official trailer was released on 12 September 2023. [12] The Vaccine War was marketed as "India's first bio-science film". [13] The film was theatrically released on 28 September 2023. [5]

The films digital streaming rights was sold to Disney+ Hotstar for ₹35 crore. [14] The film was premiered on the platform on 24 November 2023. [15]

Music

The Vaccine War
Soundtrack album by
Rohit Sharma, Vanraj Bhatia, Swapnil Bandodkar and Shryea Kaul
Released24 September 2023 [16]
Recorded2022
Genre Feature film soundtrack
Length17:31
LanguageHindi
Label Zee Music Company
Official audio
The Vaccine War - Full Album on YouTube

The music of the film is composed by Rohit Sharma, Vanraj Bhatia, Swapnil Bandodkar and Shryea Kaul while lyrics written by Vasant Dev and Shryea Kaul. [16]

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsMusicSinger(s)Length
1."The Vaccine War Theme"- Rohit Sharma -2:51
2."The Vaccine War Theme" (Reprise)-Rohit Sharma-2:37
3."Nasadiya Sukta" Vasant Dev Vanraj Bhatia Rahul Chitnis, Vivek Naik, Nitin Karandikar, Sagar Lele, Gaurang Govind Kulkarni, Shrikant Bhausaheb Kulkarni, Tanmay Prabhakar Pandit, Rudra Desai, Adamya Wakhle, Chinmay Vinayak, Abeer Chowdhary, Veena Joshi, Sonal Naik3:56
4."Nasadiya Sukta" (Rock Version)Vasant DevVanraj Bhatia, Swapnil Bandodkar Swapnil Bandodkar 4:57
5."After The Rain"Shryea KaulShryea KaulShryea Kaul3:30
Total length:17:31

Reception

Critical reception

The Vaccine War garnered mixed reviews from the critics.

Mudit Bhatnagar of Times Now rating it 3.5/5, [17] praising its blend of science and emotion. Reviewing the film, Shalini Langer of The Indian Express rated the film with 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "Vivek Agnihotri's devotion to his subject – with obviously the government's full cooperation and access – veers the film often towards the look and feel of a public service broadcast". [18] Zinia Bandyopadhyay of India Today rated the film with 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "watching the film might give the impression that the entire industry made it their mission to undermine the vaccine and the dedicated scientists behind it." [19] Renuka Vyavahare of The Times of India rated the film with 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "Nana Patekar is outstanding but the film reduces itself to being a government mouthpiece parading as a medical drama." [20] Venkat Arikatla of Greatandhra gave a rating of 1.5 out of 5, calling it an overdose of propagandist torture. He stated, what the film does is malign those journalists who rightly questioned the ruling party's grand claims of being capable of producing the vaccine. [21]

The film is also reviewed by Manoj Kumar and Manish Sachan in Media Asia, [22] Anuj Kumar of The Hindu , [23] Nandini Ramnath of Scroll.in, [24] Monika Rawal Kukreja of Hindustan Times , [25] Guruprasad D. N. of Deccan Herald , [26] Avinash Ramachandran of Cinema Express, [27] Pooja Biraia Jaiswal of The Week, [28] Garima Sadhwani [29] and Pratikshy Mishra [30] of The Quint, Mayur Sanap of Rediff.com, [31] and Lachmi Deb Roy of Firstpost. [32]

Box office

On its opening day, The Vaccine War collected a total India net of ₹0.70 crore (US$88,000).[ citation needed ]

The Vaccine War has grossed ₹7.14 crore (US$890,000) in India, with a further ₹2.33 crore (US$290,000) in overseas, for a worldwide total of ₹9.47 crore (US$1.2 million). [3] [33]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nana Patekar</span> Indian film actor

Vishwanath Patekar, better known as Nana Patekar, is an Indian actor, screenwriter, film maker, and a former Indian Territorial Army officer, mainly working in Hindi and Marathi cinema. He is regarded as one of the finest and influential actors in Indian Cinema, Patekar is recipient of three National Film Awards, four Filmfare Awards and two Filmfare Awards Marathi for his acting performances. He was bestowed with the Padma Shri award in 2013 for his contribution in cinema and arts.

<i>Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman</i> 1992 Indian film directed by Aziz Mirza

Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman is a 1992 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy-drama film directed by Aziz Mirza starring Shah Rukh Khan, Amrita Singh, Juhi Chawla and Nana Patekar. Khan plays Raju, a young Diploma Holder in Civil Engineering from Darjeeling who comes to Bombay hoping to become a successful engineer. The film emerged as a commercial success. The movie plot is loosely inspired by the 1987 movie The Secret of My Success and the Raj Kapoor classic Shree 420 (1955). The rights to this film are owned by Khan's Red Chillies Entertainment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tanushree Dutta</span> Miss India Universe and Actress

Tanushree Dutta is an Indian actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder who won Femina Miss India Universe 2004 and then represented her country at Miss Universe 2004 in Ecuador where she placed Top 10.

<i>Shakti: The Power</i> 2002 film directed by Krishna Vamsi

Shakti: The Power is a 2002 Indian Hindi-language crime drama film directed by Krishna Vamsi, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Karisma Kapoor, Nana Patekar, and Sanjay Kapoor, with Deepti Naval, Ritu Shivpuri, Anupam Shyam, and Prakash Raj, in supporting roles. The film is a remake of 1998 film Anthahpuram, which was based on the real-life story of Betty Mahmoody. The original story of real life escape of Betty Mahmoody is depicted in the film Not Without My Daughter (1991) which itself was based on Betty Mahmoody's book of the same name. In the film, Shekhar and Nandini's decision to visit his ancestral house in a rural Indian town goes awry when they find themselves embroiled in a feudal gang war and try to return home to Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prabhas</span> Indian actor (born 1979)

Uppalapati Venkata Suryanarayana Prabhas Raju, known mononymously as Prabhas, is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Telugu cinema. One of the highest-paid actors in Indian cinema, Prabhas has been featured in Forbes India's Celebrity 100 list since 2015 and has received seven Filmfare Awards nominations, a Nandi Award, and a SIIMA Award. Prabhas is referred to in the media as the "Rebel Star" and "Darling".

<i>Yeshwant</i> 1997 film

Yeshwant is a 1997 Indian action crime film directed by Anil Mattoo, produced by Vijay K. Ranglani. It stars Nana Patekar and Madhoo in pivotal roles. Also, it was the final film of Shafi Inamdar, who died a year before the release. The film was a success on the box office.

<i>Krantiveer</i> 1994 Hindi film by Mehul Kumar

Krantiveer is a 1994 Indian Hindi-language action crime film directed and produced by Mehul Kumar. The film stars Nana Patekar, Dimple Kapadia, Atul Agnihotri, Mamta Kulkarni in the lead roles. Farida Jalal, Paresh Rawal, Tinu Anand, Danny Denzongpa are in supporting roles. It became the third highest-grossing film of the year, additionally winning three Star Screen Awards, four Filmfare Awards and one National Film Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vivek Agnihotri</span> Indian director, screenwriter and author

Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri is an Indian film director, film producer, screenwriter and author who works in Hindi cinema. As of 2022, he is a member of the board of India's Central Board of Film Certification and a cultural representative of Indian Cinema at the Indian Council for Cultural Relations.

<i>Buddha in a Traffic Jam</i> 2014 Indian film

Buddha in a Traffic Jam is a 2016 Indian political thriller film written and directed by Vivek Agnihotri. The film released nationwide on 13 May 2016.

<i>Welcome Back</i> (film) 2015 film by Anees Bazmee

Welcome Back is a 2015 Indian Hindi-language action crime comedy film directed by Anees Bazmee and produced by Firoz A. Nadiadwala with Eros International serving as distributor and co-producer. A sequel to the 2007 film Welcome, it features an ensemble cast that includes Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, John Abraham, Shruti Haasan, Shiney Ahuja, Ankita Srivastava in her debut, with Dimple Kapadia, Paresh Rawal and Naseeruddin Shah. While Kapoor, Patekar, Rawal, Karnik, Irani, Josh, Dabi, Khan and Ranjeet have reprised their roles from the previous film, Abraham and Hassan are new additions to the lead cast. Made on a budget of ₹88 crore, the film was largely shot in and around Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Welcome Back was released worldwide on 4 September 2015.

Dr.Balram Bhargava is an Indian physician scientist, cardiologist, medical educationist, and innovator. He is currently serving as the Chief of Cardiothoracic Centre, AIIMS. He is the former Director General at the Indian Council of Medical Research, New Delhi and secretary of the Department of Health Research; a division under Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

<i>Natsamrat</i> 2016 Indian film

Natasamrāt is a 2016 Indian Marathi-language drama film starring Nana Patekar in the leading role. Based on a play by the same written by playwright Kusumagraj, the film depicts the tragic family life of a stage actor who has retired from acting but is unable to forget his fond memories of theatre and the stage.

<i>Kaala</i> (2018 film) 2018 Indian Tamil-language action drama film

Kaala (also marketed as Kaala Karikalan; transl. Black) is a 2018 Indian Tamil-language action drama film directed by Pa. Ranjith and produced by Wunderbar Films. The film stars Rajinikanth in the titular role, alongside Nana Patekar, Eswari Rao, Huma Qureshi, Samuthirakani, Anjali Patil, K. Manikandan, Dileepan, and late Nitish Veera. It follows Karikalan "Kaala", the leader of Dharavi, who tries save his land and people from getting seized and evicted by Haridev "Hari Dhadha", former gangster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hombale Films</span> Indian film studio

Hombale Films is an Indian film production company mainly known for the K.G.F franchise, Kantara and Salaar. It was founded by Vijay Kiragandur and named by Puneeth Rajkumar, who collaborated with the company on 3 films.

<i>The Kashmir Files</i> 2022 Hindi film by Vivek Agnihotri

The Kashmir Files is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language drama film written and directed by Vivek Agnihotri. The film presents a fictional storyline centred around the 1990 exodus of Kashmiri Hindus from Indian-administered Kashmir. It depicts the exodus and the events leading up to it as a genocide, a framing considered inaccurate by scholars. The film claims that such facts were suppressed by a conspiracy of silence.

<i>Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire</i> 2023 Indian film

Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire (transl. Commander) is a 2023 Indian Telugu-language epic action film written and directed by Prashanth Neel and produced by Vijay Kiragandur. It stars Prabhas and Prithviraj Sukumaran, with a supporting cast that includes Shruti Haasan, Jagapathi Babu, Bobby Simha, Tinnu Anand, Easwari Rao, Sriya Reddy and Ramachandra Raju. Set in the fictional dystopian city-state of Khansaar, the film follows the friendship between Deva (Prabhas), a tribesman, and Varadha (Prithviraj), the prince of Khansaar. When a coup d'état is planned by his father's ministers and his relatives, Varadha enlists Deva's help to become Khansaar's undisputed ruler.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nana Patekar filmography</span>

Nana Patekar is an actor, writer, and film maker, mainly working in Hindi and Marathi cinema.

Pragya D. Yadav is an Indian scientist at the ICMR-National Institute of Virology (NIV), who is known for her research contributions in the field of communicable diseases and highly pathogenic viral infections, such as Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF), Nipah, Ebola, leading to improvising national public health surveillance policy for interventions and management. Yadav is among the scientists who detected the first three COVID-19 pandemic cases in India. She headed the team that developed Covaxin, the first indigenous COVID-19 vaccine in India

Bharateeyans is an upcoming Indian Hindi-language action film written & directed by Deena Raj. The film features actors from across India such as Nirroze Putcha, Subha Ranjan, Sonam Thendup Barphungpa, Samaira Sandhu, Peden O Namgyal, Suyash Pachauri, and Rajeswari Chakraborty in lead roles, and is Produced by Shankar N Adusumilli under his "Bharat American Creations" banner while Satya Kashyap is composing the music and cinematography by Jayapal Reddy Nimmala. The First look and Teaser of the film were launched on 13 August 2022, In the presence of Vivek Agnihotri the director of film The Kashmir Files and the film was expected to release on 14 July 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sapthami Gowda</span> Indian actress

Sapthami Gowda is an Indian actress who works primarily in Kannada Cinema. She made her acting debut with the 2020 film Popcorn Monkey Tiger directed by Duniya Suri and is known for her role of Leela in Kantara, directed by Rishab Shetty in 2022.

References

  1. ↑ "EXCLUSIVE: The Vaccine War Runtime 160 Minutes And Replacement By Censor – Chu**ya With Bewaqoof, Mandir With Vishwaguru, Reference Of PM As Viswaguru". 20 August 2023. Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
  2. ↑ "Vivek Agnihotri Says Shah Rukh Khan's 'Jawan' Will Be 'All Time Blockbuster', Talks About 'The Vaccine War' Clash With 'Salaar'". ABP News . 13 July 2023. Archived from the original on 14 July 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  3. 1 2 "The Vaccine War Box office". Bollywood Hungama . 28 September 2023. Archived from the original on 1 October 2023. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  4. ↑ डेस्क, एबीपी एंटरटेनमेंट (15 August 2023). "विवेक रंजन अग्निहोत्री ने 'द वैक्सीन वॉर' का शानदार टीज़र रिलीज". ABP News (in Hindi). Archived from the original on 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri's 'The Vaccine War' to release in September, teaser out". The Times of India . 15 August 2023. ISSN   0971-8257. Archived from the original on 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  6. ↑ "Fukrey 3 box office collection is Rs 66.15 crore, The Vaccine War folds up with Rs 47 lakh despite PM Modi's mention". 6 October 2023.
  7. ↑ "Indian Panorama 2023 Announces Official Selection for 54th IFFI, 2023". Press Information Bureau. 23 October 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2023– via press release.
  8. 1 2 "The Vaccine War teaser: Vivek Agnihotri shows intigruing glimpse of India's Covid-19 battle, sets up clash with Salaar". DNA India . Archived from the original on 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 "Vivek Agnihotri announces The Vaccine War release date with teaser. Watch". Hindustan Times . 15 August 2023. Archived from the original on 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  10. ↑ "Anupam Kher, Nana Patekar's The Vaccine War to clash with Prabhas' Salaar at the box office". Firstpost . 15 August 2023. Archived from the original on 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  11. ↑ sanjana. "'The Vaccine War' Teaser OUT: Nana Patekar in Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri's directorial peaks fan curiosity". Asianet News . Archived from the original on 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  12. ↑ "The Vaccine War trailer: It's Indian scientists vs naysayers in Vivek Agnihotri's next film". Hindustan Times. 12 September 2023. Archived from the original on 21 September 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  13. ↑ "The Vaccine War teaser: Vivek Agnihotri presents India's first Bio-Science movie on creating Covaxin, film to clash with Salaar". The Indian Express . 15 August 2023. Archived from the original on 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  14. ↑ Hungama, Bollywood (23 November 2023). "EXCLUSIVE: The Vaccine War OTT rights sold at Rs. 35 crores : Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama . Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  15. ↑ "The Vaccine War Finally Makes Its OTT Debut; Vivek Agnihotri-Directorial Is Streaming On This Digital Platform". English Jagran. 24 November 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
  16. 1 2 "The Vaccine War – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Jiosaavn. 25 September 2023. Archived from the original on 25 September 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
  17. ↑ "The Vaccine War Movie Review: Vivek Agnihotri Blends Science With Emotions In Fitting Tribute To Unsung Pandemic Heroes". TimesNow. 28 September 2023. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  18. ↑ "The Vaccine War movie review: Vivek Agnihotri's tribute to Covid warriors, and atmanirbharta". The Indian Express. 28 September 2023. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  19. ↑ "The Vaccine War Review: Vivek Agnihotri's film is relevant but not without flaws". India Today. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  20. ↑ "The Vaccine War Movie Review : Not coronavirus, media's the real villain in this one-sided medical drama". The Times of India. ISSN   0971-8257. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  21. ↑ Arikatla, Venkat (29 September 2023). "'The Vaccine War' Review: Overdose of propagandist torture". greatandhra.com. Archived from the original on 29 September 2023. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  22. ↑ Kumar, Manoj; Sachan, Manish (24 October 2023). "Government mouthpiece and media agenda: review of the film The Vaccine War". Media Asia: 1–7. doi:10.1080/01296612.2023.2272364. ISSN   0129-6612. S2CID   264504938.
  23. ↑ Kumar, Anuj (28 September 2023). "'The Vaccine War' movie review: Nana Patekar and Pallavi Joshi drive this toolkit of a film". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  24. ↑ Ramnath, Nandini (28 September 2023). "'The Vaccine War' review: The real battle is elsewhere". Scroll.in. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  25. ↑ Kukreja, Monika Rawal (28 September 2023). "The Vaccine War review: A tale of courage, conviction and science loaded with ace performances". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  26. ↑ N, Guruprasad D. "The Vaccine War| Vaccine nationalism with a dose of misinformation". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  27. ↑ Ramachandran, Avinash (28 September 2023). "The Vaccine War Movie Review: This compelling film that goes to both expected and unexpected places". Cinema Express . Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  28. ↑ Jaiswal, Pooja Biraia (28 September 2023). "'The Vaccine War' review: An engaging portrayal of the pandemic". The Week. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  29. ↑ Sadhwani, Garima (29 September 2023). "Honest Review: Why 'The Vaccine War' Is Not the Story of India's Scientists". TheQuint. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  30. ↑ Mishra, Pratikshya (28 September 2023). "'The Vaccine War' Review: An Effective Tale of Heroism for the Most Part". TheQuint. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  31. ↑ Sanap, Mayur (28 September 2023). "The Vaccine War Review: Absorbing Drama". Rediff. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  32. ↑ Roy, Lachmi Deb (28 September 2023). "Vivek Agnihotri & Nana Patekar's The Vaccine War Movie Review". Firstpost. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  33. ↑ "Fukrey 3 On Course To Be a HIT - The Vaccine War". Box Office India . 20 January 2023. Archived from the original on 5 October 2023. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.