''Halla Bol'' (''Raise Your Voice'') is a 2008

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

-language

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Rajkumar Santoshi Rajkumar Santoshi is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter of Hindi films. Having received several accolades including three National Film Awards and six Filmfare Awards, he made his directorial debut with the crime film ''Ghayal ( ...

. ''Halla Bol'' stars

Ajay Devgn Vishal Veeru Devgan (born 2 April 1969), known professionally as Ajay Devgn, is an Indian actor, film director and producer who works in Hindi cinema. Devgn has appeared in over a hundred films and has won numerous accolades, including four ...

and

Vidya Balan Vidya Balan (pronounced ; born 1 January 1979) is an Indian actress. Known for pioneering a change in the portrayal of women in Hindi cinema with her roles in female-led films, she is the recipient of several awards, including a National Fi ...

in pivotal roles and a number of celebrities from the Hindi and other film industries appear as themselves. Produced by Samee Siddiqui, the film's score and soundtrack was composed by

Sukhwinder Singh Sukhwinder Singh (born 18 July 1971) is an internationally acclaimed Indian playback singer who primarily sings Bollywood songs. He is famous internationally for singing " Jai Ho" from the film ''Slumdog Millionaire'' which won an Academy Awa ...

, while

Natarajan Subramaniam Natarajan Subramanian, better known as Natty, is an Indian cinematographer who has worked on Tamil films. He has also worked as an actor in Tamil films and achieved recognition through his performance as a conman in ''Sathuranga Vettai'' (2014) ...

and Steven Bernard were the cinematographer and editor respectively. It was released on 11 January 2008. The film touches upon the Jessica Lall murder case,

Aamir Khan Mohammed Aamir Hussain Khan (; born 14 March 1965) is an Indian actor, film director and producer who works in Hindi films. Through his career spanning over 30 years, Khan has established himself as one of the most notable actors of Indian ci ...

's involvement with the

Narmada Bachao Andolan ''Narmada Bachao Andolan'' (NBA) is an Indian social movement spearheaded by native tribals (''adivasis''), farmers, environmentalists and human rights activists against a number of large dam projects across the Narmada River, which flows thro ...

, the

Right to Information Act The Right to Information (RTI) is an act of the Parliament of India which sets out the rules and procedures regarding citizens' right to information. It replaced the former Freedom of Information Act, 2002. Under the provisions of RTI Act, an ...

, and public participation in fighting corruption. It also references the theatre group

Jan Natya Manch Jana Natya Manch (People's Theatre Front; Janam for short) is a New Delhi-based amateur theatre company specialising in left-wing street theatre in Hindi. It was founded in 1973 by a group of Delhi's radical theatre amateurs who sought to take th ...

, whose leader, theatre activist

Safdar Hashmi Safdar Hashmi (12 April 1954 – 2 January 1989) was a communist playwright and director, best known for his work with street theatre in India. He was also an actor, lyricist, and theorist, and he is still considered an important voice in Indian ...

, was killed by political rivals while performing a street play by the same name, ''Halla Bol!'', in 1989.

Plot

Ashfaque (

) is a small town boy aspiring to be a film star in the Hindi film industry. He joins a street theatre group run by a reformed

dacoit Dacoity is a term used for "banditry" in the Indian subcontinent. The spelling is the anglicised version of the Hindi word ''daaku''; "dacoit" is a colloquial Indian English word with this meaning and it appears in the ''Glossary of Colloquia ...

Sidhu (

Pankaj Kapur Pankaj Kapur (born 29 May 1954) is an Indian actor who has worked in Hindi theatre, television and films. He has appeared in several television serials and films. He is the recipient of several awards, including a Filmfare Award and three Nat ...

), who uses street theatre as a medium to bring about an awakening in the masses. Ashfaque struggles to give a creative vent to the actor in him in order to realise his dreams. Ashfaque's determined struggle pays off and he gets a break in films. He gets a new screen name – Sameer Khan. He moves up the success ladder in a very short time. Soon, he becomes Sameer Khan the superstar. Amidst all the adulation and applause, he slowly loses his own identity. He forgets his

real self The true self (also known as real self, authentic self, original self and vulnerable self) and the false self (also known as fake self, idealized self, superficial self and pseudo self) are a psychological dualism conceptualized by English psychoa ...

and imbibes all characteristics of the various roles played by him on screen. Corruption overtakes his entire system, alienating him from all loved ones, including his wife Sneha (

Cast

as Ashfaaq Khan *

as Sneha Khan *

as Sidhu *

Darshan Jariwala Darshan Jariwala (born 29 September 1958) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films, television and stage. He won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for ''Gandhi, My Father''. He is popular for his show in which he was seen as ...

as Ganpatrao Gaekwad *

Sanjai Mishra Sanjay Mishra (born 6 October 1963) is an Indian actor known for his works predominantly in Hindi cinema and television. Also workingfor Telugu cinema An alumnus of National School of Drama, he made his acting debut in the 1995 film '' Oh Darl ...

as Sameer's manager * Abhay Bhargava *

Anupam Shyam Anupam Shyam Ojha (20 September 1957 – 8 August 2021) was an Indian film and television actor, who usually played villainous roles. He appeared as ''Thakur Sajjan Singh'' in the STAR Plus TV series ''Mann Kee Awaaz Pratigya'' (2009 and 2021). ...

Aanjjan Srivastav Aanjjan Srivastav (born 2 June 1948) is an Indian film, television and stage actor, associated with Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) in Mumbai of which he remained Vice-President for several years. Outside theatre, he is best known as ...

as Amanullah Khan *

Sulbha Arya Sulabha Arya (born 15 July 1950) is an Indian actress in Hindi and Marathi film, television and stage industry. She is the wife of late veteran Indian cinematographer Ishan Arya and mother of cinematographer Sameer Arya and actor Sagar Arya. Sh ...

as Nazma Khan * Iqbal Dosani as a Police Commissioner * Rahul Kanawat as Ranveer * Deepak Pandit as Police Inspector Rathod * Arun Behll as a Reporter * Sitaram Panchal * Rushita Singh *

Mukesh Tiwari Mukesh Tiwari (born 24 August 1969) is an Indian actor, who has worked predominantly in Bollywood. and few Tamil films. He is known for playing negative and comic side roles. He entered the film industry in the year 1998 with the movie '' China ...

Special appearances

Prabhu Chawla Prabhu Chawla (born 2 October 1946) is an Indian journalist. He was born in Dera Ghazi Khan, Punjab, British India. He is alumni of Deshbandhu college University of Delhi. He started his career as an economics lecturer in Delhi University. He i ...

as himself *

Lekh Tandon Lekh Tandon (13 February 1929 – 15 October 2017) was an Indian filmmaker and actor. He had directed numerous Bollywood movies and Indian TV Serials. He gained national fame due to success of his directorial ventures Professor (1962 film), Prin ...

as himself *

Tusshar Kapoor Tushar Ravi Kapoor (born 20 November 1976), popular as Tusshar Kapoor, is an Indian actor and film producer working in Hindi films. Early and personal life Tusshar Kapoor is the son of Indian actors Jeetendra and Shobha Kapoor. His sister Ek ...

as himself *

Sana Khan Sana Khan (born 21 August 1988) is an Indian Businesswoman and a former actress. She predominantly worked in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu language films. Khan began her career in modeling and went on to appear in advertisements, feature films, a ...

as herself *

Jackie Shroff Jaikishan Kakubhai Shroff (born 1 February 1957), popularly known as Jackie Shroff, is an Indian actor and former model. He has been in the Bollywood industry for over four decades, and , has appeared in over 220 films in 13 languages namely Hi ...

as himself *

Ruby Bhatia Ruby Bhatia (born November 1, 1973) is a Canadian actress, VJ, and television show host. Early life and background Bhatia was born to Canada-based Harbans and Premlata Bhatia. But she was adopted at the age of 3 years by her aunt and uncle, Prem ...

as herself *

Sayali Bhagat Sayali Bhagat is an Indian actress and former beauty queen. She competed in Femina Miss India 2004 and won the title of Femina Miss India World. Early life She studied at Fravashi Academy, Nasik, and completed her graduation in BMS (Bachelor of ...

in the song "Is Pal Ki Soch" *

Pahlaj Nihalani Pahlaj Nihalani is an Indian film producer. He was the former Chairman of Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. He was also the President of the Association of Pictures and TV Programme P ...

as himself *

Kareena Kapoor Kareena Kapoor Khan (; ''née'' Kapoor; born 21 September 1980) is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood, Hindi films. She is the daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita, and the younger sister of actress Karisma Kapoor. Noted for pl ...

as herself *

Neeraj Vora Neeraj Vora (22 January 1963 14 December 2017) was an Indian film director, writer, actor and composer from Gujarat. He made a mark in Bollywood with his work as a writer for Ram Gopal Verma's film '' Rangeela'' (1995). His directorial debut ...

as himself *

Amjad Sabri Amjad Farid (Fareed) Sabri (23 December 1976 – 22 June 2016) was a Pakistani qawwal, naat khawan and a proponent of the Sufi Muslim tradition. Son of Ghulam Farid Sabri and nephew of Maqbool Ahmed Sabri of the Sabri Brothers, he emerged ...

as himself at Dargah Special appearances at the award ceremony (in order of appearance): *

Javed Jaffrey Syed Jaaved Ahmed Jaaferi (born 4 December 1963) is an Indian actor, dancer, and comedian who has appeared in Hindi films and television shows. He is son of the comedian Jagdeep. He joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in March, 2014 and contested ...

Rishi Kapoor Rishi Raj Kapoor (4 September 1952 — 30 April 2020) was an Indian actor, film director and producer who worked in Hindi films Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry base ...

* Ranjit Kapoor *

Randhir Kapoor Randhir Raj Kapoor (born 15 February 1947) is an Indian actor, film producer and director who worked in Hindi cinema. He was an established actor of the 1970s and received two Filmfare Award nominations. However, his career declined in the ear ...

Vinod Khanna Vinod Khanna (6 October 1946 – 27 April 2017) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who is best known for his work in Hindi films; while also being a notable spiritual seeker. In Bollywood, he was the recipient of two Filmfare awa ...

Kabir Bedi Kabir Bedi ( pa, ਕਬੀਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਬੇਦੀ; born 16 January 1946) is an Indian actor. His career has spanned three continents covering India, the United States and especially Italy among other European countries in three media: fi ...

Mammootty Muhammad Kutty Panaparambil Ismail (; born 7 September 1951), known mononymously by the hypocorism Mammootty (), is an Indian actor and film producer who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema, Malayalam films. He has also appeared in Tamil l ...

Mohanlal Mohanlal Viswanathan (born 21 May 1960), known mononymously as Mohanlal, is an Indian actor, film producer, playback singer, film distributor, and director who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema besides also having sporadically appeare ...

Ritesh Deshmukh Riteish Vilasrao Deshmukh (born 17 December 1978) is an Indian actor, comedian, television presenter, writer, director and film producer. He is the son of former Chief Minister of Maharashtra Vilasrao Deshmukh. He works in Hindi and Marathi cin ...

Abhishek Bachchan Abhishek Bachchan (born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and the grandson of poet Harivansh Rai Bach ...

Katrina Kaif Katrina Kaif (; born Katrina Turquotte; 16 July 1983) is a British actress who works in Hindi-language films. One of the highest-paid actresses in India, she has received accolades, including four Screen Awards and four Zee Cine Awards, in a ...

Arshad Warsi Arshad Warsi (born 19 April 1968) is an Indian actor who appears in Hindi films. He is the recipient of several awards including a Filmfare Award from five nominations and is noted for acting in varied film genres. Before making his acting deb ...

R. Madhavan Ranganathan Madhavan (born 1 June 1970) is an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, and producer who predominantly appears in Tamil and Hindi films. Madhavan has won four Filmfare Awards South and three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards. Madhavan ...

Shilpa Shetty Shilpa Shetty Kundra (born Ashwini Shetty; Née Shetty; 8 June 1975) is an Indian actress who works mainly in Hindi-language films. Shetty made her screen debut in the thriller ''Baazigar'' (1993) which garnered her nominations for two Filmfare ...

Preity Zinta Preity G Zinta (pronounced ; born 31 January 1975) is an Indian actress and entrepreneur primarily known for her work in Hindi cinema, Hindi films. After graduating with degrees in English literature, English honours and criminal psychology, Z ...

Anil Kapoor Anil Kapoor (born 24 December 1956) is an Indian actor and producer who works primarily in Hindi films, besides television and international films and television. In a career spanning over 40 years as an actor and since 2005 as a producer, Kapo ...

Sridevi Shree Amma Yanger Ayyappan (13 August 1963 – 24 February 2018), professionally credited with her stage name Sridevi, was an Indian actress who worked in Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, and Kannada language films. Cited as the "First Female ...

Boney Kapoor Achal Surinder "Boney" Kapoor (born 11 November 1955) is an Indian producer primarily associated with Hindi cinema in addition to Tamil and Telugu cinema. Early life Kapoor was born as Achal Surinder Kapoor in 1955, the son of Surinder Kapoor ...

Casting

Priyanka Chopra Priyanka Chopra Jonas (; ; born 18 July 1982) is an Indian actress and producer. The winner of the Miss World 2000 pageant, Chopra is one of India's highest-paid actresses and has received numerous accolades, including two National Film Awar ...

was the original choice for the lead actress role. However, she opted out of the film to work on another film that too was to be directed by

Raj Kumar Santoshi Rajkumar Santoshi is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter of Hindi films. Having received several accolades including three National Film Awards and six Filmfare Awards, he made his directorial debut with the crime film '' Ghayal' ...

, ''

London Dreams ''London Dreams'' is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film directed and produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah. The film stars Ajay Devgn in lead role with Salman Khan in blowing supporting role while Asin plays the female lead.Rannvijay S ...

'' (2009) although she was replaced by

Asin Thottumkal Asin Thottumkal (born 26 October 1985), known mononymously as Asin, is a former Indian actress who appeared predominantly in Tamil, Hindi and Telugu films. She is a trained Bharatanatyam dancer. She has received three Filmfare Awards. She beg ...

in that film. Raj Kumar Santhoshi left that film and Priyanka Chopra was removed from ''

''.

Soundtrack

The film's music was composed by Singer and Composer

. * "Jab Tak Hai Dum" –

* "Shabad Gurbani" –

* "Is Pal Ki Soch" –

Harshdeep Kaur Harshdeep Kaur (born 16 December 1986) is an Indian playback singer known for her Bollywood Hindi, Punjabi,English and Sufi songs. She is popularly known as "Sufi Ki Sultana" because of her soulful Sufi renditions. After winning titles in two ...

* "More Haji Piya" –

Amjad Farid Sabri Amjad Farid (Fareed) Sabri (23 December 1976 – 22 June 2016) was a Pakistani qawwal, naat khawan and a proponent of the Sufi Muslim tradition. Son of Ghulam Farid Sabri and nephew of Maqbool Ahmed Sabri of the Sabri Brothers, he emerged ...

* "Barsan Lagi" – Sneha Pant * "Halla Bol Theme" – Instrumental

References

External links

* * * {{Rajkumar Santoshi 2008 films 2008 drama films Films about actors Films about corruption in India Films directed by Rajkumar Santoshi 2000s Hindi-language films Films about Bollywood Cultural depictions of actors Indian drama films Hindi-language drama films