Uri Movie Review: Vicky Kaushal in a film still (courtesy: vickykaushal09) Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Yami Gautam, Paresh Rawal Director: Aditya Dhar Rating: 2 Stars (Out of 5) At the halfway mark, Major Vihaan Singh Shergill, the intrepid protagonist of Uri: The Surgical Strike, asks his band of para commandos, not once but thrice, in a blood-curdling war cry: "How's the josh?" The boys' response: "High, Sir!" That is understandable. The keyed-up battalion is about to embark on a crucial anti-terror mission. But sorry, it is difficult to share their enthusiasm, and the fault definitely isn't theirs. That is the kind of film this is. The war actioner is both bland and patchy. Uri: The Surgical Strike is like a grenade that hisses ominously for a while but does not eventually explode. The film is undeniably well mounted, with director of photography Mitesh Mirchandani and action director Stefan Richter doing a fantastic job in the battlefield sequences where the men in uniform go all guns blazing. Strangely, the energy and fluidity of the handheld camera do not rub off on the film. Lead actor Vicky Kaushal, on his part, plays a steady hand and delivers the goods to an extent that, at times, seems somewhat wasted on a film that falls well short of being rousing. Uri: The Surgical Strike Movie Review: Vicky Kaushal in a still (courtesy YouTube) First-time writer-director Aditya Dhar peddles more figments of the imagination than hard-knuckled actuality. He gives his predilections away in a declaration ahead of the opening credits. His film, it says, is a tribute to the valour of our soldiers and - hold your breath - "a new India". The implication is that our army officers and jawans were pipsqueaks until the present dispensation came along. Sure, a film is allowed to spin a bit of a yarn but not when it is dealing with an event so close to our times. Uri: The Surgical Strike is supposedly "based on true events", but the film frequently strays far from the truth to underline its politically expedient claims. In a specious way, the film negates the proud history of the Indian Army. The film's hero is a generally believable guy, though. Played by a beefed-up Kaushal, the officer who leads the Uri surgical strike is a valued member of the Special Forces. He has just come off a successful sortie against NSCN militants on the India-Myanmar border in retaliation for a deadly ambush on a Dogra Regiment convoy in Manipur. But his mother (Swaroop Sampat) has stage-6 Alzheimer's. So he seeks premature retirement to be by her side in Delhi "before she begins to forget me". Uri: The Surgical Strike Movie Review: Paresh Rawal in a still (courtesy YouTube) It is easy to see what is coming. In September 2016, terrorists attack an Air Force base in Uri and kill 19 Indian soldiers in their sleep. The government decides enough is enough and plans a surgical strike deep inside POK. No prizes for guessing, Vihaan Shergill is compelled to leave his desk at the Integrated Defence HQ in South Block to head to the Northern Command base in Udhampur. He holds forth on the difference between farz (duty) and farzi (fake). He does not go down in history as a specimen of the latter breed. The war room pow-wow that sets the surgical strike in motion is the film's corniest sequence and not only because it is riddled with a major inconsistency. Govind (a character modelled on NSA Ajit Doval and portrayed by Paresh Rawal) boasts that this is "naya Hindustan" and "hum ghar mein ghusenge bhi aur maarenge bhi (we will not only barge into their home but also kill them)". He asserts that India has never attempted this sort of precise retaliatory action before. Not much later, the Prime Minister (Rajit Kapur, mercifully not mimicking Narendra Modi) qualifies the senior government functionary's claim with "aaj tak ka sabse ghaatak surgical strike", meaning that the strike was by no means the first. Uri: The Surgical Strike Movie Review: Yami Gautam in a still (courtesy YouTube) Uri: The Surgical Strike proves in no uncertain terms that even if Hindustan hasn't turned naya overnight, Bollywood sure has. Parts of the mainstream Mumbai industry now thinks nothing of unabashed genuflection before those in power. It is shamelessly wide-eyed, unquestioning and all too willing to promote a brand of patriotism that espouses the bellicosity of the neighbourhood muscleman more than the clinical aggression of master military strategists. To return to the plot, but wait where, pray, is the plot? After Major Shergill returns to the thick of the action, the film follows a predictable course. In the narrative turf of this war as reimagined by the makers of Uri: The Surgical Strike, there's no level playing field. The Pakistani establishment is manned by a bunch of oafs who are evil personified to boot. The Indians, in contrast, are prefect to a T in their thinking and their actions. So any hope that you might have of the film delivering edge-of-the-seat twists and turns will evaporate pretty quickly. On the acting front, Mohit Raina, in his first big screen role, makes an impression in the role of the hero's brother-in-law and fellow officer. Kirti Kulhari, in a special appearance, plays an Air Force pilot looking for a chance to display her deshbhakti and earn redemption. Yami Gautam, as an intelligence agent who is deployed to get to the bottom of the Uri terror attack conspiracy, has to contend with an underwritten role. In fact, sketchy writing is a problem that plagues the film as a whole. But for the presence of Vicky Kaushal, whose character desists from overt chest-thumping, Uri: The Surgical Strike would have been a complete washout. It gets two stars - one for its technical sheen, the other for the male lead. The rest of the film fires too many blanks to count for anything.<doc-sep>Actor Vicky Kaushal’s Uri: The Surgical Strike has crossed the Rs 50 crore mark at the box office and continues to remain steady even during the weekdays. The film collected Rs 9.57 crore on its first Tuesday that takes its five-day total to Rs 55.81 crore at the domestic box office. Film trade analyst Taran Adarsh updated the box office figures of the film on Twitter. He tweeted, “#UriTheSurgicalStrike is winning praise, getting applause/ovation and amassing massive numbers at BO... East. West. North. South. It’s #Uri wave right now... Fri 8.20 cr, Sat 12.43 cr, Sun 15.10 cr, Mon 10.51 cr, Tue 9.57 cr. Total: ₹ 55.81 cr. India biz. #HowsTheJosh” #UriTheSurgicalStrike is winning praise, getting applause/ovation and amassing massive numbers at BO... East. West. North. South. It’s #Uri wave right now... Fri 8.20 cr, Sat 12.43 cr, Sun 15.10 cr, Mon 10.51 cr, Tue 9.57 cr. Total: ₹ 55.81 cr. India biz. #HowsTheJosh — taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) January 16, 2019 The film had opened bit higher than the expectations at Rs 8.20 crore and unlike other films, didn’t slow down post the weekend. Directed by Aditya Dhar, the film also stars Yami Gautam, Kirti Kulhari, Mohit Raina and Paresh Rawal. The film is also based on the surgical strikes carried out by India in Pakistani territory in 2016. This is also Vicky’s biggest solo film. He had featured in five films last year including Raazi, Manmarziyaan and Sanju besides two solo films - - Love Per Square Foot and Lust Stories that released on Netflix. Earlier, film exhibitor Akshaye Rathi had told HT, “For every actor, there is a journey from where he goes from being an actor to a star. Vicky is on that journey. He has done such characters so far that people relate to him, identify him courtesy movies like Sanju and Raazi among others. People know that Vicky is a good actor and now that he is established and people recognise him, it is time to play on the front foot and do movies where the onus of recovery is on Vicky besides the content. The content of the film can help Vicky catapult himself in the league of stars very soon.” Follow @htshowbiz for more ott:10<doc-sep>BTS' 'Butter' is sliding its way into the record books. The song that is the hot flavour of the summer, has hit a new milestone, in the first week of its release - the fastest music video to cross 200 million views on YouTube<doc-sep>Seems like Bollywood star Vicky Kaushal is gearing up to take a step forward in his relationship. After the actor confirmed that he is in a relationship on Koffee with Karan, speculations have been rife that he is in love with television actor Harleen Sethi. Since then, there has been a steady flow of information about their alleged relationship. Also read: Janhvi Kapoor glams up award night as Sreesanth’s daughter gets all the attention for her no paparazzi stand. See pics, video Though neither of them confirmed the relationship, Harleen turned up at the special screening of his latest film Uri: The Surgical Strike in Mumbai. She also shared a snap with Kaushal from the success party of Uri. Taking to her Instagram, she uploaded a photo from the success party of the film. In the photo, the couple is all smiles as they pose for the camera in the same sweatshirts. “High Sir! #URI,” read the caption. Also, Vicky supported Harleen during the launch of her web series with Vikrant Massey. Massey had later shared a picture from the event to thank Vicky for his support. During his appearance on Neha Dhupia’s chat show No Filter Neha, when the host had asked Vicky which person he would like to swipe right (super like) on Tinder, with Harleen among the options, he said that he would like to swipe up many times for Harleen, saying “Right, super up, up. Upmatlab jitna chadh jaaye.” Watch | Vicky Kaushal on his love life and more: Aur Batao Uri Interview Meanwhile, the movie which hit the big screens on January 11, has minted Rs 63 crore. The film is based on the historical surgical strikes carried out by India in 2016. The film has also become Vicky’s most successful solo film. It also stars Yami Gautam, Mohit Raina and Paresh Rawal in prominent roles. (With HT inputs) Follow @htshowbiz for more ott:10<doc-sep>
Actor Vicky Kaushal’s Uri: The Surgical Strike continues to maintain its pace at the box office as it refuses to slow down even during the weekdays. As the film turns out to be the first superhit of the year with collections of Rs 63 crore at the domestic box office, the makers of the film have released a new video to discourage piracy. The video is an effort to prevent the cine lovers from watching the film by illegal means. The video looks like a pirated copy of Uri: The Surgical Strike in the beginning when actors Vicky along with co-star Yami Gautam move out of the film to give a message to the viewers. They can be seen warning the viewers that if the new India can enter the enemy country to attack them, they can also enter the electronic appliances of the users via torrent. The film is inspired by the events of the 2016 surgical strikes carried out by India to avenge the Uri attack. Directed by Aditya Dhar, the film also stars Mohit Raina, Kirti Kulhari and Paresh Rawal. The makers have been promoting the film with the hashtag #HowsTheJosh that was also written on the sweatshirts sported by the film’s team at their success party. The entire Uri team came together to celebrate the success of the film on Wednesday. Film trade analyst Taran Adarsh updated the box office figures of the film on Twitter, “#UriTheSurgicalStrike is sensational... Crosses ₹ 60 cr... En route ₹ 100 cr Club... Is a SUPER-HIT. On course to be a BLOCKBUSTER... Fri 8.20 cr, Sat 12.43 cr, Sun 15.10 cr, Mon 10.51 cr, Tue 9.57 cr, Wed 7.73 cr. Total: ₹ 63.54 cr. India biz. #Uri #HowsTheJosh.” #UriTheSurgicalStrike is sensational... Crosses ₹ 60 cr... En route ₹ 100 cr Club... Is a SUPER-HIT. On course to be a BLOCKBUSTER... Fri 8.20 cr, Sat 12.43 cr, Sun 15.10 cr, Mon 10.51 cr, Tue 9.57 cr, Wed 7.73 cr. Total: ₹ 63.54 cr. India biz. #Uri #HowsTheJosh — taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) January 17, 2019 Also watch | Vicky Kaushal on his relationship status: URI: THE SURGICAL STRIKE INTERVIEW Follow @htshowbiz for more ott:10