India's Most Wanted (film)
India's Most Wanted is a 2019 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film[5] directed by Raj Kumar Gupta, and starring Arjun Kapoor.[6] The film is about tracking a terrorist in a secret mission and arresting him without firing bullets.[7] India's Most Wanted is inspired by the arrest of proscribed organisation Indian Mujahideen (IM) terrorist Yasin Bhatkal,[8] also referred to as India's Osama Bin Laden, near the India-Nepal border in August 2013.[9][10]
India's Most Wanted | |
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Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Raj Kumar Gupta |
Produced by |
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Written by | Raj Kumar Gupta |
Starring |
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Music by | Amit Trivedi |
Cinematography | Dudley |
Edited by |
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Production company |
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Distributed by | Fox Star Studios |
Release date |
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Running time | 123 minutes[2] |
Country | India |
Language | Hindi |
Budget | ₹37 crore[3] |
Box office | est. ₹16.74 crore[4] |
Principal photography of the film began in May 2018 and wrapped up in November 2018. The soundtrack was composed by Amit Trivedi, with lyrics written by Amitabh Bhattacharya, and released under the banner Saregama. The film was theatrically released in India on 24 May 2019, receiving mixed reviews.
Cast
- Arjun Kapoor as Prabhat Kumar
- Sudev Nair as Yusuf
- Rajesh Sharma as Rajesh Singh, Joint Director of Intelligence Bureau
- Prashanth Alexander as Rudra Pillai
- Shantilal Mukherjee as Shaumik Biswas
- Devendra Mishra as Javed Sheikh
- Gaurav Mishra as Amit Gupta
- Aasif Khan as Bittu Mishra
- Bajrangbali Singh as Ravi Bhakre
- Pravin Singh Sisodia as Manish
- Rajiv Kachroo as Dev Kapur
- Jitendra Shastri as Laluji (the Informant)
- Shakti Rawal as Fareed
- Mihir Das as Pakistani Embassy Receptionist
Production
The film was announced in May 2018. After the success of Raid, Gupta confirmed that he was working on two scripts. Among them one is a detective crime thriller. Arjun Kapoor was the only choice for the leading role.[11]
Principal photography
Principal photography of the film began in May 2018. The shooting of India's Most Wanted took place in Bihar in Gol Ghar, Kali Ghat, NIT Ghat, Kargil Chowk (near Gandhi Maidan) and Bahadurpur Housing Colony.[12] Some portions of the film were shot in Nepal (Raxaul Nepal-India border of Birganj District of Nepal, Pokhara and Kathmandu). Principal photography ended in November 2018.[13]
Soundtrack
India's Most Wanted | |||||
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Soundtrack album by | |||||
Released | 24 May 2019 [14] | ||||
Recorded | 2018 | ||||
Genre | Feature film soundtrack | ||||
Length | 15:07 | ||||
Language | Hindi | ||||
Label | Saregama | ||||
Amit Trivedi chronology | |||||
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The film's soundtrack was composed by Amit Trivedi, with lyrics written by Amitabh Bhattacharya, and released under the banner Saregama.
No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Akela" | Abhijeet Srivastava | 4:01 |
2. | "Vande Mataram" | Papon, Altamash Faridi | 3:42 |
3. | "Dilbar Jani" | Dev Negi, Nikhita Gandhi | 3:10 |
4. | "Matvaare" | Jubin Nautiyal, Sanah Moidutty | 4:14 |
Total length: | 15:07 |
Marketing and release
The teaser poster of the film was released on 15 April 2019.[15] Another teaser poster of the film was released on 16 April 2019. The official teaser of the film was premiered on 16 April 2019 by Fox Star Studios on YouTube.[16][17] The official trailer of the film was premiered on 2 May 2019 by Fox Star Studios on YouTube.[18][19] Rajkumar Gupta confirms removal of controversial religious references in India’s Most Wanted.[20]
The film has been certified with runtime of 123 mins by British Board of Film Classification and released on 24 May 2019.[2]
Reception
Critical response
Rahul Gangwani reviewing for Filmfare rates the film with three stars out of five. He praised cinematography of the film for aerial shots, but feels that film was using more of national fervour and lacked craft. He terms the film as 'part-predictable and part-thrilling' fare.[21] Ananya Bhattacharya of India Today also praised cinematography of Dudley for Nepal shots and gave two and half stars out of five. She feels that the film suffers from a sluggish pace, but lives up to promise of telling the story of the nameless and faceless heroes.[22] Shubhra Gupta writing for The Indian Express gives two stars out of five. Terming it as 'a placid spy thriller', Gupta praised Arjun Kapoor for giving earnest performance.[23] Priyanka Sinha Jha of News18 rates the film with three stars out of five, and opines that the film has a good story, but it is not fully mined. She concludes, "It is more likely to make it to your stay-at-home-and-watch list."[24] Meena Iyer of Daily News and Analysis concurring with Jha, says "the intention can be lauded, but definitely not the execution." And, she also gives three stars out of five.[25] Nandini Ramnath of Scroll.in feels that the manhunt film is overheated, undercooked and doesn't have enough substance to justify its flourishes.[26] Renuka Vyavahare of The Times of India rates the film with three and half stars out of five, and says, "India’s Most Wanted is an earnest ode to the unsung heroes of our country — a story that deserves to be heard."[27] Raja Sen of the Hindustan Times feels that this intelligence film is not bright and says, "...well-meaning thriller too restrained to be memorable." He rates it with two stars out of five.[28] Bollywood Hungama rates the film with three out of five, and says, "On the whole, India’S Most Wanted is an average fare thanks to its poor writing and direction."[29]
Box office
The film collected ₹1.75-2 crore nett on its opening day, and was the lowest-performing film among all others released in India on that day.[30] The following day, it earned ₹2.5 crore nett.[31] Collections on Sunday showed minor growth with earnings of ₹3 crore.[32] The film had a heavy drop on Monday, with earnings of ₹90 lakh nett.[33] On Tuesday, the film dropped further to ₹75 lakh nett.[34] It earned ₹65 lakh nett on Wednesday and ₹40 lakh nett on Thursday.[35] At the end of its theatrical run, the film's worldwide gross was ₹16.74 crore worldwide, with earnings of ₹14.17 crore in India and ₹2.57 crore overseas.[4]
References
- "Arjun Kapoor begins shooting for India's Most Wanted, announces release date". Hindustan Times. 11 August 2018. Archived from the original on 20 November 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- India's Most Wanted, British Board of Film Classification, archived from the original on 20 June 2019, retrieved 20 May 2019
- "Box Office Report: 'India's Most Wanted', 'PM Narendra Modi' receive poor opening; 'Aladdin' beats both Bollywood movies". DNA. 25 May 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
- "India's Most Wanted Box Office Collection till Now". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 3 June 2019. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
- "India's Most Wanted (2019) - Raj Kumar Gupta". AllMovie. Archived from the original on 29 June 2019. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
- Raman, Sruthi Ganapathy. "In 'India's Most Wanted', brain over brawn in hunt for a deadly terrorist". Scroll.in. Archived from the original on 7 May 2019. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
- "All you need to know about 'India's Osama' in Arjun Kapoor's India's Most Wanted". Hindustan Times. 17 April 2019. Archived from the original on 7 May 2019. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
- "Arjun Kapoor takes the thrill out of India's Most Wanted". www.telegraphindia.com. Archived from the original on 25 May 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- "India's Most Wanted: All you need to know about Yasin Bhatkal, the subject of Arjun Kapoor's film- Entertainment News, Firstpost". Firstpost. 16 May 2019. Archived from the original on 27 May 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- "'India's Most Wanted' review: The film is an earnest attempt to tell the tale of India's unsung heroes". 27 May 2019. Archived from the original on 2 July 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019 – via The Economic Times.
- "Arjun Kapoor is looking for India's Most Wanted, to play intelligence officer". Hindustan Times. 11 May 2018. Archived from the original on 15 April 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- "Patna an ideal place for film shoot, says Arjun | Patna News - Times of India". The Times of India.
- "Arjun Kapoor wraps up shooting for Raj Kumar Gupta's 'India's Most Wanted'". Times of India. 12 November 2018. Archived from the original on 11 May 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- "India's Most Wanted - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Jio Saavn. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- "'India's Most Wanted': Arjun Kapoor piques curiosity of his fans with the teaser poster of his next". Times of India. 15 April 2019. Archived from the original on 11 May 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- "Teaser of Arjun Kapoor-starrer 'India's Most Wanted' out now". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 8 May 2019. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- "India's Most Wanted - Official Teaser - Arjun Kapoor - Rajkumar Gupta -24th May 2019". FoxStarHindi on YouTube. 16 April 2019.
- "India's Most Wanted trailer: Arjun Kapoor leads team of unlikely spies to hunt down a terror mastermind- Entertainment News, Firstpost". Firstpost. 2 May 2019. Archived from the original on 8 May 2019. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- "India's Most Wanted - Official Trailer - Arjun Kapoor - Rajkumar Gupta -24th May 2019". FoxStarHindi on YouTube. 2 May 2019.
- "Rajkumar Gupta confirms the removal of controversial religious references in India's Most Wanted". Bollywood Hungama. 20 May 2019. Archived from the original on 20 May 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
- Gangwani, Rahul (24 May 2019). "Movie Review:India's Most Wanted". Filmfare. Archived from the original on 24 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- Bhattacharya, Ananya (24 May 2019). "India's Most Wanted Movie Review: Arjun Kapoor leads a manhunt in tepid thriller". India Today. Archived from the original on 24 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- Gupta, Shubhra (24 May 2019). "India's Most Wanted movie review: A placid spy thriller". Indian Express. Archived from the original on 24 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- Sinha Jha, Priyanka (24 May 2019). "India's Most Wanted Review: Arjun Kapoor's Film Cuts to the Chase Minus Thrills". News18. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- Iyer, Meena (24 May 2019). "'India's Most Wanted' Review: Arjun Kapoor's film is more drab than deadly!". Daily News and Analysis. Archived from the original on 24 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- "'India's Most Wanted' movie review: This terrorist manhunt is overheated and undercooked". Scroll.in. 24 May 2019. Archived from the original on 24 May 2019. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
- Vyavahare, Renuka (24 May 2019). "INDIA'S MOST WANTED MOVIE REVIEW". Times of India. Archived from the original on 24 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- Sen, Raja (24 May 2019). "India's Most Wanted movie review: This Arjun Kapoor film about intelligence isn't particularly bright". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
- "India's Most Wanted Movie Review". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 24 May 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- Singh, Harminder (25 May 2019). "Aladin Takes Out Indias Most Wanted And Modi". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 18 June 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
- Singh, Harminder (26 May 2019). "Aladdin Decent Second Day - Modi And Indias Most Wanted Dull". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 7 July 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
- Singh, Harminder (27 May 2019). "Aladdin Dominates Indias Most Wanted And PM Narendra Modi". Box Office India. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- Singh, Harminder (28 May 2019). "Alladdin Decent - Indias Most Wanted And PM Narendra Modi Update". Box Office India. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
- Singh, Harminder (29 May 2019). "Aladdin PM Narendra Modi Indias Most Wanted Tuesday Numbers". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 12 July 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
- Singh, Harminder (31 May 2019). "Indias Most Wanted Very Poor - PM Narendra Modi Poor". Box Office India. Retrieved 2 June 2019.