Bhaag Milkha Bhaag

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag
File:Bhaag Milkha Bhaag SoHaM.jpg Theatrical Poster
Directed by	Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Written by	Prasoon Joshi
Produced by	Viacom 18 Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Starring	Farhan Akhtar Sonam Kapoor Hikaru Ito Meesha Shafi
Music by	Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Production company	Viacom 18 Motion Pictures
Distributed by	Reliance Entertainment
Release date	12 July 2013 (2013-07-12)
Running time	189 minutes
Country	India
Language	Hindi
Budget	₹30 crore (US$3.6 million)

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (English: Run Milkha Run) is an Indian biographical sports film based on the life of "Flying Sikh" Milkha Singh an Indian athlete who was a world champion runner and an Olympian.

The film has been produced and directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra on a script written by Prasoon Joshi. The film stars Farhan Akhtar, Sonam Kapoor and Meesha Shafi. Milkha Singh sold the story for just one rupee and the proceeds from the film will be used for the benefit of needy athletes. Even Sonam Kapoor agreed to act in the film for a payment of eleven rupees. The name of the film comes from the last words spoken by his father, which were to save his life during the riots of Partition of India. During the partition, Singh lost his family members. The story talks about his perseverance as an athlete and also as a courageous human spirit. Pakistani actress, model and singer Meesha Shafi is making her debut in Bollywood film.

Plot

The film starts with Milkha Singh(Farhan Akhtar) racing in 1960 Olympics in Rome but when his coach says Bhag Milkha Bhag ,he is taken back to memories of his childhood days which haunted him,resulted in him dropping to fourth.India Pakistan friendly racing was going to take place in Pakistan but Milkha rejected this proposal.Then the days of his childhood with his friends and family are shown.The partition causes chaos which resulted in war with the locals of Punjab in Pakistan ,killing his parents and he reaches Delhi and later meets his sister there. Milkha soon makes friends and survives by stealing with his friends.He falls in love with Biro(Sonam Kapoor) but she asks him to live a life of honesty.Milkha finally finds himself in army where he gets noticed by hawaldar after he wins a race in which top 10 runners will get milk ,two eggs and excuse from exercise.He gets selected for service commission where he gets miffed and also gets beaten up by senior players whom he had defeated earlier, on the day before selection of Indian team for Olympics.Inspite of being injured he still participates in the race ,overcomes his pain and wins the race.His coach tells him that he has broken the national record. In Melbourne Olympics he gets attracted to the granddaughter of his Australian technical coach ,and after a night in a bar he sleeps with her.He loses the race ,beats himself up and and the way back to India asks his coach to tell him the world record for 400m race.He trains hard with his coach with firm determination and this time even rejected the approach of fellow women swimmer ,saying this is the fight with himself.He wins in several places Tokyo,1958 Asian Games and 1958,Cardiff Commonwealth Games.Then the film returns to the scene where everyone try to convince him to lead the Indian team to Pakistan for friendly races and is finally convinced by Pandit Nehru ji.In Pakistan he misses the press conference and goes to his village where in flash back it is shown how his parents were murdered and the last word of his father were "Bhag Milkha Bhag".He starts crying and is confronted by a boy who turns out to be his childhood friend's son.In the games Pakistani favourite was leading ,but Milkha Singh overtakes his opponents one by one before finally taking on the lead and winning the race,thereby winning the respect of both nation's people.The Pakistan commander gives him the the title "The Flying Sikh".

Cast

• Farhan Akhtar as Milkha Singh
• Sonam Kapoor as Biro
• Master Jabtej Singh as young Milkha
• Meesha Shafi as Perizaad
• Yograj Singh as Indian Coach Ranveer Singh
• Nawab Shah as Pakistani Coach Javed
• Art Malik as Milkha Singh's father
• Divya Dutta as Isri Kaur, Milkha Singh's elder sister
• Prakash Raj
• Pawan Malhotra as Milkha Singh's Coach Gurudev Singh
• Rebecca Breeds as Stella
• Dalip Tahil as Jawaharlal Nehru

Soundtrack

Main article: Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (soundtrack)

The music and the background score for the film were composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, their first film collaboration with Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. The soundtrack features seven tracks with lyrics penned by Prasoon Joshi. The audio was released by Sony Music on 14 June 2013, on digital platforms including iTunes and Amazon.

Production

It took two and half years to write the story of this film. According to the director it is not a sports film but a film about human spirit. It is about a story of a boy who lost his parents at the age of 12. Honoured to play the role of Milkha Singh in this movie, Farhan Akhtar prepared extensively for the role.

I had to completely change my running style. The training was completely different. You have to build up your endurance and stamina. But the purpose of the film was higher than what we were doing, this removes your ego from the picture. You try and put in whatever is required to achieve the goal.-- Farhan Akhtar

We were all inspired by Milkha Singh's life. We never felt something was tough. -- Farhan Akhtar

his film is not a mirror of Milkha Singh's life. It is an interpretation of his life. -- Prasoon Joshi

Shooting for the film commenced in February 2012 and movie was shot mainly in India, with some parts shot in Tokyo, Melbourne and Rome.

Sonam Kapoor charged only ₹11 for the film.

International company ReelSports coordinated the sports action for the film and cast all the elite runners.

Release

The film hit screens on 12 July, 2013.Friday On Premier It already seems like Farhan Akhtar is on the run to win..

Farhan has been keeping a lot of special screening of 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag' for the industry giants. And there has been no soul who haven't been emotionally moved by the movie.

Even before the release the movie has been tagged as a 'Master Piece'. So much so that the biggies in Bollywood have tweeted instantly about it.

Shahrukh Khan, Amithabh Bachchan and a lot more have been tweeting about the movie. Wrote SRK - "The only race u cant win is the race against ur past. Wot a lovely experience is bhaag Milkha.Thanx Rakyesh & u inspire me my Flying Farhan." Big B - "Back after seeing trial of 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag' and much too moved emotionally and creatively, to say any further on this platform !"

Arjun Rampal - "The whole team of Bhag Milkha should and must be super proud. RAKESH tells a sport icon story like never before"... Anupam Kher - Saw Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. OUTSTANDING Film. Every department is superb.

And @FarOutAkhtar is Unbelievably Brilliant as Milkha. Jai Ho.:) Hmmm, now let's wait for audience's reaction, when 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag' releases on 12th July. Ab bas tu Bhaag Milkha....

Critical Response

Reviews of the film garnered overwelming positive reviews from critics and Bollywood personnel alike.

Subhash K Jha of IANS gave the film 5 out of 5 stars and stated, "Movie seems like a near-flawless homage to the flying spirit of India’s greatest runner, it is partly because the story, so nimbly woven into a pastiche of drama, emotion, humour and pathos by Prasoon Joshi and Farhan who occupies Milkha’s mind, body and soul." Bollywood Hungama's Taran Adarsh predicted that it would "win accolades, admiration, respect and esteem, besides emerging as a champ" Sneha May Francis of Emirates 24/7 gave the film a thumbs up, saying that the film is "truly epic", and that "despite the prestigious Olympic glory eluding him, Mehra deservedly honours the runner’s other victories and impeccable talent, allowing us to applaud the prodigy." Madhureeta Mukherjee of Times of India stated, "While you are on-the-run, pause to watch this one." India Today review concluded, "Go and run with Milkha. In this fast-paced life, this race will definitely soothe your senses." Sify's Vijay Sinha, praised the film, stating "Bhaag Milkha Bhaag should get even drug-addled Punjab flocking to the cinemas" Indian Box Office Online rated the film 5 out of 5 and said, Many movies come out each year and we applaud them for their screen play, orginality and whatever else we can say about a movie. But only once in a long while does one come out and you say all those nice things, but one you will also never forget. This movie is more than just something for us to watch for 3 hours and 8 minutes, it is something for us to never forget! And surely is by far the finest film of the year 2013.

Robert Abele of LA Times, described the film as "a stirring bio of Milkha Singh", while Nicolas Rapold of New York Times said that, "the movie strikes its chosen couple of notes resoundingly, making clear what makes Singh run." Twitch Film review summed up, "[..]in the grand scheme of things. Bhaag Milkha Bhaag is easily one of the best mainstream films to come out of Bollywood this year."

Actor Shahrukh Khan called the film "a lovely experience" and described the performance of Akhtar as "inspirational". Hrithik Roshan also praised his performance, and deemed the film to be "phenomenal".

Aseem Chhabra of Rediff.com, gave the film a mixed review stating, that film does not offer anything new. He however, praised Akhtar's performance, "If there is one reason to see BMB it is to watch Akhtar – how much he has evolved as an actor and the sincerity with which he immerses himself in the character." NDTV review echoed the same sentiment, "Bhaag Milkha Singh is a 400 metres sprint that feels like a cross-country race."

Controversy

The film's song "Maston Ka Jhund" has landed into controversy after a Hindu organisation, Hindu Janajagruti Samiti (HJS), a right wing organisation took objection to the use of the word "havan" in the song. They alleged that the word 'Havan' (Yagya) has been used in a derogatory manner. Their reference is to the allegedly 'obscene' actions that the actors performed in the song. Demonstrations were held in Goa regarding the issue.

External links

• Bhaag Milkha Bhaag at IMDb