Bajrangi Bhaijaan

 

Bajrangi Bhaijaan  is a 2015 Indian Hindi-language comedy-drama film directed by Kabir Khan and written by Khan, K. V. Vijayendra Prasad, and Parveez Sheikh. Produced by Salman Khan and Rockline Venkatesh, it stars Salman Khan and Harshaali Malhotra with Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Kareena Kapoor Khan appearing in the supporting roles. Salman Khan plays Pawan Kumar Chaturvedi, an ardent devotee of Hindu deity Hanuman, who embarks on a journey to take a mute six-year-old Pakistani Muslim girl, separated in India from her parents, back to her hometown in Pakistan.

Made on a budget of ₹90 crore (US$13 million), the principal photography commenced in November 2014. The cinematography was done by Aseem Mishra and was edited by Rameshwar S. Bhagat. Julius Packiam composed the film score while the songs featured in the film were composed by Pritam.

The film received wide acclaim from critics, and was a commercial success. It grossed ₹969 crore ($150 million) worldwide, and is currently the third highest-grossing Indian film and second highest-grossing Bollywood film. It won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment at the 63rd National Film Awards, and was nominated for four awards at the 61st Filmfare Awards, including Best Film and Best Actor, and won the Filmfare Award for Best Story. It was also nominated for Best Foreign Film in China's 2015 Douban Film Awards.

 

Plot

Amidst the hills of Sultanpur, a picturesque village in Pakistan, lives Shahida, a mute six-year-old girl, with her parents. After an accident in which she is unable to call for help because she is mute, her mother, Rasia, decides to take her to the shrine of Sufi saint Nizamuddin Auliya in Delhi, India, hoping it will restore her speech.

On the way back home, the train stops for repairs and Shahida gets off to save a lamb while her mother is asleep. The train leaves before Shahida can re-board. Panicked, she boards a freight train and winds up in Kurukshetra. There, she meets Pawan Kumar Chaturvedi, who is affectionately called Bajrangi. He is a devout Hindu Brahmin and an ardent devotee of Lord Hanuman. Pawan resides at the home of his father's friend, Dayanand Pandey, where he is engaged to Dayanand's daughter, Rasika. He tries in vain to find out where Shahida lives. He starts calling her "Munni" and brings her home. Dayanand lets her stay, thinking she must be Brahmin. However, the family eventually learns that Munni is a Pakistani Muslim. An enraged Dayanand orders Pawan to have her sent to Pakistan through the Pakistani High Commission, but offices are closed due to protests. A local travel agent promises to take Munni to Pakistan without a passport but instead tries to sell her to a brothel, causing Pawan to become enraged. After rescuing her, he vows to take Munni home on his own despite not having a passport and visa.

Pawan and Munni are able to enter Pakistan under the border's fences, but shortly later, they are arrested under suspicions of Pawan being an Indian spy. During interrogation, he escapes with Munni, and meets Chand Nawab, a journalist who works for a Pakistani television channel. Nawab has been following Pawan's situation, thinking he is indeed an Indian spy, but discovers that Pawan is a victim of circumstances who is on a noble mission to reunite the mute Munni with her parents. Moved by his story, Nawab joins him in his journey to find Munni's parents. They encounter an Islamic religious scholar, Asad, who helps them avoid capture by police and directs the group to Azad Kashmir, after Munni recognises an area similar to her hometown in a calendar photo. Meanwhile, Nawab's cameraman, Kamil Yusuf, is arrested by Inspector Amir Qureshi and Senior Pakistani Police Officer Hamid Khan when his efforts to escape fail miserably, and they bait him into tracing Nawab's location.

Nawab documents their journey on video, but his boss refuses to air it, thinking it's a useless story. Nawab uploads the video on YouTube, discovering in the process that Kamil is being scapegoated by the police to capture Pawan alive when he notices the team at a shrine. While reviewing the footage, Munni recognises her mother getting off a bus in the background. The trio go to the bus station and finally identify Sultanpur as Munni's hometown. They board a bus but are stopped by police who are looking for "the Indian spy". Devising a plan, Pawan gets off the bus and runs toward the jungle while Nawab and Munni escape on the other side. Pawan is captured and shot in the arm. Meanwhile, Nawab and Munni reach Sultanpur, where Munni is finally reunited with her parents.

The videos uploaded by Nawab go viral throughout India and Pakistan, emotionally moving many. A compassionate Hamid realises that Pawan is innocent after his story is verified, and has him released, defying his boss's order to keep him in jail. Nawab calls for support and thousands of Pakistanis and Indians congregate at Narowal Check Post, where Pawan is to return to India. As Pawan crosses the border, Nawab reveals that Munni's real name is Shahida. Shahida, also in the crowd, runs toward the fence and after some effort, cries out her first word: "Mama" (uncle) to get Pawan's attention. Pawan hears her voice, and the two run toward each other as they have a reunion with Pawan tossing Shahida high in the air.

 

Cast

·         Salman Khan as Pawan Kumar Chaturvedi, the titular protagonist who hails from a typical Indian Brahmin family in Pratapgarh and has been living in Delhi since his father's death

·         Harshaali Malhotra as Shahida 'Munni' Rauf Ali Khan, a mute Pakistani girl who gets lost in India only to bump into Pawan, who makes it his mission to take her back home

·         Nawazuddin Siddiqui as Chand Nawab, a Pakistani news reporter and Pawan's later ally

·         Kareena Kapoor Khan as Rasika Pandey, Pawan's love interest

·         Meher Vij as Rasia Rauf Ali Khan, Shahida's mother

·         Kushaal Pawar as Kamil Yusuf, Chand Nawab's cameraman

·         Mir Sarwar as Rauf Ali Khan, Shahida's father

·         Kamlesh Gill in a special appearance in the train to Delhi

·         Om Puri as Maulana Azad, a religious scholar

·         Sharat Saxena as Dayanand Pandey, Rasika's father

·         Alka Kaushal as Sushila Dayanand Pandey, Rasika's mother

·         Adnan Sami in a guest appearance in the song "Bhardo Jholi Meri"

·         Rajesh Sharma as Hamid Khan, Senior Police Officer of Pakistan

·         Krunal Pandit as Vardhan, the travel agent in Delhi

·         Mursaleen Qureshi as border smuggler Boo Ali

·         Manoj Bakshi as Police Inspector Amir Qureshi

·         Harssh A. Singh as Channel Head Shamsher Ali

·         Yudhvir Dahiya as the NDTV reporter