<p>Vikram of is an honest police officer, who has a sense of . Vedha Betal is a dreaded middle-aged gangster from who understands the nuances in between. Vikram’s best friend SSP Abbas leads an in the , which is formed to eliminate Vedha. In one encounter, the squad kills some of Vedha’s henchmen, framing an unarmed criminal having a burn mark on his right hand killed by Vikram to avoid further inquiry. As the unit plans another encounter, Vedha enters the police station and voluntarily surrenders. When Vikram interrogates Vedha, he offers to narrate a story to him, which moves to a flashback. Thirteen years ago; A young Vedha is a henchman to dreaded criminal kingpin Parshuram Pandey in Kanpur; he warns his younger brother Shatak, a kid with mathematical genius mind and his friend Chanda who also got raised by Vedha, to stay away from crime, but Shatak and Chanda are forced by a rival gangster, Babloo to carry drugs while returning from school when Vedha was off to Lucknow for few days. When Shatak and Chanda are caught by the police, Shatak confesses and Babloo is arrested. On his boss Shiv Prasad’s orders, Babloo assaults Shatak with a heated iron rod, leaving a permanent scar on his right hand. Vedha asks Vikram if he should kill Babloo or Shiv Prasad. Vikram replies that Shiv Prasad was the real culprit, to which Vedha implies that he killed Shiv Prasad. Vedha’s lawyer, who turns out to be Vikram’s wife Priya, intervenes and bails him out. Vikram realises that the unarmed criminal framed by them for avoiding inquiry was actually Shatak, based on the mark in his hand. Worried after realising that Shatak was Vedha’s weak-point and he can go any length for Shatak and might try to kill Abbas out of revenge for Shatak’s murder, Vikram rushes to save Abbas, but finds him and Chanda shot dead. The dismisses it as a botched encounter. Priya refuses to divulge Vedha’s whereabouts to Vikram. Enraged by this, Vikram taps Priya’s phone and raids Vedha’s and manages to capture him planning to kill him by encounter. Vedha requests Vikram to listen to another story. Three years ago; Vedha who grew his roots in Lucknow over years gets constantly targeted by a new found Mumbai Gang. Shatak, now grown-up, offers to launder Vedha’s income by investing it in shares while being in love with a now grown-up Chanda mutually. Pandey invests (US$120,000) in this venture. However, Chanda is supposedly kidnapped and the money is missing. Chanda returns and reveals that she stole the money to start a new life, but came back because of her love for Shatak. Initially enraged Vedha goes to kill Chanda for hurting Shatak’s sentiments but Shatak intervenes making Vedha realise Chanda truly loves him and that’s why returned. Vedha returns the money to Pandey, who orders him to kill Chanda. Vedha asks Vikram if he should respect Pandey and carry out the order or disobey him and support Shatak and Chanda, thus inciting a after sending Shatak and Chanda for their safety and career. Vikram replies that he should support Shatak to which Vedha agrees. Realizing Shatak’s innocence causes Vikram to stumble momentarily, at which point Vedha attacks and subdues him to escape, albeit not before telling him to investigate Shatak’s and Abbas’s deaths. While Priya decides to back out from Vedha’s case but he stops her from doing so as Vikram will need her help at one point in his case. Vikram begins his investigation with Abbas’s informant, who led them to Shatak’s hideout, but finds that the informant has been killed. He and his unit try to find the killer. Vikram takes a moment to recollect when he finds the leader of the Mumbai Gang from Vedha’s story. He apprehends and fights him only for the gang leader to almost kill Vikram before getting shot and killed by his unit member Deepak. Vikram searches his room, but finds a cigar where he finds that the cigarette is filled with instead of tobacco. Vikram deduces that Babloo is behind the encounter and informs Vedha at his restaurant, who brings Babloo to an abandoned factory. Vikram arrives and meets Vedha, who kills Babloo, leaving Vikram frustrated on being unable to determine Abbas’ killer. Flustered, he threatens Vedha, who asks him to patiently listen to the third and final act. Six months ago; Vedha visits Mumbai to ensure Shatak and Chanda’s safety once again and implies that Chanda would be successful as she is left-handed girl however it turns out to be Vedha’s last meeting with Shatak and Chanda when they were still alive. He has since become a tour de force in the lanes of Lucknow, after sending Shatak and Chanda away to Mumbai since the feud with Pandey. He noticed that only his men, not Pandey’s, are being targeted and eliminated by the cops. Among the few surviving men in his company are Babloo and his right-hand man Sanki. During one such chase, Sanki pushes Vedha out of their vehicle, only to be intercepted by a cop, revealed to be Abbas; in a twist, it is revealed he is on Babloo’s payroll. Vedha asks Vikram if Abbas was right, since he became corrupt to pay for his son’s medical procedure. Angry at himself for failing to judge his best friend’s circumstances, Vikram shoots bullets to the ground in frustration even as Vedha casually walks away. As the unit arrives later, the IG castigates Vikram for letting Vedha escape again. Vikram slowly realises that the entire unit had also been bribed by Babloo. The IG reveals that Babloo paid them to kill Vedha and Chanda’s abduction was intended to lure Shatak out of Mumbai, which would lure Vedha out of hiding. However, a guilt-ridden Abbas had gone to save Chanda, but the unit killed them both and framed Chanda as murderer. Vikram decodes that the team made a mistake by handing over the gun in her right hand as she was left-handed as told by Vedha in his story. As the unit prepares to kill Vikram, Vedha reappears and saves him. A gunfight ensues, and Vikram disables all his colleagues with Vedha’s help, but kills the IG. After a friendly banter between them with Vedha asking Vikram to convince Priya to take Vikram’s case, Vikram asks Vedha if he should let him go for saving his life or kill him since he is a criminal and the movie ends with a ensuing between them. In March 2018, were confirmed to be directing a Hindi remake of their Tamil film (2017), to be produced again by . The project is co-produced by , and , and serves creative producer. Pushkar–Gayathri intended for the remake to maintain the “gritty” tone that the original film had. Although Pandey had previously avoided working on remakes because of his preference to write original material, he was interested in working on this project because of its parallels to and from the folktale collection , which he felt was not yet done in Hindi cinema. was approached for the film, but declined. In August 2019, it was confirmed that and would play the police inspector Vikram and the gangster Vedha respectively. Saif differentiated Vikram from Sartaj Singh, another police officer he played in the streaming television series , saying Vikram is “much more dynamic, confident and strong” than Singh who was suicidal, and constantly picked on by others. Pushkar–Gayathri revealed that they were unable to have reprise his role of Vikram from the original, due to his commitments to (2022). After production delays due to the during which the writers also re-worked the script, Aamir left the project in December 2020 and was shortly thereafter replaced by . This would mark the second time Saif and Roshan share screen space after (2002). As Vedha is from , Roshan decided to speak with an accent. In July, was cast as Vikram’s lawyer wife and signed on to play Vedha’s brother the following month. By November 2021, was confirmed to be in the film as Babloo. In March 2022, was chosen to play Chanda. Principal photography was planned to begin in February 2021, when Aamir Khan was in the cast. After Roshan replaced him, it was to have begun in June 2021, but ultimately began on 15 October that year with the first schedule taking place in , (UAE). Before the schedule began, part of the sets originally built for (2017) were reworked by s crew to resemble and Kanpur. In response to reports that Roshan refused to shoot in Lucknow and asked the crew to create the Lucknow sets in Abu Dhabi, causing the budget to escalate, Reliance explained that UAE was “the only location providing the infrastructure for a that accommodated crew of such scale, also allowing building of sets in a studio during the preceding months of the shoot”, and the film was shot there due to “health and protocol concerns”. They added that their films’ shooting locations and budgetary decisions are not controlled by actors. After the Abu Dhabi schedule ended within 27 working days, the second schedule began in Lucknow in early December. Saif Ali Khan finished his portions of the schedule by the end of the month. Apte, whose schedule was only 10 days, finished filming most of her portions by 26 April 2022. Filming by 10 June 2022. The film begins with animated sequences revolving around the king and the demon . These were directed by Isha Mangalmurti, a Pune-based animator. The songs featured in the film are composed by and , the latter who scored the original Tamil film. The film score too is composed by Sam. The first single “Alcoholia” was released on 17 September 2022, and the second single “Bande” on 26 September 2022. The songs “Alcoholia” and “Oo Saahiba” are arranged and produced by music producer . All lyrics are written by . The film’s teaser trailer was released on 24 August 2022. On , it received over one million likes in less than 24 hours, surpassing (2019) as the teaser for a Hindi film. was theatrically released worldwide on 30 September 2022, during the , and pre- occasions. Ahead of the release, Reliance Entertainment obtained a wide-ranging from the to protect the film’s copyright. Indian internet service providers were ordered by the court to preemptively block over 13,000 websites that Reliance believed were likely to host illegal copies of the film based on their histories of “non-compliant” operations, even before it was publicly released. The film premiered on on 12 May 2023 in Hindi and dubbed versions of Bengali and Marathi languages. As of 9 November 2022 the film grossed over (US$9.3 million) in India for a worldwide gross collection of over (US$16 million). The film underperformed at the box office, which Ganesh Aaglave of attributed to audiences having possibly seen the original Tamil film with subtitles or its dubbed Hindi version, while Kusumika Das of believes it was due to a box office clash with . received positive reviews from critics and audience. On the website , 78% of 18 critics’ reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.7/10. rated the film 4 out of 5 stars and wrote ” is a brilliant massy fare that works due to the strong writing, unpredictable moments, Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan’s outstanding performances and the electrifying background score”. Sanchita Jhunjhunwala of rated the film 4 out of 5 stars and wrote “There are ample of highs in the movie, including the narrative that builds up, the setting that the makers have put together, and the so many characters involved. The film boasts of some absolutely mind-blowing shots, and due credits to the director duo for the same”. Tushar Joshi of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote ” is unapologetically massy. It’s also a lot of fun, and with two rock-solid performers like Hrithik and Saif”. Rachana Dubey of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote “Hrithik is menacing, ruthless and extremely emotional in parts. Pushkar-Gayathri, have pretty much stuck to the blue-print they created for the original, It’s a plus that they haven’t changed the roadmap too much”. Dishya Sharma of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote ” is a massy film that serves as a fun single-screen theatre experience. I’d suggest caving into Pushkar and Gayathri’s make-believe world and joining Vikram and Vedha’s cat and mouse chase”. Mugdha Kapoor of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote “Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan exude a level of comfort that only two very secure actors could portray onscreen”. Devesh Sharma of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote “Watch the film for its stylised action scenes. The Parkour sequence involving Hrithik is action choreography at its imaginative best. And also for the rock solid performances by both Saif Ali Khan and Hrithik Roshan”. Sukanya Verma of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote “A screenplay and superstar in perfect tandem, it doesn’t get better than this”. Ritika Handoo of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote “A mass entertainer, the film shows some sturdy technical work, especially the pithy camerawork. The lines between right and wrong blur in the film, so the cinematographer P.S. Vinod effectively brings out the essence of Kanpur and Lucknow as he holds the pulse of the leading lines in his frames”. of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote “Hritik and Saif seem to be really enjoying themselves. It’s their self-assured presence that keeps us hooked even when the pacing falters or the film seems too stretched for its own good”. Mahpara Kabir of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote ” is a complete masala entertainer with apt amount of action, drama and thought-provoking introspection. Thriving in high-octane action, it’s a delight to watch Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan on the big screen after a long time. The film loaded with power-packed performance by two of the most suave looking actors”. Sanyukta Thakare of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote ” is certainly the watch for this week, with a rare balance of visuals, story and performances”. Bharathi Pradhan of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and termed the film as “double victory”. “In which one is the compelling performances of Saif and Hrithik. The second is the unique, layered style of the husband-and-wife duo, awesomeness in the visuals and in the action, played out with a signature background score”. Prateek Sur of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote “They’ve not tried to ape, but stayed true to the original and given the entertainment quotient the highest priority. It may have a few shortcomings with its length and music-choreography, but otherwise, it’s a solid film”. of rated the film 3 out of 5 stars and wrote “After a long time, two top-flight stars such as Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan sink their teeth into a proper story which comes before them”. Abhimanyu Mathur of stated ” works as both a thriller and a masala action flick. It is enjoyable and even manages a few whistles and claps in a packed hall”. of rated the film 3 out of 5 stars and wrote “Saif Ali Khan makes a far better Vikram. Hrithik Roshan harnesses his star appeal and screen presence to deliver the goods”. R Krishnakumar of rated the film 3 out of 5 stars and wrote ” needed some more of that kind of inspired madness to take it beyond what it ends up as: an almost satisfactory, risk-free remake”. of rated the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote “This Hindi Vikram Vedha retains the swag of the Tamil original, but some minor changes in it are curious in what they reveal about the team’s assessment of north Indian viewers”. Manjusha Radhakrishnan of rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and termed it as a “hero-laden visual spectacle”.</p>