Ek Tha Tiger

''Ek Tha Tiger'' () is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed and co-written by Kabir Khan and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films. The film stars Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif, with Ranvir Shorey, Roshan Seth, Girish Karnad, and Gavie Chahal in supporting roles. It follows an Indian intelligence agent, codenamed Tiger, who is sent to Dublin to observe a professor suspected of sharing nuclear secrets with Pakistan. While on the mission, Tiger falls in love with the professor’s caretaker Zoya, who harbours a secret of her own.

The film marks Khan's first collaboration with Yash Raj Films and is the third directorial venture by Kabir Khan with the studio following ''Kabul Express'' (2006) and ''New York'' (2009). It was also the final film presented by Yash Chopra before his death. Principal photography took place between August 2011 and July 2012 in international locations including Dublin, Havana, Istanbul, and several Indian cities. The soundtrack was composed primarily by Sohail Sen, with the track "Mashallah" composed by Sajid–Wajid.

''Ek Tha Tiger'' was released theatrically on 15 August 2012 and received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the action sequences and performances of the leads. The film broke several box-office records, including the then-highest opening weekend for a Hindi film in India. It grossed ₹334.39 crore (US$62.58 million) worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing Hindi film of 2012. At the 14th IIFA Awards, it won Best Special Effects, and won five awards at the People's Choice Awards India, including Best Film, Best Actor (Khan), and Best Actress (Kaif). It was followed by sequels ''Tiger Zinda Hai'' (2017) and '' Tiger 3'' (2023), as part of the YRF Spy Universe.

Plot

Avinash "Tiger" Singh Rathore, an Indian intelligence officer working for the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), is tasked with eliminating Rabinder, a fellow agent who has defected to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), during a mission in Iraq. Disillusioned by the constant violence of his work, Tiger expresses a desire for a less combative assignment. His superior, Shenoy, subsequently sends him to Dublin to observe Anwar Jamal Kidwai, an Indian scientist suspected of sharing sensitive missile technology.

Posing as Manish Chandra, a writer researching Indian academics abroad, Tiger travels to Ireland with his handler Gopi. He attempts to gain access to Kidwai by befriending Zoya Nazar Jung, the scientist's part-time caretaker and a dance student at Trinity College. Tiger and Zoya develop a rapport that evolves into a romantic relationship. She invites him to a college production of '' My Son, Pinocchio'', which she has choreographed. Around the same time, Tiger is attacked by an unknown assailant, raising suspicions that his cover has been compromised.

On the day of the play, Tiger spots the attacker and chases him through the city, ultimately stopping a tram accident in the process. Gopi simultaneously reports suspicious activity at Kidwai's house. There, Tiger discovers that Zoya is in fact an ISI agent assigned to extract Kidwai’s research. Despite her refusal to defect, Tiger allows her to escape after fending off Feroz, an ISI agent revealed to be the mystery assailant.

Back in India, Tiger requests to be removed from field duty and returns to internal analysis work. He later deciphers a coded ISI message with help from his colleague Bagga, realizing it is a signal from Zoya, who is expected to attend an upcoming United Nations conference in Istanbul. The two reunite and decide to abandon their respective agencies. They travel to Astana to mislead RAW and ISI and then flee to Havana, to begin a new life.

Their presence in Havana is discovered after they are caught on surveillance cameras during a mugging incident. Spotted again at a boxing match, Zoya is eventually arrested by local authorities and handed over to ISI agents. Tiger, in collaboration with Gopi, orchestrates a plan to rescue her. During a staged prisoner transport, Tiger and Zoya escape aboard a light aircraft, with Tiger sustaining a gunshot wound from Gopi, who allows them to flee.

In the aftermath, Tiger calls Shenoy and states that he and Zoya will only return when India and Pakistan no longer require intelligence agencies to act against one another. An epilogue reveals that the couple is rumored to have been sighted in cities around the world, including Venice, Cape Town, Zurich, and London.

Cast

* Salman Khan as Avinash "Tiger" Singh Rathore, a RAW agent who goes undercover under the alias "Manish Chandra" to spy on Anwar Kidwai
* Katrina Kaif as Zoya Nazar Jung, an ISI agent who goes undercover to counteract the efforts of Tiger
* Ranvir Shorey as Gopi Arya, a RAW agent and Tiger's handler
* Roshan Seth as Anwar Kidwai, an Indian scientist and Trinity College Dublin professor whose missile research is sought by RAW and the ISI
* Girish Karnad as Ajit Shenoy, the chief of RAW
* Gavie Chahal as Abrar Sheikh, a section captain of the ISI

Samar Jai Singh appears as Rabinder, a RAW agent who defects to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), while Rajender Sethi portrays Bagga, a RAW technical analyst. Bhupesh Singh and Sanjay Gurbaxani play unnamed RAW operatives. Troi Ge Borde and Aaran Chaudhary feature as ISI agents Feroz and Tokas, respectively. Ashok Awasthi and Zarksis Khandhadia appear as Indian and Pakistani government ministers.

Lisa Byrne, Justin Fuentes, Alison Flood, and Rikki McTiernan play Zoya's friends—Amelie, Brad, Fairy, and Pinocchio—in the Dublin sequence. Juhi Parmar makes a cameo appearance as a news reporter, and Rajeev Varma and Yogi Raj appear briefly as RAW and ISI drivers, respectively. Tevfik İnceoğlu has a minor role as a forger who assists Zoya and Tiger in their escape.

Production

Development

After Kabir Khan was announced as director to a then-untitled action film, he approached Shah Rukh Khan with a draft of the screenplay. Although interested, Khan could not star in the film due to scheduling conflicts with ''Don 2'' (2011) and ''Jab Tak Hai Jaan'' (2012). This allowed the film's screenplay, which had been completed in November 2010, to undergo changes well into shooting, including as late as February 2012. In May 2011, several reports confirmed Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif would star in a film titled ''Ek Tha Tiger''. It would be Khan's first venture with Yash Raj Films, and the pair's fourth film together, after '' Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya?'' (2005), '' Partner'' (2007), and '' Yuvvraaj'' (2008). In order to begin filming, Khan had to postpone the development of ''Sher Khan'', a yet unrealized project he began developing with his brother, Sohail Khan. Khan was paid a reported to star in the film. Kaif, who only appeared in one action film prior to ''Ek Tha Tiger'' (2008's '' Race''), performed her own stunts.

Kabir Khan wrote scenes specifically to include Trinity College, considering it "a character of repute"; he had previously visited the university in mid-1995 to interview then Irish President Mary Robinson. According to Avtar
Panesar, Vice President of International Operations at Yash Raj, all locations were ultimately motivated by the screenplay, stating "if it fits the script, if it works, we then make use of the country as a location".

The rest of the cast was finalized over the following year; Ranvir Shorey signed on in April 2012, while the film marks the Bollywood debut of Gavie Chahal, who previously appeared in Punjabi films. On 3 May 2012, a photography shoot was held with the cast. After release, the film was subject to a copyright dispute after writer Anand Panda lodged a police complaint, backed by the Screenwriters Association, claiming the filmmakers stole his screenplay. Kabir Khan and Aditya Chopra were sent first information reports under charges of cheating, criminal breach of trust, and violation of the Copyright Act. Khan and Chopra subsequently filed an appeal to the Bombay High Court. In July 2012, a legal notice was served by the nephew of Ravindra Kaushik, a RAW agent known as Black Tiger, stating the film bears a striking resemblance to his uncle and his uncle's life.

Filming

The film's production contained a number of delays. Initial reports said principal photography would begin in July 2011, but a spokesperson for Yash Raj Films announced production had been delayed due to budgeting concerns. Filming began in August 2011 in Dublin, but was postponed after Salman Khan underwent surgery for trigeminal neuralgia in the United States, and when some crew members in Ireland held a demonstration over filming conditions and a lack of payment.

Filming resumed in September 2011 in Turkey, in Istanbul and near the border with Syria and Iraq. There, the crew faced security concerns when they were mistaken for a hostile threat by Turkish Land Forces, and were required to lie down for ten minutes at gunpoint while the issue was being resolved. Production took place in Dublin between 10 September and 14 October 2011, with scenes between Khan and Shorey filmed on Temple Bar. According to Naoise Barry, the Irish Film Commissioner, Screen Ireland and Tourism Ireland collectively sought to attract Bollywood productions to the country since 2004, citing India as an emerging market for tourism in Ireland. According to Aman Agrawal, a production executive for Yash Raj, Dublin was chosen to "allow the film to be international and encourage people outside India to connect to Bollywood" while maintaining "appeal to Indian audiences who love to see new places". Dublin City Council, Trinity College (which saw filming on campus for the first time in 20 years), and other agencies helped enable filming in the city by granting complimentary visas and allowing reduced costs with tax breaks.

Production was halted altogether in early 2012 to account for script re-writes, abandoning production in Hong Kong in favor of an eventual crunch-schedule three-day period in Delhi. Filming ended in June 2012 in Bangkok, Thailand. Stunt directors for '' The Bourne Identity'' (2002) coordinated the film's action sequences, some of which were shot on location. Khan used a self-created fitness program titled 'Dirty Running' for 30 days to prepare for the role. Kaif completed her scenes without makeup. Filming also took place in Havana

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