War (2019 film)

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War
File:War official poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySiddharth Anand
Produced byAditya Chopra
Written byAbbas Tyrewala (dialogues)
Screenplay byShridhar Raghavan
Siddharth Anand
Story byAditya Chopra
Siddharth Anand
StarringHrithik Roshan
Tiger Shroff
Vaani Kapoor
Ashutosh Rana
Anupriya Goenka
Music by
CinematographyBenjamin Jasper
Edited byAarif Sheikh
Production
company
Distributed byYash Raj Films
Release date
  • 2 October 2019 (2019-10-02) (India)
Running time
154 minutes[1][2]
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Budget₹170 crore[3]
Box office₹475.5 crore[4]

War is a 2019 Indian Hindi-language action-thriller film directed by Siddharth Anand and written by Anand, Aditya Chopra, Shridhar Raghavan and Abbas Tyrewala. Produced by Yash Raj Films, the film is the third installment in the YRF Spy Universe. It stars Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff in lead roles with Vaani Kapoor, Ashutosh Rana and Anupriya Goenka playing supporting roles.[5] In the film, Khalid Rahmani (Shroff), an Indian soldier who works for RAW, is assigned to eliminate his former mentor Kabir Dhaliwal (Roshan), who has gone rogue.[6]

Principal photography commenced in September 2018 and wrapped up in March 2019. The film was initially Tentatively titled Fighters, but later on 15 July 2019, when its teaser was unveiled, the official name was announced as War. The film score and soundtrack album was scored by Vishal–Shekhar. War was released in theatres worldwide on 2 October 2019, coinciding to Gandhi Jayanti, with dubbed versions in Tamil and Telugu.[7]

The film received positive reviews from critics, with particular praise for Shroff's and Roshan's performance, direction, action sequences, VFX and musical score.[8] It broke all opening day and weekend box-office records for a Hindi film, with its collections, until it was surpassed by Pathaan (2023). War eventually emerged as a major financial success with a total gross of ₹475 crore (US$55 million), becoming the highest-grossing Indian film of 2019 and the 16th highest-grossing Indian film of all time.[9]

Plot[edit]

Major Kabir Dhaliwal kills V. K. Naidu, a veteran RAW agent, in New Delhi, instead of his assignment to kill Iraqi terrorist, Farid Haqqani. The agency, led by Defence Minister Sherna Patel and Colonel Sunil Luthra, summon Captain Khalid Rahmani, Kabir's protégé, to capture him.

Past: It is revealed that Khalid's father, Major Abdul Rahmani, betrayed the army in a previous mission, leaving Kabir with two gunshot wounds and his partner dead. Kabir then sought and killed Abdul for his betrayal. Reluctant to work with Khalid, Kabir eventually allows him to join his squad, consisting of RAW agents Saurabh, Prateek, Muthu, and Aditi, on a successful mission, in Tikrit, to kill a cell of Haqqani's associates. The group succeeds in arresting terrorist Basheer Hassib, in-turn causing their main target, Rizwan Ilyasi, a terrorist-cum-businessman, to come out of hiding. The squad reunite to target Ilyasi in Marrakesh, but as they capture him, he tells Kabir that he planted a mole in his team. Saurabh reveals himself as the mole, by killing Prateek and Muthu. This starts a rooftop chase, with Khalid chasing Saurabh. On the ground, a shootout ensues between Kabir and Ilyasi's men, and Kabir gets shot, temporarily knocking him out. He wakes up at the hospital a few days later and meets a severely injured Khalid, who tells him that he killed Saurabh.

Present: Khalid is nearly taken off the mission to capture Kabir, when Jimmy Shroff, a Lieutenant colonel, is murdered by Kabir. Kabir then organizes a public meeting with Khalid on the train, informing him that his next target is Dr. Utpal Biswas. Later in Lisbon, Khalid is unable to prevent Biswas from being killed by Kabir. After the incident, Khalid is suspended by RAW. Khalid tracks Kabir down through a previous case; he learns Kabir is on a covert mission to find a government hard drive with secret codes, and is targeting Ilyasi’s known associates. Khalid also learns Kabir faked a relationship with Naina Sahni, a dancer, to get her to spy on Firoze Contractor, one of Iliyasi's previous associates. Naina was ultimately murdered by Firoze, who Kabir deduces is actually Ilyasi, who took on Firoze's identity following a plastic surgery by Dr. Mallika Singhal. Kabir and Khalid agree to work together, but Kabir's hideout is attacked; they escape and reach Kerala, to Aditi's wedding, and recover a hard drive with the secret codes. Kabir hands the drive to Khalid, for safekeeping.

Later, while celebrating the mission's success on a houseboat, Khalid poisons Kabir by lacing TTX in his drink. It is revealed that Khalid was ultimately shot dead by Ilyasi, during their mission in Marrakesh. Saurabh then underwent a plastic surgery by Dr. Mallika Singhal, to disguise himself as Khalid. Saurabh throws Kabir into the river and returns to Ilyasi, who is based on a heavily armed icebreaker ship, in the Arctic Circle. Kabir then parachutes aboard, eliminating Ilyasi’s militia. Kabir tells Saurabh he knew that he was not Khalid, having seen him shoot perfectly from his right side and drink alcohol. Khalid lacked peripheral vision in his right eye, owing to a bullying incident in his childhood and refused to drink alcohol, due to religious beliefs. Kabir acquired an antidote to TTX from Aditi and inserted a tracker in the drive, which he handed over to Saurabh, for safekeeping. Saurabh shoots Ilyasi dead and escapes the ship to a derelict church. A brutal fight between Kabir and Saurabh culminates with Kabir killing him by collapsing the church's dome onto him.

Khalid is posthumously honoured for his bravery and sacrifice, while his mother, Nafeesa, receives an award from the Prime Minister, on his behalf. Kabir, who is still officially designated a traitor by both the army and RAW, now takes care of Ruhi, Naina's daughter. After having a chat with Luthra, Kabir agrees to a covert mission to kill Haqqani. Later, Kabir and Ruhi surf together at Bondi Beach in Sydney, fulfilling Naina's wish of surfing with her.

Cast[edit]

Production[edit]

Development[edit]

On Yash Chopra's birth anniversary, Yash Raj Films announced a new action film starring Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff.[10] Vaani Kapoor was finalised to play the female lead.[11][12] Two international action choreographers from Hollywood and Korea were employed to design action sequences.[13]

The climax scene of the film was shot on the Arctic Circle, becoming the first-ever Indian film to do so.[citation needed] Siddharth Anand, the director of the film stated, "We want to push the benchmark of action movies that are made in our country. So, we are bringing two of the biggest action choreographers together to design some of the most outlandish and visually-spectacular sequences. On one hand, we have Andy R Armstrong from Hollywood and on the other, we have Mr SeaYoung Oh, who is an outstanding martial arts action choreographer from South Korea."[13]

Filming[edit]

Principal photography began in the second week of September 2018.[14] The film also has a dance off between the two stars in the song "Jai Jai Shivshankar".[15] The film schedule was wrapped up in the beginning of March 2019.[16] The film has been shot in multiple exotic locations at Delhi, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Portugal, Italy, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland and Georgia. The bike chase sequence between the two stars was filmed in Portugal. The car chase sequence which is the climax of the film was shot at the Arctic Circle.

Music[edit]

War
File:War 2019 film album cover.jpeg
Soundtrack album by
Vishal–Shekhar
Released30 September 2019[17]
Recorded2018–19
StudioVishal and Shekhar Studio
YRF Studios
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length14:24
LabelYRF Music
ProducerAditya Chopra
Vishal–Shekhar chronology
Bharat
(2019) 		War
(2019) 		Khaali Peeli
(2020)
External audio
Official Audio Jukebox at YouTube

The music of the film is composed by Vishal–Shekhar, with lyrics written by Kumaar. All themes are composed by Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara.

Track listing
No. TitleSinger(s) Length
1. "Ghungroo"  Arijit Singh, Shilpa Rao 5:02
2. "Jai Jai Shivshankar"  Vishal Dadlani, Benny Dayal 3:50
3. "War Theme"  Instrumental 2:00
4. "Kabir's Theme"  Instrumental 1:39
5. "Khalid's Theme" (Instrumental)Vishal Dadlani 1:53
Total length:
 14:24

Release[edit]

The film was released on 2 October 2019, coinciding with the Gandhi Jayanti.[18]

Reception[edit]

Box office[edit]

War opened with collection of ₹53.35 crore on its first day. It was the highest opening day collection for Hindi film.[9] On the second day it collected ₹24.35 crore, On the third day it collected ₹22.45 crore, taking its total collection to ₹100.15 crore.[19] War has already created six new records as the film reaches to 100 crore mark at the box-office.[20] The film entered the 100 Crore Club in three days of its release.[21] The extended opening weekend collection of the film at ₹166.25 crore is the highest opening weekend collection for any 2019 Bollywood film.[22] The film by crossing ₹200 crore in its opening week has become the fastest Bollywood film of 2019 to achieve the feat.[23]

As of now, with gross of ₹378.46 crore from India and ₹97.04 crore from overseas, the film has grossed ₹475.50 crore worldwide,[24] and has become the highest-grossing Indian film of 2019.[21][25]

Critical response[edit]

War received generally positive reviews from critics; on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 72% based on 15 reviews, with an average rating of 7/10.[26]

Among positive reviews, Anupama Chopra said "War is a popcorn entertainer and you can't ask too many questions but if you're willing to suspend disbelief, the twists and turns exert a solid grip."[27] A writer for Bollywood Hungama gave the film four stars out of five, and said "War is an action entertainer which has style as well as enough twists and turns to keep the viewers engrossed. At the box office, the extended weekend, dazzling action, stunning international locales and stylish execution will ensure mammoth footfalls for the film".[28] Taran Adarsh gave it four stars out of five and called the film "[e]scapist cinema at its best".[29] Komal Nahta of Film Information opined, "The film could prove to be the starting of a new franchise for the Yash Raj Films banner".[30] Writing for India TV, Sonal gave the film three and a half stars out of five, writing, "Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff of Abbas Mustan kinda twists, turns, characters, situations, logic, gravity, physics, chemistry, and some Ekta Kapoor-esque tricks all tossed together to make a visually spectacular concoction".[31] Rajeev Masand of News18 gave the film two and a half out of five stars and said, "Both Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff fully commit to the action, bringing swag to the big stylish sequences and a visceral energy to the one-on-one punch-ups in the movie."[32]

Among the reviewers who granted the film mixed reviews, The Times of India rated it three stars out of five and felt the film had "lot of style, stunts and show, but lacking a solid storyline".[33] India Today rated it two and a half stars out of five and wrote, "War is a crowd-puller, but it isn't meant to further the cause of cinema".[34] Daily News and Analysis gave three stars out of five and wrote, "War seems more like a Hrithik Roshan and YRF come back than anything else".[35] Writing for The Indian Express, Shubhra Gupta granted the film two stars out of five, stating, "The chief trouble with War is that all the space is divvied up between Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff, that the poor baddies don't really get a chance".[36] Writing for Firstpost, Anna M. M. Vetticad gave two stars out of five, opining that the film "could have been a suspenseful, eyecatching, entertaining ride. But for its politics... [it] is a painfully condescending ode to Muslim loyalty to our vatan, an ode that is particularly cynical and offensive".[37] Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave the film one and a half stars out of five and stated, "Powered by two loose-limbed and resolutely stone-faced male leads, Hrithik and Tiger, War is all style and no substance".[38]

Accolades[edit]

Award[lower-alpha 1] Date of ceremony[lower-alpha 2] Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Filmfare Awards 15 February 2020 Best Film Aditya Chopra Nominated [39]
[40]
[41]
[42]
Best Director Siddharth Anand Nominated
Best Female Playback Singer Shilpa Rao ("Ghunghroo") Won
Best Choreography Bosco–Caesar ("Jai Jai Shiv Shankar") Nominated
Bosco–Caesar & Tushar Kalia ("Ghunghroo") Nominated
Best Action Paul Jennings
Oh Sea Young
Parvez Shaikh
Franz Spilhaus 		Won
Best Special Effects Sherry Bharda
Vishal Anand For YFX 		Won
International Indian Film Academy Awards 27–29 November 2020 Best Music Director Vishal–Shekhar Nominated [43]
[44]
Best Male Playback Singer Arijit Singh ("Ghunghroo") Nominated
Best Female Playback Singer Shilpa Rao ("Ghunghroo") Nominated
Sound Mixing Anuj Mathur – YRF Studios
Pritam Das 		Won
Best Choreography Bosco–Caesar & Tushar Kalia ("Ghunghroo") Won
Best Special Effects YFX (YRF Studios) Won
Mirchi Music Awards 19 February 2020 Song of The Year "Ghungroo" Nominated [45]
Female Vocalist of The Year Shilpa Rao ("Ghunghroo") Nominated
Song Engineer – Recording & Mixing Abhay Rumde & Vijay Dayal ("Ghunghroo") Nominated
Screen Awards 8 December 2019 Best Film War Nominated [46]
Best Director Siddharth Anand Nominated
Best Actor Hrithik Roshan Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Vaani Kapoor Nominated
Best Choreography Bosco–Caesar
Tushar Kalia ("Ghunghroo") 		Won
Best Action Paul Jennings
Oh Sea Young
Parvez Shaikh
Franz Spilhaus 		Won
Best Editing Aarif Sheikh Won
Zee Cine Awards 13 March 2020 Best Action Paul Jennings
Oh Sea Young
Parvez Shaikh
Franz Spilhaus 		Won [47]
Best Choreography Bosco–Caesar ("Jai Jai Shiv Shankar") Won
Best Special Effects YFX (YRF Studios) Won

Future[edit]

Main article: YRF Spy Universe

At a launch party for War, Anand confirmed that he was working on the script of its sequel and had plans to convert the film into a franchise, depending on the audience response to the film.[48]

Notes[edit]

  1. ↑ Awards, festivals and organizations are in Alphabetical order.
  2. ↑ Date is linked to the article about the awards held that year, wherever possible.

References[edit]

  1. ↑ "WAR (2019)". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  2. ↑ "Certificate detail". Central Board of Film Certification.
  3. ↑ "War Economics: Yash Raj Films makes a whopping 170 cr. as profits; approx. 100 cr. share for Hrithik Roshan". Bollywood Hungama. 21 October 2019. Retrieved 21 September 2022. Made on a budget of Rs. 170 cr. [CoP Rs. 150 cr. + P&A Rs. 20 cr.]
  4. ↑ "War Box Office". Bollywood Hungama.
  5. ↑ "WAR (2019)". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  6. ↑ "War Economics: Yash Raj Films makes a whopping 169.9 cr. as profits; approx. 100 cr. share for Hrithik Roshan". Bollywood Hungama. 21 October 2019. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
  7. ↑ Hungama, Bollywood (21 October 2019). "War Economics: Yash Raj Films makes a whopping 170 cr. as profits; approx. 100 cr. share for Hrithik Roshan :Bollywood Box Office – Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama.
  8. ↑ "Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff starrer War to be screened in 4DX: Latest Bollywood News". The Prime Time. 10 September 2019.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "War Box Office Collection Day 1: Hrithik-Tiger Film Becomes Highest Opener Ever, Earns Rs 53.35 Crore". News18. 3 October 2019.
  10. ↑ "BREAKING: Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff to star in Yash Raj Films' Next". Bollywood Hungama. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  11. ↑ "I Don't Think Anyone Will Look at Me: Vaani Kapoor on Doing a Film with Hrithik Rohan, Tiger Shroff". News 18. 22 August 2018. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  12. ↑ "Vaani Kapoor on dance-off with Tiger and Hrithik: I stand no chance". Indian Express. 21 August 2018. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Two international action choreographers roped in for Hrithik Roshan-Tiger Shroff's action film". DNA. 31 July 2018. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  14. ↑ Pathak, Vedanshi (5 September 2018). "Tiger Shroff and Hrithik Roshan begin shooting for their venture with YRF". Filmfare. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  15. ↑ "Tiger Shroff and Hrithik Roshan dance-off in next film: Confirmed". India Today. 1 May 2019. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  16. ↑ "Hrithik Roshan And Tiger Shroff Wrap Schedule For Siddharth Anand's Film. See Pics". NDTV. 3 March 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  17. ↑ "War – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Jio Saavn. 30 September 2019.
  18. ↑ "Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff's action film to release on October 2, 2019". Hindustan Times. 3 February 2018. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  19. ↑ "War Second Day Business – Box Office India". boxofficeindia.com.
  20. ↑ "'War' box office: Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff starrer creates 6 new records as it inches closer to 100-crore mark – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 5 October 2019.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "Bollywood Top Grossers Worldwide Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  22. ↑ "War box office collection Day 5: Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff film earns Rs 166.25 crore". India Today. 7 October 2019.
  23. ↑ "'War' box office collection Day 7: The Tiger Shroff and Hrithik Roshan starrer checks into the 200-crore club". Times of India. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
  24. ↑ "War Box Office". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
  25. ↑ Hungama, Bollywood (7 October 2019). "War Box Office Day 5 Collections: The Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff starrer goes on rampage on Sunday, records huge collections :Bollywood Box Office – Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  26. ↑ "WAR". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  27. ↑ Chopra, Anupama (2 October 2019). "War Movie Review: A Battle Won By Hrithik Roshan's Beauty". Film Companion. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  28. ↑ "Movie Review: War". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  29. ↑ adarsh, taran (2 October 2019). "#OneWordReview... #War: BLOCKBUSTER. Escapist cinema at its best... Aces: Hrithik and Tiger's power-packed act and chemistry + dazzling action pieces + stunning visual appeal + ample thrills, twists, suspense... Dear BO, get ready for the typhoon. #WarReviewpic.twitter.com/iHGtaSk8cl". @taran_adarsh. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  30. ↑ Information, Film. "'WAR' | 2 October 2019 – Film Information". Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  31. ↑ "War movie review: Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff's film is a flawed spectacle". IndiaTV.
  32. ↑ Masand, Rajeev (3 October 2019). "War Movie Review: Hrithik Roshan-Tiger Shroff Film Gives You Your Money's Worth". News18.2.5/5 stars
  33. ↑ "War Movie Review {3/5}: Lot of style, stunts and show, but lacks a solid storyline". The Times of India.
  34. ↑ Nairita Mukherjee (2 October 2019). "War Movie Review: Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff film is 154 minutes of only action". India Today.
  35. ↑ "'WAR' Review: Hrithik Roshan treats Tiger Shroff as collateral damage". DNAIndia. 2 October 2019.
  36. ↑ "War movie review: Hrithik Roshan starrer is flashy but familiar". TheIndianExpress. 4 October 2019.
  37. ↑ "War movie review: Hrithik-Tiger starrer runs a loyalty test for Muslims under cover of an exciting action drama". Firstpost. 2 October 2019.
  38. ↑ "War Movie Review: Strictly For Fans Of Hrithik Roshan And Tiger Shroff". NDTV.
  39. ↑ "NOMINATIONS FOR 65TH AMAZON FILMFARE AWARDS 2020". Filmfare. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  40. ↑ "WINNERS OF THE 65TH AMAZON FILMFARE AWARDS 2020". Filmfare. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  41. ↑ "Technical Nominations for the 65th Amazon Filmfare Awards 2020". Filmfare. 31 January 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  42. ↑ "65th Amazon Filmfare Award 2020 Technical and Short Film award winners". Filmfare. 2 February 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  43. ↑ "IIFA Awards 2020: Here are the nominations!". International Indian Film Academy Awards. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  44. ↑ "IIFA Technical Awards 2020: All the Winners!". International Indian Film Academy Awards. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  45. ↑ "Nominations for the 12th Smule Mirchi Music Awards 2020". Mirchi Music Awards. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  46. ↑ "Screen Awards 2019 full winners list". India Today. 9 December 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  47. ↑ "Zee Cine Awards 2020 Winners List". ABP News. 14 March 2020. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  48. ↑ "War is Not Over Yet, Director Siddharth Anand Reveals a Sequel is in Works". 6 October 2019.

External links[edit]

Template:Siddharth Anand Template:YRF Spy Universe

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