Bajrangi Bhaijaan
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''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' () is a 2015 Indian
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
comedy-drama film Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...
co-written and directed by Kabir Khan, based on an original story by screenwriter
V. Vijayendra Prasad Koduri Viswa Vijayendra Prasad is an Indian screenwriter and film director who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. He also worked in a few Hindi, Kannada, and Tamil films. His filmography consists of more than twenty five films as a screenwrit ...
, and produced by
Salman Khan Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan (; 27 December 1965) is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. In a film career spanning over thirty years, Khan has received numerous awards, including two Nation ...
,
Rockline Venkatesh Thirupathi Narasimhalunaidu Venkatesh (born 23 March 1963), better known by his stage name Rockline Venkatesh, is an Indian actor and producer known for his works in Kannada, and Hindi cinemas. He is the founder and owner of the production and d ...
and Kabir Khan. The film stars Salman with debutante
Harshaali Malhotra Harshaali Malhotra (born 3 June 2008) is an Indian actress and model who appears in Hindi-language films and television series. Early life Harshaali was born on 3 June 2008 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India into a Punjabi Hindu family. Career ...
,
Kareena Kapoor Khan Kareena Kapoor Khan (; ''née'' Kapoor; born 21 September 1980) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films. She is the daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita, and the younger sister of actress Karisma Kapoor. Noted for playing a var ...
and
Nawazuddin Siddiqui Nawazuddin Siddiqui (; born 19 May 1974) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is an alumnus of the National School of Drama. Siddiqui's feature film debut was alongside director Prashant Bhargava in ''Patang'' (2012). He ga ...
, and tells the story of Pawan Kumar Chaturvedi, a devotee of
Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...
, who embarks on a journey to take a mute six-year-old girl Shahida, separated in
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
from her mother, back to her hometown. Made on a budget of – , the principal photography commenced in November 2014. The cinematography was done by
Aseem Mishra Aseem Mishra is Indian cinematographer who has worked in Bollywood films. A few of his films are ''New York'' (2009), ''Ek Tha Tiger'' (2012), ''Dabangg 2''(2012), ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' (2015), ''Phantom'' (2015), '' Dream Girl'' (2019) etc. H ...
and was edited by Rameshwar S. Bhagat.
Julius Packiam Julius Packiam is an Indian film score composer. His has composed for Ek Tha Tiger, Tiger Zinda Hai, Baaghi (2016 film), Baaghi, Baaghi 2, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Sultan (2016 film), Sultan and Bharat (film), Bharat. Filmography References Exte ...
composed the
film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...
while the songs featured in the film were composed by
Pritam Pritam Chakraborty (born 14 June 1971), also known mononymously as Pritam, is an Indian composer, instrumentalist, guitarist, and singer. After working as an ad jingles composer, he debuted as a co-composer in the 2001 Hindi film Tere Liye. A ...
. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' received widespread critical acclaim from critics upon release, who praised its storyline, dialogues, music, cinematography, direction and the cast performances, particularly those of Salman Khan, Siddiqui and Malhotra, and became a huge commercial success; it grossed () worldwide, and is currently the 5th highest-grossing Indian film and 2nd highest-grossing Bollywood film. It won the
National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment The National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, India, and was constituted in the year 1975. This is one of the ''Golden ...
at the
63rd National Film Awards The 63rd National Film Awards was an award ceremony during which the Directorate of Film Festivals of India presented its annual National Film Awards to honour the best films of 2015 in Indian cinema. The awards were announced on 28 March 2016 ...
, and was nominated for 4 awards at the
61st Filmfare Awards The 61st Filmfare Awards were held to honor the best films of 2015 on 15 January 2016 at NSCI Dome in Mumbai. The ceremony was hosted by Shah Rukh Khan and Kapil Sharma. ''Bajirao Mastani'' led the ceremony with 14 nominations, followed by '' ...
, including
Best Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
,
Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * BA ...
(Kabir Khan) and Best Actor (Salman Khan), and won Best Story (
V. Vijayendra Prasad Koduri Viswa Vijayendra Prasad is an Indian screenwriter and film director who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. He also worked in a few Hindi, Kannada, and Tamil films. His filmography consists of more than twenty five films as a screenwrit ...
). It was also nominated for Best Foreign Film in China's 2015 Douban Film Awards. In December 2021, Salman Khan announced that a sequel is in development with Prasad set to write.


Plot

In the hills of Sultanpur, Jhelum,
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
lives a six-year-old
mute Muteness is a speech disorder in which a person lacks the ability to speak. Mute or the Mute may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Mute'' (2005 film), a short film by Melissa Joan Hart * ''Mute'' (2018 film), a scien ...
girl named Shahida. One afternoon, she is playing on a hill when she accidentally falls off it. When she doesn’t return home by the end of the day, the villagers organize a search party. After hours of searching, they find the little girl on a branch protruding from the hill. She had been stuck on it for the entire day but couldn’t call for help because of her disability. The following morning, her parents and neighbors discuss what must be done to help her. Older man suggests they take her to the shrine of Sufi saint Nizamuddin Auliya in
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. The religious family believes that a visit to the holy shrine will bring peace and happiness and most importantly, restore Shahida’s speech. Shahida’s father used to be in the military and has fought against the Indian army. He is sure that he won't be provided with a visa to India. Hence, her mother Razia takes it upon herself to travel far from the village for the first time. The trip goes as planned for the most part. The two reach the shrine, pay offerings and get on a train back to their home country. On the return journey, the train stops for repairs at night. When everyone is asleep, Shahida notices a sheep stuck in a pit right outside the train. She doesn’t think much before going outside to help the animal. However, the train restarts before she can return to her mother. The little girl runs towards it but is eventually left behind. In a desperate attempt to go the same way that her mother did, she boards a freight train. But to her dismay, it goes reverse-path and stops in Kurukshetra, India. Raiza notices her daughter is missing and stops the train. Policemen are appointed to look for the girl around the track where she was lost. However, they cannot find her since Shahida has already reached a different place. Raiza meets her husband who is worried to death about his daughter. They cannot get an immediate visa back to India, much to their dismay. The parents have no other way but to pray that their daughter is safe. Meanwhile, Shahida is now lost in a different country with no way to communicate. In a religious celebration, she sees a stranger eating at a street-side restaurant. The stranger is the kind Pawan Kumar Chaturvedi who invites her to have a meal with him. After a few minutes of trying to get her to talk, he realizes she is mute and starts calling her Munni. A starving Munni finishes the food and follows Pawan around. Assuming that she was separated from her parents during the festival, he asks her to stay in front of a temple. Pawan is a devout
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...
and an ardent devotee of
Lord Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine ''vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and one ...
. He believes that Lord Hanuman will take Munni home if she stays in front of his temple. When Munni still doesn’t stop following him, he brings her to the police station. But since she cannot tell them any details about her parents, the police can only wait for someone to file a missing complaint. Until her parents are found, Munni needs a place to stay, hence, Pawan takes her in. On his way to his home in Delhi, he tells Munni to call him Mama if she ever talks in the future. He also starts naming different Indian cities, asking her to nod if she knows what city her parents are in. All the passengers on the bus help him but none of them name cities outside of India. As they talk, Pawan tells everyone how he came to Delhi for work. A flashback shows the time he was in high school. He was an average student who could never pass the final examination. All his friends cheated and went on with their lives, but Pawan refused to cheat or lie, being a true devotee of Lord Hanuman. Eventually, he passed on his eleventh try and came to Delhi to look for work. He stayed with his father’s friend, Pandey, a strict Hindu who refused to let the followers of any other religion enter his house. Pandey’s daughter Rasika offered Pawan a job at the school she taught and fell in love with his innocent persona. But being the strict father he is, Pandey asked Pawan to build his own house before marrying his daughter. Even since then, Pawan and Rasika have been working hard to collect money. The two are bound to get married sometime next year. Everyone on the bus is impressed by his story. He and Munni reach his home where Rasika receives them in the doorway. She is glad that Pawan is helping a little girl in need but Pandey doesn’t feel the same way. He is worried about the possibility that Munni belongs to a different religion. Pawan rationalizes that she is Hindu because of her fair skin color and persuades Pandey to let her stay for a month. Munni cries every day in the memory of her parents even though Pawan and Rasika treat her like their own daughter. Since the entire family is
vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetarianism m ...
and Munni is accustomed to eating meat with every meal, she hardly ever finishes her food. One day, Pawan and Rasika find her in a
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
neighbor’s home devouring home-cooked chicken. Pawan brings her to a restaurant that evening and lets her eat whatever she likes, even though eating meat is against his religion. Munni is very fond of the glittery bangles they sell on the street side. One day while walking down a market, she innocently picks up a pack of bangles before being stopped by the vendor. Pawan makes her return it and takes her to the temple to apologize to God for stealing. As he teaches her to join her hands, Munni sneaks into a
Mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
nearby. Pawan is hesitant to follow her inside but he does it anyway. To his utter surprise, he sees her reading the
Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
in front of a shrine. For a few minutes, he feels like she betrayed him because he would have never befriended a Muslim.But Rasika makes him realize that she is a human before being Muslim. She hates that her father discriminates against people because of their religion and wants Pawan to be different. Pawan understands and runs into the Mosque to get Munni but by now, she has already left. As he nervously looks for her, she runs to him and hugs him tightly. At that moment, he accepts her entirely, overcoming his irrational fear of going against his religion. That night is a cricket match against Pakistan and India. The entire family watches it on TV, cheering for India, except Munni who cheers when Pakistan scores. When the Pakistani team wins the game, she dances and kisses their flag through TV. Pawan approaches her and asks her if she is from Pakistan. After weeks of shaking her head to every Indian city, Munni finally nods yes. Pandey is furious. Being a Muslim was bad enough but since the girl is from Pakistan, he can no longer allow her to stay at their home. Pawan promises to hand her to the Pakistani embassy the next day. However, the embassy worker cannot allow her a
visa Visa most commonly refers to: *Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company ** Visa Debit card issued by the above company ** Visa Electron, a debit card ** Visa Plus, an interbank network *Travel visa, a document that allows ...
without a
passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that contains a person's identity. A person with a passport can travel to and from foreign countries more easily and access consular assistance. A passport certifies the personal ...
. In Munni’s case, they don’t even know her real name so a visa allotment is impossible. Moreover, a riot takes place in front of the embassy that closes all visa processing for a month. As the last resort, Pawan takes her to a
travel agent A travel agency is a private retailer or public service that provides travel and tourism-related services to the general public on behalf of accommodation or travel suppliers to offer different kinds of travelling packages for each destinatio ...
at Pandey’s suggestion. The agent promises to take the little girl to the other side of the border and asks for one lakh rupees. Pawan and Rakisa give up the funds they had collected for their house to help Munni. The next day, Pawan reluctantly brings Munni to the travel agent’s office and leaves after a tearful farewell. On his way home, he notices a street vendor selling glittery bangles. He remembers that Munni liked them and buys one for her. However, on returning to the travel agent’s office, he finds out that he has been cheated. The agent has taken the little girl to a
brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...
and is about to sell her into prostitution. The otherwise composed Pawan loses his temper at the sight of the agent counting bills that he made from Munni. He throws the man out of the window and brings Munni home again. Pawan has made the decision to bring Munni home himself. Although he has no connections or ideas about Pakistani villages, he packs his bags and makes his way to the border. A few miles away from it, they meet a secret agent named Ali who illegally transports people to the other side through a tunnel. After listening to Munni’s story, he agrees to take them for free. When they reach Pakistan’s side of the border, Ali runs away but being a lord Hanuman’s devotee, Pawan refuses to go without asking the guards for permission. When the officers find him, they beat him up as Munni watches and cries. Pawan pretends to laugh even while being beaten so the little girl wouldn’t be afraid. After finding out the reason for his travel the head
soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...
asks him to do whatever he wants in the following ten minutes before they return for the next round. Pawan decides to wait for them because they have still not permitted him. Although the idea is idiotic, and he gets beaten up again, he is eventually allowed to go, with permission from the soldiers. In the following scene, he and Munni are in a restaurant. Munni sees a cop’s handcuffs and steals it, assuming that it is a bracelet. The cop finds out and throws Pawan in jail, labeling him as an Indian spy because of the lack of a passport. Then, we are introduced to a struggling journalist Chand Nawab. He finds out about the alleged spy and runs to the police station to interview him. He gets a few vague answers from Pawan and informs the media company that doesn’t take him seriously. Inside the police station, a cop interrogates Pawan but refuses to believe anything he has to say. Suddenly, Munni sees a picture on a table calendar and recognizes it as her village. Pawan is overjoyed until the policeman forcefully makes Munni open her mouth. Pawan loses his temper and attacks the man, inviting more trouble for himself. He manages to defeat the officers and run away from the police. Nawab sees him escaping and follows him behind. They board the bus where Pawan shows the conductor their destination and also tells him Munni’s story. After finding out he is actually a good person, Nawab and the rest of the travelers decide to help him. They hide him and Munni on the top of the bus when the police come looking for them. At night, Nawab, Pawan, and Munni stay at a Mosque. A religious scholar named Azad also helps them and hides them from the policemen searching the entire city for the alleged spy. One of Azad’s students sees "Switzerland" written on the picture that Munni thought was her village. The group is back to square one. After that, Azad dresses up Pawan and Nawab in a
burqa A burqa or a burka, or , and ur, , it is also transliterated as burkha, bourkha, burqua or burqu' or borgha' and is pronounced natively . It is generally pronounced in the local variety of Arabic or variety of Persian, which varies. Examp ...
and manages to send them outside the city without the police noticing. Pawan, who was oblivious to
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
a few weeks ago, feels strange in them traditional clothing. He apologizes to his god but is ready to do anything for Munni. For the next few days, Pawan and Nawab take Munni to several different places, asking people if they know her. Nawab documents their journey and everything about Munni and Pawan’s relationship. He tries selling the documentary to news channels, but they refuse to air it, claiming that it is boring. They have to find another way to spread the news so, the people on the internet can help. One day, they go to a famous mosque were they find policemen looking for them. Nawab realizes that his cameraman friend is being used by the police to gather information about their whereabouts. The trio immediately runs away from the holy place and gives the cameraman false information to distract the police. Following that, the group is reviewing the footage from their time at the mosque when Munni recognizes her mother in one of the clips. They see her getting into a specific bus and go to the bus driver the very next day. On inquiring, he names all the villages that come to his daily route. One of them is Sultanpur which Munni confirms is her home. Nawab and Pawan hug, having finally found their destination. Nawab also uploads the video documentary on YouTube and the police get a hint of their location through it. On their way to Sultanpur, the bus is stopped to be checked. With no way out, Pawan comes to the police’s view and pretends to run away. While the men are busy trying to catch him, Nawab takes Munni and brings her back to her village. In the following scene, we see Munni run to her mother, who couldn’t be happier to see her. As she reunites with her family, Pawan gets beaten up by the police. The documentary on YouTube goes viral and bigger news channels start covering the story. Eventually, people find out that Pawan is not a spy and is being held in prison for helping a little girl. Both Indian and Pakistani people give him all their support. But the Pakistani officials refuse to let him go. They torture him in prison, beating him up for hours, drowning him until his last breath, and starving him. Nawab then claps back with another video, this time on a bigger platform, asking people to gather at the border and ensure that Pawan reaches home safely. The plan works, and several people from both sides come to the border in crowds. Rasika and her family are also among the crowd, waiting for him to come home. Eventually, the officials have to back down. The crowd erupts chanting Pawan’s name as he crosses the border. Then, we see Munni among the crowd, waving her hands but unable to call him. All of a sudden, she shouts “Mama”, the name Pawan wanted her to call him when they first met. The crowd goes silent as she yells goodbye. Pawan turns around in shock. The movie ends as they run to each other and hug.


Cast

*
Salman Khan Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan (; 27 December 1965) is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. In a film career spanning over thirty years, Khan has received numerous awards, including two Nation ...
as Pawan Kumar Chaturvedi a.k.a Bajrangi Bhaijaan, a Hindu Brahmin hailing from Pratapgarh who has been living in
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
since his father Diwakar's death ** Najeem Khan as teenage Pawan *
Harshaali Malhotra Harshaali Malhotra (born 3 June 2008) is an Indian actress and model who appears in Hindi-language films and television series. Early life Harshaali was born on 3 June 2008 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India into a Punjabi Hindu family. Career ...
as Shahida "Munni" Aziz, a mute Pakistani girl who gets lost in
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
and bumps into Pawan, who makes it his mission to take her back home *
Kareena Kapoor Khan Kareena Kapoor Khan (; ''née'' Kapoor; born 21 September 1980) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films. She is the daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita, and the younger sister of actress Karisma Kapoor. Noted for playing a var ...
as Rasika Pandey, Dayanand and Archana's daughter and Pawan's love interest and fiancé *
Nawazuddin Siddiqui Nawazuddin Siddiqui (; born 19 May 1974) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is an alumnus of the National School of Drama. Siddiqui's feature film debut was alongside director Prashant Bhargava in ''Patang'' (2012). He ga ...
as Chand Nawab, a Pakistani
news reporter A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
and Pawan's later ally, based on a real-life Pakistani reporter with the same name *
Sharat Saxena Sharat Saxena (born 17 August 1950) is an Indian actor who appears in Hindi films along with Telugu, Malayalam and Tamil films. He has acted in more than 250 Bollywood films. Saxena started his career in the early 1970s and has mainly played su ...
as Dayanand Pandey, Archana's husband and Rasika's father, Diwakar's childhood friend *
Alka Badola Kaushal Alka, AlkA or ALKA may refer to: People * Alka Ajith (born c. 1997), Indian multilingual playback singer * Alka Amin (active from 2011), Indian television actress * Alka Balram Kshatriya, Indian politician, Member of the Parliament of India repr ...
as Archana Pandey, Dayanand's wife and Rasika's mother *
Meher Vij Meher Vij (born Vaishali Sahdev) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films and television. She is the recipient of a Filmfare Award. She played supporting roles in the drama film ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' (2015) and the musical drama '' Se ...
as Razia Aziz, Rauf's wife and Shahida's mother who ends up losing her in the train * Kushaal Pawar as Kamil Yusuf, Chand Nawab's cameraman caught by police to get information about Pawan and Chand Nawab *
Mir Sarwar Mohammad Sarwar Mir is an Indian actor, who has appeared in Hindi films including '' Kesari'', ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'', and '' Jolly LLB 2''. Career Mir Sarwar started his career with renowned directors M K Raina and Bapi Bose in Delhi. He was ...
as Rauf Aziz, Razia's husband and Shahida's father. *
Kamlesh Gill Kamlesh Gill is an Indian actress of Hindi films, best known for the films ''Vicky Donor'' (2012), ''Bang Bang!'' (2014) and '' PK'' (2014). She was nominated for Screen Award for Best Comedian and Zee Cine Award for Best Supporting Actress fo ...
as Farookh Zehrullah, passenger in the train with Razia & Shahida *
Om Puri Om Prakash Puri (18 October 1950 – 6 January 2017) was an Indian actor who appeared in mainstream commercial Hindi films as well as Bengali, Kannada,English, Punjabi and one Telugu film, as well as independent and art films and also starred ...
as Maulana Azad, a religious scholar *
Adnan Sami Adnan Sami Khan (born 15 August 1971) is an Indian singer, musician, music composer and pianist. He performs Indian and Western music, including for Hindi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil movies. He has been awarded with Padma Shri (India's fourth hi ...
as a singer in the song "Bhardo Jholi Meri" * Rajesh Sharma as Hamid Khan, a Pakistani senior
police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...
officer *
Krunal Pandit ''Bhakharwadi'' is an Indian comedy television series that premiered on Sony SAB on 11 February 2019. It was produced by Hats Off Productions. The broadcast of the show was stalled in the last week of March 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic in I ...
as Vardhan,
travel agent A travel agency is a private retailer or public service that provides travel and tourism-related services to the general public on behalf of accommodation or travel suppliers to offer different kinds of travelling packages for each destinatio ...
in
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
* Mursaleen Qureshi as Boosmaan "Boo" Ali, smuggler at
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
-
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
's border who helps Pawan and Munni to cross the border illegally *
Manoj Bakshi Manoj Bakshi is an Indian actor who acts in films, television and theatre. He is famous for his roles in ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' (2015), '' Delhi Belly'' (2011), ''Jab Tak Hai Jaan'' (2012), ''Gori Tere Pyaar Mein'' (2013), ''Junooniyat'' (2016) ...
as Police Inspector Iqbal Qureshi * Harssh A. Singh as Shamsher Ali, Pakistani news channel head and Chand Nawab's boss * Yudhvir Dahiya as Pankaj Verma, reporter of
NDTV New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. The company is considered to be a legacy brand that pioneered independent news broadcasting in India, and is credited for launching t ...
* Atul Srivastava as Diwakar Prasad Chaturvedi, Pawan's father and Dayanand's childhood friend, who chided Pawan for his failures


Production


Development

The film's story writer V. Vijayendra Prasad stated that the idea of the film was inspired by the 1987
Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...
film ''
Pasivadi Pranam ''Pasivadi Pranam'' is a 1987 Indian Telugu-language thriller film directed by A. Kodandarami Reddy, starring Chiranjeevi, Vijayashanti, Raghuvaran and Sujitha. The film was produced by Allu Aravind under Geetha Arts banner. It was a remake ...
'', which itself is a remake of the
Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...
film ''
Poovinu Puthiya Poonthennal ''Poovinnu Puthiya Poonthennal'' is a 1986 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film written and directed by Fazil. The film stars Mammootty and Suresh Gopi. It features Sujitha, Nadiya Moidu, Babu Antony, Thilakan, Lalu Alex, Maniyanpill ...
'' (1986). Prasad also took inspiration from a story he heard about a Pakistani couple coming to India for their daughter's heart surgery. Kabir Khan noted that the script of ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' was influenced by some of his own experiences. He noted the influence of the
Hindu epic Mahākāvya (lit. great kāvya, court epic), also known as ''sargabandha'', is a genre of Indian epic poetry in Classical Sanskrit. The genre is characterised by ornate and elaborate descriptions of scenery, love, battles and so on — in short, ev ...
''
Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
'', which he used to watch
Ramlila Ramlila (Rāmlīlā) (literally 'Rama's lila or play') is any dramatic folk re-enactment of the life of Rama according to the ancient Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' or secondary literature based on it such as the ''Ramcharitmanas''. It particularly ...
plays of as a child, and particularly the
Hindu deity Hindu deities are the gods and goddesses in Hinduism. The terms and epithets for deities within the diverse traditions of Hinduism vary, and include Deva, Devi, Ishvara, Ishvari, Bhagavān and Bhagavati. The deities of Hinduism have evolved ...
Bajrangi (
Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...
), who left a strong impression on him as a child. He felt that Bajrangi was a character who was loved by people all religious communities in India, including
Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
and
Muslims in India Islam is India's second-largest religion, with 14.2% of the country's population, approximately 172.2 million people identifying as adherents of Islam in 2011 Census. India is also the country with the second or third largest number of Muslim ...
, due to how Bajrangi brought joy and fun to many Indian children. Khan began writing ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' partly in response to the rise of religious
sectarianism Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups which are often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo ...
in India since the 1980s and particularly in response to the
Bajrang Dal The Bajrang Dal () is a Hindu nationalist militant organisation that forms the youth wing of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP). It is a member of the right-wing Sangh Parivar. The ideology of the organisation is based on Hindutva. It was ...
, a Hindu fundamentalist organisation that appropriated Bajrangi for violent sectarian motives and played a central role in the deadly
2002 Gujarat riots The 2002 Gujarat riots, also known as the 2002 Gujarat violence, was a three-day period of inter-communal violence in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The burning of a train in Godhra on 27 February 2002, which caused the deaths of 58 Hin ...
, leading to the name Bajrangi having communal connotations. He began writing ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' in 2013 as a way of reclaiming Bajrangi for all communities, and as a way of bringing Hindus and
Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
together. The film's casting director was
Mukesh Chhabra Mukesh Chhabra (born 27 May 1980) is an Indian film director, casting director, acting workshop director, and actor who has cast several actors for movies including director Vikas Bahl's Chillar Party, Anurag Kashyap's Gangs of Wasseypur, Abhi ...
.


Principal photography

The
principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...
began on 3 November 2014 in
New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
, with
Salman Khan Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan (; 27 December 1965) is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. In a film career spanning over thirty years, Khan has received numerous awards, including two Nation ...
and
Kareena Kapoor Khan Kareena Kapoor Khan (; ''née'' Kapoor; born 21 September 1980) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films. She is the daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita, and the younger sister of actress Karisma Kapoor. Noted for playing a var ...
participating. The second filming schedule took place at the
ND Studios, Karjat ND Studios is a film and television production studio located in Karjat, Maharashtra a north suburb of Mumbai. Established in 2005, it is owned by Nitin Chandrakant Desai . Apart from films, it is also the location reality TV series, ''Bigg Bos ...
. The third schedule of the film was held in
Mandawa Mandawa is a town in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan in India. It is part of Shekhawati region. Mandawa is located at . It has an average elevation of 316 metres (1036 ft). History The town of Mandawa was a thikana of Jaipur Sta ...
,
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...
. On 7 January 2015, Khan was seen on the top of the castle of
Mandawa Mandawa is a town in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan in India. It is part of Shekhawati region. Mandawa is located at . It has an average elevation of 316 metres (1036 ft). History The town of Mandawa was a thikana of Jaipur Sta ...
playing
cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
with a young boy. On 10 January 2015, Khan shot with school students in
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...
's
Jhunjhunu Jhunjhunu is a city and capital of Jhunjhunu district in the state of Rajasthan. This city is in the northern state of Rajasthan, India and the administrative headquarters of Jhunjhunu District. History Jhunjhunu is a very old and historical ...
district. Shooting of the film was completed on 20 May. Some scenes of the film were shot at Khan's Panvel farm house. Shooting also took place in the
Kashmir Valley The Kashmir Valley, also known as the ''Vale of Kashmir'', is an intermontane valley concentrated in the Kashmir Division of the Indian- union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley is bounded on the southwest by the Pir Panjal Range and ...
in places like
Sonamarg Sonamarg () or Sonmarg (), known as Sonamarag (; ) in Kashmiri, is a hill station located in the Ganderbal District The Ganderbal district, or more formally District Ganderdal, is a district in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, I ...
and
Zoji La Zoji La (sometimes Zojila Pass) is a high mountain pass in the Himalayas. It is in the Indian Union territory of Ladakh, Kargil district, Kashmir. Located in the Drass, the pass connects the Kashmir Valley to its west, with the Drass ...
. The film's climax was shot at Sonmarg near the Thajiwas glacier (at 10,000 ft above sea level) with around 7,000 people.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui Nawazuddin Siddiqui (; born 19 May 1974) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is an alumnus of the National School of Drama. Siddiqui's feature film debut was alongside director Prashant Bhargava in ''Patang'' (2012). He ga ...
's character Chand Nawab was inspired by a real character Chand Nawab, who was with
Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
-based
Indus News Indus News was an English language Pakistani international news channel launched in November 2018. It was part of Aap Media Network and was broadcast on Paksat. The channel was based in Islamabad. History The channel was owned by Pakistani bu ...
in 2008.


Music

A. R. Rahman Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
was initially in talks to compose the music of the film, however he did not sign the film. The music was then composed by Kabir Khan's usual collaborators, with Pritam composing the songs and
Julius Packiam Julius Packiam is an Indian film score composer. His has composed for Ek Tha Tiger, Tiger Zinda Hai, Baaghi (2016 film), Baaghi, Baaghi 2, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Sultan (2016 film), Sultan and Bharat (film), Bharat. Filmography References Exte ...
composing the score. The lyrics were written by
Mayur Puri Mayur Puri is an Indian screenwriter, lyricist, actor and film-maker working in Mumbai. He has written songs, screenplays and dialogue for several movies, including'' Om Shanti Om'' (2007) starring Shah Rukh Khan, Shahrukh Khan directed by Farah K ...
,
Amitabh Bhattacharya Amitabh Bhattacharya (born 16 November 1976) is an Indian lyricist and playback singer who works in Bollywood films. He shot to fame with the film ''Dev.D'' with the song "Emotional Atyachar" turning an instant hit. He sang this song under the ...
,
Neelesh Misra Neelesh Misra (born 4 May 1973) is an Indian journalist, author, radio storyteller, scriptwriter and lyricist. He is most known for his radio show, Yaadon Ka IdiotBox with Neelesh Misra on BIG FM 92.7. He is co-founder-editor of Gaon Connecti ...
, Shabbir Ahmed, and
Kausar Munir Kausar Munir is an Indian lyricist and screen writer in Bollywood. Biography Munir was born and brought up in Bandra, Mumbai. She graduated in English Literature from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai. Munir married actor Nirmal Pandey in 1997 b ...
while
Julius Packiam Julius Packiam is an Indian film score composer. His has composed for Ek Tha Tiger, Tiger Zinda Hai, Baaghi (2016 film), Baaghi, Baaghi 2, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Sultan (2016 film), Sultan and Bharat (film), Bharat. Filmography References Exte ...
composed the score. The soundtrack of the movie become Super Hit. The Song "Bhar Do Jholi" one of the biggest hits of 2015 sang by Adnan Sami. The soundtrack album consists of eleven tracks, was released on 17 June 2015. "Tu Chahiye" and "Selfie Le Le Re" become chartbusters. The film includes the
qawwali Qawwali ( Punjabi: (Shahmukhi), (Gurmukhi); Urdu: (Nasta'liq); Hindi: क़व्वाली (Devanagari); Bengali: কাওয়ালি (Bengali)) is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing, originating from the Indian subcontinent ...
"Bhar Do Jholi Meri Ya Muhammad" originally written by
Purnam Allahabadi Mohammed Musa Hashmi, known by his pen name Purnam Allahabadi was an Urdu poet and lyricist, best known for his worldwide famous Qawwali ''Bhar Do Jholi Meri Ya Muhammad'' sung by Sabri Brothers and Tumhe Dillagi originally sung by Nusrat Fateh ...
and composed and sung by the
Sabri Brothers The Sabri Brothers ( Punjabi, ) were a musical band from Pakistan who were performers of Sufi qawwali music and were closely connected to the Chishti Order. They are considered as one of the greatest Sufi qawwali singers of all times. The Sabr ...
. The qawwali was revamped with the voice of
Adnan Sami Khan Adnan Sami Khan (born 15 August 1971) is an Indian singer, musician, music composer and pianist. He performs Indian and Western music, including for Hindi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil movies. He has been awarded with Padma Shri (India's fourth hi ...
. EMI Pakistan and
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 emerge ...
heir to the
Sabri Brothers The Sabri Brothers ( Punjabi, ) were a musical band from Pakistan who were performers of Sufi qawwali music and were closely connected to the Chishti Order. They are considered as one of the greatest Sufi qawwali singers of all times. The Sabr ...
, have called for legal action against the producers of the film and the qawwali in separate instances.


Track listing


Release

Initially announced as an Eid 2014 release, the film was rescheduled to 12 January 2014.''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' was released on 17 July 2015, one day before Eid, on 4,500 screens in India and 1,000 screens in overseas respectively. The film was also released in 50 countries outside India, on more than 700 screens. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' premiered at the 20th Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) on 6 October 2015. In November 2017, it was announced that ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' was set to release in
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, following the success of
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 '' Dangal'' (2016) in the country. In December 2017, it was announced the film would release there in 2018. Prior to the announcement, ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' had a cult following in China, where it has an average rating of 8.6 out of 10 on the popular film site
Douban Douban.com (), launched on 6 March 2005, is a Chinese online database and social networking service that allows registered users to record information and create content related to film, books, music, recent events, and activities in Chinese c ...
, with over 70,000 votes. It placed fourth on Douban's list of top foreign films of 2015. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' was released in China under the title 小萝莉的猴神大叔 which roughly translates as "''Little Lolita's Monkey God Uncle''"; "monkey god" is a rough translation of "Bajrangi" while "little lolita" and "uncle" reference the characters. The Chinese version was also cut down in length to 140 minutes. In January 2018, it was announced that the film would be getting a wide release, on 8,000 screens in China, building on the Chinese box office success of Aamir Khan's ''Dangal'' and ''
Secret Superstar ''Secret Superstar'' is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film written and directed by Advait Chandan, and produced by Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao under the studio Aamir Khan Productions. for The film stars Zaira Wasim, Aamir Khan, Meher ...
'' (2017), and ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan''s positive
word-of-mouth Word of mouth, or ''viva voce'', is the passing of information from person to person using oral communication, which could be as simple as telling someone the time of day. Storytelling is a common form of word-of-mouth communication where one pe ...
. The film released in China on 2 March 2018. On 6 February 2018, the film had advance screenings in 29 Chinese cities, receiving a positive reception from audiences. It also had a limited preview on 25 February 2018. The film's China premiere on 27 February 2018 was attended by Kabir Khan and Harshali Malhotra. Its release date of 2 March 2018 marks the
Lantern Festival The Lantern Festival ( zh, t=元宵節, s=元宵节, first=t, hp=Yuánxiāo jié), also called Shangyuan Festival ( zh, t=上元節, s=上元节, first=t, hp=Shàngyuán jié), is a Chinese traditional festival celebrated on the fifteenth d ...
, which celebrates families coming together. It was released in Turkey on 17 August 2018 on 190 screens. In the first weekend it grossed approx $89,796 with a spectator count of 8,389. The film released in Japan on 18 January 2019, with the title "バジュランギおじさんと、小さな迷子", which translates as "Uncle Bajrangi and a small lost child" (''Bajurangi ojisan to, chīsana maigo'').


Reception

In India, ''Bollywood Hungama'' gave the film 4.5 out of 5 stars, writing that "this film easily qualifies to be Salman Khan's best movie till date, featuring his career's best performance. The film wins you over completely". Srijana Mitra Das of ''Times of India'' gave the film 4 out of 5 stars, writing that "Bajrangi Bhaijaan is Salman Khan's most daring film where Salman presents a beautiful performance - but allows the story to be the real "dabangg" ".Rachit Gupta for ''
Filmfare ''Filmfare'' is an Indian English language, English-language fortnightly magazine published by Worldwide Media. Acknowledged as one of Indian most popular entertainment magazines, it publishes pieces involving news, interviews, photos, videos, r ...
'' wrote that "If movies are meant to inspire, then ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' fulfills its purpose with resounding success", giving the movie 3.5 out of 5 stars. Archita Kashyap of ''
Koimoi Koimoi is a Bollywood entertainment website providing Bollywood news, box-office reports and film reviews. In January 2021, its Alexa ranking in India was 2530. Origin On 23 November 2009, Contest2win.com and Komal Nahta's Faith Entertainment j ...
'' gave the film 3.5 out of 5 stars, writing that "watch (the film) for full-blown, larger than life, wholesome Hindi filmy entertainment". Raja Sen of ''
Rediff.com Rediff.com (stylized as ''rediff.com'') is an Indian news, information, entertainment and shopping web portal. It was founded in 1996. It is headquartered in Mumbai, with offices in Bangalore, New Delhi and New York City. , it had more than 300 e ...
'' gave a 3.5 out of 5 star rating explaining that "''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' is an overearnest, oversimplified, preposterously sweet and frequently schlocky film, which shouldn't work because of how predictable and soppy it is. Yet, because of a finely picked supporting cast, some sharp lines of dialogue and, most crucially, because of its overall heart, it works, and works well."
Rajeev Masand Rajeev Masand is an Indian film critic and journalist. He has worked for Noida based English language news channel CNN-Indian Broadcasting Network (CNN-IBN). He usually reviews Bollywood films and major Hollywood films released in India in hi ...
of ''
CNN-IBN CNN-News18 (originally CNN-IBN) is an Indian English-language news television channel founded by Raghav Bahl based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is currently co-owned by Network18 Group and Warner Bros. Discovery. CNN provides internationa ...
'' gave 3 stars out of 5, commenting "''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' is way too long at 2 hours and 35 minutes, and could have done with some serious pruning, especially in its first half. Nevertheless, it's more engaging than such typical Salman Khan blockbusters as Bodyguard and Ready, if only because it has a sliver of a story, and its heart in the right place."
Anupama Chopra Anupama Chopra () is an Indian author, journalist, film critic and director of the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival. She is also the founder and editor of the digital platform Film Companion, which offers a curated look at cinema. She has written sev ...
of ''
Hindustan Times ''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia. It was founded by Sunder Singh Lyall ...
'' said "''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' is simplistic, occasionally silly, and tiringly over-stretched. It's also unashamedly manipulative. But it works. Director and co-writer Kabir Khan preserves the larger-than-life Salman image but also allows it to evolve so that the star is not just a slick superman." Uday Bhatia for ''Mint'' wrote: "To say Bajrangi Bhaijaan is geared towards maximum emotional impact is an understatement. It is engineered for it. Its parts have been carefully assembled so as to make you laugh every other scene, tear up every 10 minutes"; further praising Harshaali Malhotra, he goes "Who says you need a girl and a gun to make a movie? This film proves that you only need the former, provided she’s a criminally cute six-year-old". Overseas too, the film received positive reviews from Chinese critics. Several critics in China, where it was released as ''Little Lolita's Monkey Uncle'', noted narrative parallels to the 16th century Chinese epic ''
Journey to the West ''Journey to the West'' () is a Chinese novel published in the 16th century during the Ming dynasty and attributed to Wu Cheng'en. It is regarded as one of the greatest Classic Chinese Novels, and has been described as arguably the most popu ...
'' and its monkey-king hero
Sun Wukong The Monkey King, also known as Sun Wukong ( zh, t=孫悟空, s=孙悟空, first=t) in Mandarin Chinese, is a legendary mythical figure best known as one of the main characters in the 16th-century Chinese novel ''Journey to the West'' ( zh, ...
(which in turn have similarities to the 4th century BC Hindu epic ''
Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
'' and its monkey-god hero
Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...
), making the film relatable to Chinese audiences. The film's theme of connecting people across nations, religions and ethnicities also resonated with Chinese audiences. In Japan, upon release in January 2019, it was the week's highest-rated film on the Filmarks audience satisfaction survey.


Box office

''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed worldwide in its first week, beating the previous record of worldwide by '' PK''. The film went on to
net Net or net may refer to: Mathematics and physics * Net (mathematics), a filter-like topological generalization of a sequence * Net, a linear system of divisors of dimension 2 * Net (polyhedron), an arrangement of polygons that can be folded up ...
and gross in India and grossed overseas for a worldwide gross of in 31 days. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' became the quickest film to collect and net domestically beating ''PK'' and ''
Dhoom 3 ''Dhoom 3'' () is a 2013 Indian 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, e ...
''. The distributor share of the film had crossed crore which is a record in India being the second film to do so after ''PK''. In August 2015,
Eros International Eros International Media Ltd (also known as Eros India) is an Indian motion picture production and distribution company, based and originated in Mumbai, India. Founded by Arjun Lulla in 1977, it is one of the leading production and distributi ...
said in a statement to the
Bombay Stock Exchange BSE Limited, also known as the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), is an Indian stock exchange. It is located on Dalal Street in Mumbai. Established in 1875 by cotton merchant Premchand Roychand, a Jain businessman, it is the oldest stock exchange in ...
that ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' has become the fastest Bollywood film to gross worldwide, while it crossed at the domestic box office. The film is the highest nett grosser ever in Delhi / UP, CP Berar, CI, Bihar, Assam and Orissa, East Punjab, Rajasthan and West Bengal beating the lifetime collections of ''PK'' and ''Dhoom 3''. The footfalls of the film crossed 35.2million after five weeks, making it the most watched film in India since '' Gadar: Ek Prem Katha'' (2001) and beating ''PK'', ''
3 Idiots ''3 Idiots'' (stylized as ''3 idiots'') is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, edited and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, co-written by Abhijat Joshi and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Adapted loosely from Cheta ...
'', ''Dhoom 3'', and '' Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham...''. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed worldwide at the end of its 7th week. The domestic Indian gross for the film was as of August 2015, while its overseas gross was
US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
30.9 million (211.05crore) as of 2017. It was one of the highest-grossing Indian film ever at the time, behind ''PK''. Prior to its China release, ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan''s worldwide gross was 626crore (US$million) as of 27 February 2018. After 22 days at the Chinese box office, it became the fourth Indian film to gross 900crore (US$million) worldwide, after '' Dangal'', '' Baahubali 2'', and ''
Secret Superstar ''Secret Superstar'' is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film written and directed by Advait Chandan, and produced by Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao under the studio Aamir Khan Productions. for The film stars Zaira Wasim, Aamir Khan, Meher ...
''. As of today, ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' is the sixth highest-grossing Indian film ever worldwide. The film was marketed by a Mumbai-based company named Spice PR owned by Prabhat Choudhary.


India

''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' opened to an overwhelming response at the domestic box office and went on to break the first week record of '' PK'' and '' Happy New Year''. The film grossed around in India on the first day of release, and further showed incredible growth on its second and third day to gross , setting new records in several circuits, and on the first Sunday to take its first-weekend total to , which is an all-time first-weekend record, becoming the quickest film to gross domestically. The film grossed on its first Monday which is the highest-ever non-holiday Monday and Tuesday as well as on its first Wednesday and Thursday to take its first-week gross to , making it the highest first-week total for an Indian film in domestic markets beating previous record holder ''PK''. The film grossed on its second Friday. The film showed further growth and grossed on its second Saturday and Sunday for a total of , which is the highest second weekend ever for an Indian film and took its domestic total to in ten days and also made it the second highest weekend ever for an Indian film. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed around on its second Monday. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed around on its second Tuesday, on its second Wednesday, and on its second Thursday. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed , which is the second-highest second-week collection of all time to take its two-week domestic gross to . ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed on its third Friday, on its third Saturday, and on its third Sunday to take its third weekend total to which is the second-highest third weekend of all time. The film grossed around in its third weekend, reaching in seventeen days in India to become the second-highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time in domestic markets, beating ''
Dhoom 3 ''Dhoom 3'' () is a 2013 Indian 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, e ...
''. The film went on to gross overseas for a worldwide gross of in just 17 days. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' set a new all-time lifetime record in India by becoming the highest grosser ever in Bihar as it went to the gross mark after its third weekend. The film grossed on its third Monday, on its second Tuesday, and on its second Wednesday to take its 19 days total to in India and become only the 2nd Indian film to do so. The film also recorded the third-highest third week ever as it grossed on its third Thursday for a combined total of in its third week. The film grossed in its fourth weekend. The film grossed in its fourth week, in its fifth week, in its sixth week, in its seventh week, and in its eighth week. The film collected in its ninth week becoming the second film ever to gross more than 10 lakhs in the ninth week after ''
Vicky Donor ''Vicky Donor ''is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed by Shoojit Sircar and produced by actor John Abraham in his maiden production venture with Sunil Lulla under Eros International and Ronnie Lahiri under Rising Sun Fil ...
''. The film had a tenth week and became the third Indian film of the 2010s to ever have one. The other films were ''Vicky Donor'' and '' Band Baaja Baaraat''. The film's final domestic gross was ().


Overseas

''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed around $8.1 million in the first weekend in overseas markets, which is the second-highest opening weekend for a Hindi film. The film has grossed around $2.45 million in its first weekend in US-Canada. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed () in Pakistan in its first 3 days of its release, and subsequently () in the first week. The ten-day overseas gross of ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' was over . At the end of two weeks, ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed US$20 million in overseas. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed around $23.5 million in overseas in 17 days. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' set an all-time record in the Persian Gulf region with collections of to become the highest-grossing film in the territory, beating films like '' Happy New Year'' and ''
Dhoom 3 ''Dhoom 3'' () is a 2013 Indian 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, e ...
''. The film is also the biggest Salman Khan film in the
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...
, beating the previous best of ''
Kick A kick is a physical Strike (attack), strike using the leg, in unison usually with an area of the knee or lower using the foot, heel, tibia (shin), ball of the foot, blade of the foot, toes or knee (the latter is also known as a knee (strike), ...
'' which grossed around $4.1 million. The film has done excellent across all overseas markets, according to
Box Office India Box Office India is an Indian film website. Its traffic ranking in India is 83,665 . A new Box Office India website went live on 20 January 2014. About Box Office India was launched on 10 June 2003. Its uses Whois privacy to anonymize its owne ...
. The film topped all four major markets by beating the lifetime collection of '' PK''. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed £2,662,115 () in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
, where it became the highest-grossing foreign-language film of 2015, the eleventh highest-grossing foreign-language film of all time, and the second highest-grossing foreign-language Indian film ever (after ''
Dhoom 3 ''Dhoom 3'' () is a 2013 Indian 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, e ...
''). It also grossed US$9,450,000 in the
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...
region and A$1,701,000 in Australia. The film grossed $8,180,000 after its sixth weekend in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
and
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, with a final gross of US$8.187million in the US and Canada. In
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
, the film grossed
HK$ The Hong Kong dollar (, sign: HK$; code: HKD) is the official currency of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is subdivided into 100 cents or 1000 mils. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is the monetary authority of Hong Kong and ...
1,364,088 (US$) in 2016. ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed US$30.9 million ( 211 crore) overseas as of 2017. After 26 days of its release in China, the film became the third Indian film (first featuring Salman Khan) to gross more than 500 crore from overseas markets.


China

In
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, on its opening day of 2 March 2018, the film grossed US$2.29million, debuting at number seven on the daily China box office. This is the fourth-highest opening for an Indian film in China, after ''
Secret Superstar ''Secret Superstar'' is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film written and directed by Advait Chandan, and produced by Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao under the studio Aamir Khan Productions. for The film stars Zaira Wasim, Aamir Khan, Meher ...
'' ($6.97million), ''
Hindi Medium ''Hindi Medium'' is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language comedy-drama film written and directed by Saket Chaudhary, and produced by Dinesh Vijan and Bhushan Kumar under their respective banners Maddock Films and T-Series. It stars Irrfan Khan, Saba ...
'' ($3.68million) and '' Dangal'' ($2.55million), while ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' also crossed the lifetime China gross of ''
3 Idiots ''3 Idiots'' (stylized as ''3 idiots'') is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, edited and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, co-written by Abhijat Joshi and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Adapted loosely from Cheta ...
'' (2009). On its second day, ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' grossed $3.11million, entering the top five, with a two-day gross of $5.36million. It grossed another $3.13million in its third day, giving it an opening weekend gross of $9million. It is the third-highest opening weekend for an Indian film, behind only ''Secret Superstar'' and ''Dangal'', and it has become the highest-grossing Indian film not starring Aamir Khan. The successful opening weekend of ''Bajrangi Bhaijaan'' has been attributed to strong
word of mouth Word of mouth, or ''viva voce'', is the passing of information from person to person using oral communication, which could be as simple as telling someone the time of day. Storytelling is a common form of word-of-mouth communication where one pe ...
, generated by high audience ratings such as 8.6 on
Douban Douban.com (), launched on 6 March 2005, is a Chinese online database and social networking service that allows registered users to record information and create content related to film, books, music, recent events, and activities in Chinese c ...
and 9.7 on
Maoyan Tianjin Maoyan Culture Media () is a Chinese company that owns the largest online movie ticketing website in China, maoyan.com, with 30% share of the market in 2015. In 2016, Wang Changtian of Beijing Enlight Media offered to buy a controlling stak ...
. On the 14th day of its release, the film grossed $1.13 million and became the first Indian film not featuring Aamir Khan to gross more than 200crore in the Chinese market, grossing $31.12million up until then. In 31 days, the film had a cumulative gross of $48million(313crore). The film's audiences were about 60% female and 40% male, and the majority were in the 20–34 age group. It surpassed '' Star Wars: The Last Jedi'' to become the seventh
highest-grossing film in China This is a list of the highest-grossing films in Mainland China. Most of the data below is provided by EntGroup's China Box Office (CBO) website, with the gross in yuan. Highest-grossing films by box office revenue Top 50 all-time highest-grossing ...
during the first quarter of 2018, behind ''Secret Superstar'' and other American films including ''
Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been d ...
'' and '' Pacific Rim: Uprising''.


Accolades


Sequel

In December 2021, Khan confirmed that the sequel of the movie was in scripting stage, and is writing the script. Later that month, Khan confirmed that the movie has been titled as ''Pawan Putra Bhaijaan''. Khan also officially announced the same on 19 December 2021 on The Grand RRR pre-release event.


See also

*
Bollywood 100 Crore Club 100 Crore Club is an unofficial designation by the Indian film trade and the media, related to Indian-language films that have net (1billion Indian rupees) or more in India after deducting the entertainment tax. By 2012, the () box office ta ...
*
List of highest-grossing Bollywood films This is a ranking of the highest grossing Indian films which includes films from various languages based on the conservative global box office estimates as reported by reputable sources. There is no official tracking of domestic box office fi ...
*
List of Bollywood highest-grossing films in overseas markets Cinema of India, Indian films have been released in overseas markets since the latter half of the 1940s. Some of these have had significant commercial success and been nominated for awards. Although the first Indian film to have worldwide releas ...


Notes


References


External links

* * * * {{Kabir Khan 2015 films 2010s Hindi-language films 2010s drama road movies India–Pakistan relations in popular culture Films set in Pakistan Films shot in Delhi Films shot in Rajasthan Films shot in Jammu and Kashmir Films featuring songs by Pritam Indian comedy-drama films Indian adventure drama films Films set in Delhi Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment National Film Award winners Films shot in Mandawa Indian drama road movies Films produced by Salman Khan Indian musical comedy-drama films Military of Pakistan in films Films directed by Kabir Khan 2015 drama films Rockline Entertainments films