Ek Tha Tiger

<p>Avinash ” ” Singh Rathore, an Indian intelligence officer working for the (RAW), is tasked with eliminating Rabinder, a fellow agent who has defected to ‘s (ISI), during a mission in . Disillusioned by the constant violence of his work, Tiger expresses a desire for a less combative assignment. His superior, Shenoy, subsequently sends him to to observe Anwar Jamal Kidwai, an Indian scientist suspected of sharing sensitive missile technology. Posing as Manish Chandra, a writer researching Indian academics abroad, Tiger travels to with his handler Gopi. He attempts to gain access to Kidwai by befriending Zoya Nazar Jung, the scientist’s part-time caretaker and a dance student at . Tiger and Zoya develop a rapport that evolves into a romantic relationship. She invites him to a college production of , which she has choreographed. Around the same time, Tiger is attacked by an unknown assailant, raising suspicions that his cover has been compromised. On the day of the play, Tiger spots the attacker and chases him through the city, ultimately stopping a accident in the process. Gopi simultaneously reports suspicious activity at Kidwai’s house. There, Tiger discovers that Zoya is in fact an ISI agent assigned to extract Kidwai’s research. Despite her refusal to defect, Tiger allows her to escape after fending off Feroz, an ISI agent revealed to be the mystery assailant. Back in India, Tiger requests to be removed from field duty and returns to internal analysis work. He later deciphers a coded ISI message with help from his colleague Bagga, realizing it is a signal from Zoya, who is expected to attend an upcoming conference in . The two reunite and decide to abandon their respective agencies. They travel to to mislead RAW and ISI and then flee to , , to begin a new life. Their presence in Havana is discovered after they are caught on during a incident. Spotted again at a boxing match, Zoya is eventually arrested by local authorities and handed over to ISI agents. Tiger, in collaboration with Gopi, orchestrates a plan to rescue her. During a staged , Tiger and Zoya escape aboard a , with Tiger sustaining a from Gopi, who allows them to flee. In the aftermath, Tiger calls Shenoy and states that he and Zoya will only return when India and Pakistan no longer require intelligence agencies to act against one another. An reveals that the couple is rumored to have been sighted in cities around the world, including , , , and . After was announced as director to a then-untitled action film, he approached with a draft of the screenplay. Although interested, Khan could not star in the film due to scheduling conflicts with (2011) and (2012). This allowed the film’s screenplay, which had been completed in November 2010, to undergo changes well into shooting, including as late as February 2012. In May 2011, several reports confirmed and would star in a film titled . It would be Khan’s first venture with , and the pair’s fourth film together, after (2005), (2007), and (2008). In order to begin filming, Khan had to postpone the development of , a yet unrealized project he began developing with his brother, . Khan was paid a reported (US$5.99 million) to star in the film. Kaif, who only appeared in one action film prior to (2008’s ), performed her own stunts. Kabir Khan wrote scenes specifically to include , considering it “a character of repute”; he had previously visited the university in mid-1995 to interview then Irish President . According to Avtar<br /> Panesar, Vice President of International Operations at Yash Raj, all locations were ultimately motivated by the screenplay, stating “if it fits the script, if it works, we then make use of the country as a location”. The rest of the cast was finalized over the following year; signed on in April 2012, while the film marks the Bollywood debut of , who previously appeared in Punjabi films. On 3 May 2012, a photography shoot was held with the cast. After release, the film was subject to a copyright dispute after writer Anand Panda lodged a police complaint, backed by the , claiming the filmmakers stole his screenplay. Kabir Khan and were sent under charges of cheating, criminal breach of trust, and violation of the . Khan and Chopra subsequently filed an appeal to the . In July 2012, a legal notice was served by the nephew of , a RAW agent known as Black Tiger, stating the film bears a striking to his uncle and his uncle’s life. The film’s production contained a number of delays. Initial reports said would begin in July 2011, but a spokesperson for Yash Raj Films announced production had been delayed due to budgeting concerns. Filming began in August 2011 in , but was postponed after Salman Khan underwent surgery for in the , and when some crew members in held a demonstration over filming conditions and a lack of payment. Filming resumed in September 2011 in , in and near the border with and . There, the crew faced security concerns when they were mistaken for a hostile threat by , and were required to lie down for ten minutes at gunpoint while the issue was being resolved. Production took place in Dublin between 10 September and 14 October 2011, with scenes between Khan and Shorey filmed on . According to Naoise Barry, the Irish Film Commissioner, and collectively sought to attract Bollywood productions to the country since 2004, citing India as an emerging market for tourism in Ireland. According to Aman Agrawal, a production executive for Yash Raj, Dublin was chosen to “allow the film to be international and encourage people outside India to connect to Bollywood” while maintaining “appeal to Indian audiences who love to see new places”. , Trinity College (which saw filming on campus for the first time in 20 years), and other agencies helped enable filming in the city by granting complimentary visas and allowing reduced costs with tax breaks. Production was halted altogether in early 2012 to account for script re-writes, abandoning production in in favor of an eventual crunch-schedule three-day period in . Filming ended in June 2012 in , . Stunt directors for (2002) coordinated the film’s action sequences, some of which were shot on location. Khan used a self-created fitness program titled ‘Dirty Running’ for 30 days to prepare for the role. Kaif completed her scenes without makeup. Filming also took place in , with the song “Lapaata” shot along the , the , , and . The film was the first Bollywood film to shoot in . Khan also appeared in a commercial for both Cuban and Irish tourism companies. was shot on film by cinematographer Aseem Mishra using a collection of cameras, including the , , and the , with Angenieux 24-290mm T2.8 and Zeiss Ultra Prime Lenses. composed six out of the film’s eight-song soundtrack, although the film’s end credits song “Mashallah” (and its ) was composed by . composed the film score after his previous associations with Khan on (2006) and (2009). , and wrote the lyrics, and its remixes were produced by Joshilay. The soundtrack was released by on 27 June 2012. The film’s poster was released in August 2011, and the first theatrical trailer was released in May 2012, debuting alongside the release of , another film produced by Yash Raj Films and Aditya Chopra. The trailer received over a million views on video sharing platform within two days of its release, making it the platform’s most-viewed trailer for a Bollywood film at the time. As part of a publicity campaign for Trinity College, parts of the film and behind the scenes footage was shown in India, while interviews of South Asian students, university lecturers, and crew members were done. The cast embarked on a limited domestic promotional tour, conducting press conferences in , , and . They also signed a promotional deal with soft drink company , where Khan and Kaif appeared in . The company also sponsored an expanded tour in mid-2012, with the cast also visiting , , , , , , and . Six days after the film’s release, Tourism Ireland’s Indian page gained over 23,000 followers, up from 10,000 the previous week; over one year later, it accumulated around 90,000 followers. The Irish Central Statistics Office noted an increase in tourism from overseas after the film’s release. In an interview, then-Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, , said “established a foundation” for future projects to be held in Ireland. A two-part series based on the film was also released. Published by , the series also features characters from (2004), which was also produced by Chopra and Yash Raj Films. Canonically, this sets the two films in one . The first comic book, ( ), was published in July 2012. The second, ( ), was released in November, to coincide with the film’s release on home video. The series received mixed reviews, with praise for its design and criticism for its plot and pacing. The film’s lead single and main , “Mashallah”, recorded by and , was released worldwide on 27 June 2012. The song’s music was both composed and produced by Ali and his brother , while its lyrics were written by . The topped several music charts in throughout August and remained in the top 10 for a majority of the film’s theatrical run. was released worldwide on 15 August 2012; the date coincided with Indian . The film was screened in 3300 domestic theaters, a record broken by , which was screened in 3700 theaters later that year. was released in 550 screens internationally, although, it was not released in Pakistan – a major market for Bollywood – due to concerns over the portrayal of Pakistan in the film. This decision was upheld despite opposition from , who stated the film does not promote anti-Pakistani sentiment. The film premiered in in July 2013, and was screened in 70 theaters in Japan, constituting the widest Japanese release for a Hindi-language Bollywood film. Approximately 60 percent of the film’s opening weekend’s gross had been collected from ticket pre-orders; was screened at Cineworld Dublin between 15 August and 3 September 2012 and was often sold out, while other theaters subsequently increased ticket prices. The film was screened at Trinity College in September 2012, with Kabir Khan discussing its production with film and drama students. was released on DVD by YRF Home Entertainment on 25 September 2012, and on Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, and Ultra HD Blu-ray on 9 October 2012. The digital and Blu-ray releases include behind-the-scenes featurettes, deleted scenes, and a blooper reel. The Blu-ray releases saw the home media introduction of 96k upsampling and sound. The physical releases in its first week of the sale were one of the top home media releases in India, according to The Numbers data. The Blu-ray version accounted for 79% of the sales, with 3% of total sales coming from the Ultra HD Blu-ray version. Due to its unprecedented extensive release, combined with many theaters reporting the film’s screenings carried over 80% occupancy during its run, grossed over (US$49.22 million) in India, and (US$10.67 million) in other territories, for a worldwide total of (US$59.88 million). The film had the biggest domestic opening day and opening weekend ever, grossing (US$6.27 million) and (US$10.84 million), respectively. By its fifth day of release, had earned over (US$18.71 million) in India, the quickest film to reach this landmark, and broke the previous record of a week held by (2011), which also starred . It is also the highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2012, and became the second highest grossing Bollywood film of all time, after (2009). Internationally, also performed strongly, despite being banned in . It grossed (US$6.79 million) in overseas markets in its five days of release. Regionally, the film collected (US$1.12 million) in , with an estimated (US$804,676.86) grossed in , and (US$318,128.06) in . Additionally, in the , a region with a large Pakistani and Indian emigrant population, the film grossed (US$3.09 million), a gross only exceeded by the , where grossed over (US$3.14 million). Another strong performing territory was the , where the film collected over (US$2.43 million). Its combined overseas gross amounted to (US$10.67 million), making it one of the . On the website , 75% of 16 critics’ reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.9/10. In India, there was praise for the film’s , with Marjolaine Gout noting the film is “a roaring, visual, comic feast where the fights back”, giving 3.5 out of 5 stars. of the also commended the feminist themes, saying “it’s such a pleasure to see a Hindi film heroine not [be] a damsel-in-distress”, while also praising the film’s action sequences, giving 3 out of 5 stars. Jahanavi Samant of gave the film the same rating and criticized its tone as being inconsistent, with ” [being] unable to decide whether it is spy action or a love saga”. Ronnie Scheib of gave a positive review, praising the performances of the leads and film’s production aesthetic, noting “Kaif impresses in her action-heroine debut, while Salman Khan’s thinking-on-his-feet immediacy adds depth to his usual macho muscle. Local audiences will no doubt derive a special thrill from the onscreen reunion of stars Khan and Kaif, [with] Aseem Mishra’s gorgeous location lensing”. faced harsher reception from Raja Sen of , who criticized the film’s relative low stakes and pacing, noting “[Kabir] Khan scales down the ambition as he aims for a safe mainstream middle-ground in his , a spy-thriller which takes a while to get boiling but eventually crackles along quite effectively”. He scored the film 2.5 stars out of 5, with his score and reception echoed by of , who wrote “despite flaws, is extremely far from unwatchable. Just don’t go in with very high expectations”. Rachel Saltz of praised the action scenes but also criticized the low stakes of the characters’ romance, saying, “Tiger and Zoya [are] good kung fu street fighters, but unconvincing spies and cookie-cutter bland lovers. Their loyalty to each other is never in question and only tepidly tested”. A similar critical reaction was noted by Josh Tuhin of who blasted the cinematography, saying “[it] is outright bad, with the body doubles’ faces visible during the action scenes”, but praised Kaif and Khan’s on-screen chemistry. Regarding the film’s depiction of Ireland, Giovanna Rampazzo wrote that despite presenting political themes, it “carefully avoided representing any complexity or social issues [in favour] of a charming and cosmopolitan Irish capital, constructing a simplistic image of Ireland that requires a minimum of cross-cultural understanding or critical engagement [by] the viewer”. She concluded this was “in line with long-standing strategies supported by government agencies to create a marketable version of ‘Irishness’ [but] may promote unrealistic cognitive associations and expectations about Irish society”. Overall, the country’s presentation in the film was positively received by Irish audiences. replaced Kabir Khan to direct the sequel, with the screenplay co-written by Zafar and . It released in India on 22 December 2017, and saw , , , and reprise their roles. was Karnad’s final Hindi film before his death. was directed by and released in India on 12 November 2023. Khan, Kaif, and Chahal reprise their roles, while joined the cast as the primary antagonist. and make cameo appearances as Kabir Dhaliwal and Pathaan, respectively.</p>