''Attack: Part 1'' is a 2022 Indian
Hindi
Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
-language
science fiction action film
The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as ...
directed by Lakshya Raj Anand, who co-wrote the film with Sumit Batheja and Vishal Kapoor, based on a story by
John Abraham
John Abraham (born 17 December 1972) is an Indian actor and film producer who works in Hindi films. Known for his stoic action hero persona, he is a recipient of a National Film Award along with nominations for four Filmfare Awards. Abraham ha ...
, who stars in the lead role as a
cyborg
A cyborg (, a portmanteau of ''cybernetics, cybernetic'' and ''organism'') is a being with both Organic matter, organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.[Jacqueline Fernandez
Jacqueline Genevieve Fernandez (born 11 August 1985) is a Sri Lankan actress based in India. She has worked in Indian films, predominantly in Hindi, besides appearing in reality shows and music videos. Fernandez was born and raised in Bahrain. ...]
,
Rakul Preet Singh
Rakul Preet Singh (born 10 October 1990) is an Indian actress who predominantly works in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil films. Singh is a recipient of several accolades including a SIIMA Award, in addition to four nominations at the Filmfare Award ...
,
Prakash Raj
Prakash Raj (born Prakash Rai; 26 March 1965) is an Indian actor, film director, producer, television presenter, and politician. Known for his works in Telugu language, Telugu, Tamil language, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, English language, Engl ...
and
Ratna Pathak Shah
Ratna Pathak Shah (born 7 August 1957) is an Indian actress and director known for her work in Hindi theatre, television, and films. Her extensive work in theatre includes a series of plays in both English and Hindi. She rose to prominence when ...
in supporting roles.
''Attack'' was released on 1 April 2022 and received mixed reviews from critics and eventually
bombed at the box office.
Plot
In 2010
Indian Army
The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...
officer Arjun Shergill and his team are on a mission to capture terrorist Rehman Gul, who attacked an Indian army convoy two days before. After a shootout Arjun arrests Rehman and saves a suicide bomber, who is Rehman's son Hamid Gul.
Two years later at
Mumbai Airport, Arjun meets air hostess Ayesha and they fall in love. The airport is attacked by Hamid's men. Ayesha is killed and Arjun is paralysed from the neck down. V. K. Subramaniam, Chief of Indian Intelligence and Arjun's superior officer, proposes an
AI-operated
supersoldier
A super soldier (or supersoldier) is a concept soldier capable of operating beyond normal human abilities through technological augmentation or (in fictional depictions) genetic modification or cybernetic augmentation. Soldiers that obtain greate ...
program to the
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
at a meeting to tackle rising attacks under Hamid and to prepare for future wars, which are shifting from traditional warfare to AI and machines. Defence Research and Development scientist Sabaha Qureshi has been modifying the supersoldiers program for 7 years and is on the verge of a major breakthrough.
The Prime Minister agrees and Subramaniam selects Arjun for the program. Arjun is hesitant but agrees as he wants to avenge Ayesha's death. Arjun operates himself under the command of the
Intelligent Robotic Assistant (IRA), which is restricted due to Arjun's trauma. But soon, Sabaha turns Arjun into a
cyborg
A cyborg (, a portmanteau of ''cybernetics, cybernetic'' and ''organism'') is a being with both Organic matter, organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.[parliament
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...]
to submit Arjun's progress to the Defence Minister. While conversing with IRA, Arjun learns that Hamid is planning to attack the parliament and informs Subramaniam, who is at the
Sansad Marg
Sansad Marg (, formerly ''N-Block'') is a street located in New Delhi, India. The street gets its name from the Parliament House (Sansad Bhavan).
The old Parliament House, designed by Sir Herbert Baker, is located at the one end of Sansad Mar ...
.
Hamid and his fellow terrorists, disguised as
Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel, hijack parliament and capture the parliament ministry and Union ministers including the Prime Minister and Sabaha. Arjun leaves for the parliament with
National Security Guard (NSG) commandos, but Hamid demands that the NSG retreat from the parliament in exchange for the release of 50 hostages. Subramabiam insists to the caretaker Prime Minister Digvijay Singh that a partial extraction be performed, and sends Arjun to covertly infiltrate the parliament and relay information. Arjun sneaks into the parliament with IRA's help and kills some guards as he enters the control room and provides live feed to Subramaniam.
Hamid demands the release of Rehman. Sabaha is caught by the terrorist Hussain but Arjun kills Hussain and rescues her. Arjun reveals himself to Hamid via a walkie talkie and Hamid insists that Digvijay, Subramaniam and others command Arjun to surrender. Arjun agrees to surrender and is taken to Hamid where one of Hamid's men knocks Arjun's neck, causing a malfunction in IRA. Hamid demands safe passage to flee in an aeroplane to Ecuador and releases the hostages, but activates a
sarin
Sarin (NATO designation GB nerve_agent#G-series.html" ;"title="hort for nerve agent#G-series">G-series, "B" is an extremely toxic organophosphorus compound.[John Abraham
John Abraham (born 17 December 1972) is an Indian actor and film producer who works in Hindi films. Known for his stoic action hero persona, he is a recipient of a National Film Award along with nominations for four Filmfare Awards. Abraham ha ...]
as Major Arjun Shergill, a
cyborg
A cyborg (, a portmanteau of ''cybernetics, cybernetic'' and ''organism'') is a being with both Organic matter, organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.[India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...]
’s first
supersoldier
A super soldier (or supersoldier) is a concept soldier capable of operating beyond normal human abilities through technological augmentation or (in fictional depictions) genetic modification or cybernetic augmentation. Soldiers that obtain greate ...
*
Rakul Preet Singh
Rakul Preet Singh (born 10 October 1990) is an Indian actress who predominantly works in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil films. Singh is a recipient of several accolades including a SIIMA Award, in addition to four nominations at the Filmfare Award ...
as
Dr. Sabaha Qureshi,
DRDO
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is an agency under the Department of Defence Research and Development in the Ministry of Defence of the Government of India, charged with the military's research and development, headqu ...
scientist
*
Jacqueline Fernandez
Jacqueline Genevieve Fernandez (born 11 August 1985) is a Sri Lankan actress based in India. She has worked in Indian films, predominantly in Hindi, besides appearing in reality shows and music videos. Fernandez was born and raised in Bahrain. ...
as Ayesha Roy, an
air hostess
A flight attendant is a member of the aircrew whose primary responsibility is ensure the safety of passengers in the cabin of an aircraft across all stages of flight. Their secondary duty is to see to the comfort of passengers. Flight attenda ...
and Arjun's lover
*
Prakash Raj
Prakash Raj (born Prakash Rai; 26 March 1965) is an Indian actor, film director, producer, television presenter, and politician. Known for his works in Telugu language, Telugu, Tamil language, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, English language, Engl ...
as Vadraj Kumar "V.K" Subramaniam,
Defence Secretary
A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divided ...
and Arjun's
superior officer
An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service.
Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warrant officer. However, absent c ...
*
Ratna Pathak Shah
Ratna Pathak Shah (born 7 August 1957) is an Indian actress and director known for her work in Hindi theatre, television, and films. Her extensive work in theatre includes a series of plays in both English and Hindi. She rose to prominence when ...
as Shanti Shergill, Arjun's mother
* Serena Walia as I.R.A (voice), Arjun's personal AI assistant
* Elham Ehsas as Hamid Gul, Rehman's son and the main antagonist
*
Rajit Kapur as
Home Minister
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergenc ...
Digvijay Singh
*
Kiran Kumar
Kiran Kumar (born Deepak Dhar; 20 October 1953) is an Indian screen and theatre actor. He has worked in numerous Hindi, Bhojpuri and Gujarati television and film productions. His latest work in drama is ''Charlie 2''.
Personal life
Kumar come ...
as
Indian Army Chief K.V. Singh
* Habib Al Aidroos as Rehman Gul, Hamid's father
* Tamara D'Souza as Juhi, Ayesha's friend
* Mir Mehroos as Young Hamid Gul
* Jaimini Pathak as Negotiator Sukrut
* Babrak Akbari as Mustafa
* Nimish Desai as
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
* Ashish Nijhawan as Hussain
* Shahnawaz Bhatt as Saqlain
* Vikas Tomar as Home Minister's Assistant
* Ranjit Punia as
CRPF Officer
* Ranjeet Singh as
RAF Officer
* Karan Mehat as Shahid
Production
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 the ...
began in January 2020. The
production
Production may refer to:
Economics and business
* Production (economics)
* Production, the act of manufacturing goods
* Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services)
* Production as a stat ...
was put on hold in March 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic. The shooting resumed in February 2021.
Release
''Attack: Part 1'' was originally scheduled for theatrical opening worldwide on 14 August 2020, but it was delayed due to the shooting suspension. The film was scheduled for release on 28 January 2022, but it was postponed due to the surge in
Omicron variant
Omicron (B.1.1.529) is a Variants of SARS-CoV-2, variant of SARS-CoV-2 first reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) by the Network for Genomics Surveillance in South Africa on 24 November 2021. It was first detected in Botswana and has ...
cases.
The film was theatrically released on 1 April 2022.
Home media
The film streamed on
ZEE5
ZEE5 or Z5 is an Indian subscription video on demand and over-the-top streaming service, owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. It was launched in India on 14 February 2018 with content in 12 languages. The ZEE5 mobile app is available on We ...
on 27 May 2022.
Reception
Box office
''Attack'' earned 3.51 crore at the domestic box office on its opening day. On the second day, the film collected 3.75 crore. On the third day the film had a worldwide gross of 4.25 crore, taking total domestic weekend collection to 11.51 crore.
, the film grossed crore in India and crore overseas, for a worldwide gross collection of crore.
Critical response
''Attack: Part 1'' received mixed reviews from critics with praise for its action scenes while the script was criticised.
Rachana Dubey of ''
The Times of India
''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
'' gave 3.5/5 stars and wrote, "''Attack: Part One'', is an engaging watch, from start to finish." Shaheen Irani of ''
OTTplay
HT Media is an Indian mass media company based in Delhi. It has holdings in print, electronic and digital media. HT Media's flagship newspaper is the ''Hindustan Times'', the second most widely read English newspaper in India after ''The Times of ...
'' gave 3.5/5 stars and wrote, "Attack is most definitely a film that should turn into a franchise. Part 1 of this movie is a thorough entertainer for people who enjoy action to the T. The film is a surprisingly cool and edge-of-the-seat thriller." Grace Cyril of ''
India Today
''India Today'' is a weekly Indian English-language news magazine published by Living Media, Living Media India Limited. It is the most widely circulated magazine in India, with a readership of close to 8 million. In 2014, ''India Today'' laun ...
'' gave 3/5 stars and wrote, "Attack stands well with its VFX and new concepts, all coated in a layer of slick modern sci-fi."
Avinash Lohana of ''
Pinkvilla
Pinkvilla is an Indian entertainment and lifestyle platform. As of June 2022, Pinkvilla has over 50,000,000 visitors on its website and app.
Overview
Pinkvilla covers entertainment and lifestyle stories. Its coverage extends to Hindi cinema, ...
'' gave 3/5 stars and wrote, "Keep an open mind, don’t compare, and give the film a chance. You might like it." Bharathi Pradhan of ''
Lehren'' gave 3/5 stars and wrote, "John may take a bow because he is one of the producers of the film and has been credited with the story idea too."
Taran Adarsh
Taran Adarsh (born 13 June 1965) is an Indian film critic and trade analyst. He is best known for giving trade figures and box office updates on social media, as well as his reviews for Bollywood Hungama.
Career
Taran Adarsh started his journ ...
of ''
Bollywood Hungama
Bollywood Hungama (lit. "Bollywood Madness" in Hindi), previously known as IndiaFM (or IndiaFM.com), is an Indian entertainment website, owned by Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, which acquired the website in 2000.
The website provides n ...
'' gave 3/5 stars and wrote, "Attack - Part 1 works due to the novel concept, action, VFX and John Abraham’s first-rate performance."
Rohit Bhatnagar of ''
The Free Press Journal
''The Free Press Journal'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper that was established in 1928 by Swaminathan Sadanand, who also acted as its first editor. First produced to complement a news agency, the Free Press of India, it was a s ...
'' gave 3/5 stars and wrote, "'Attack - Part 1' might be a beginning of a new era in the Hindi film industry only if you ignore the long list of loopholes and cliché sequences."
Saibal Chatterjee
Saibal Chatterjee is an Indian film critic, editor and documentary screenwriter. He was a columnist at ''BBC News'', ''Business Standard'', ''Hindustan Times'' and '' The Financial Express''. He has also written for ''The Telegraph'', ''The Tim ...
of ''
NDTV
New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. It was founded in 1984 by economist Prannoy Roy and journalist Radhika Roy.
NDTV began as a production house for news segments, ...
'' gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote, "To the credit of director Lakshya Raj Anand, the fast-paced hostage drama stops short of being a dreadful assault on the senses."
Shubhra Gupta
Shubhra Gupta is an Indian film critic who writes for ''The Indian Express''. She received the Ramnath Goenka Award for Best Writing on Cinema in 2012. She was a member of the Central Board of Film Certification from 2012 to 2015. She is the au ...
of ''
Indian Express
''The Indian Express'' is an English-language India, Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the Indian Express Limited, ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnat ...
'' gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote, "We know exactly how things will pan out, no strain on the brain. Everything is straight-forward, no complicated characters, no morally ambiguous situations."
Vijay Mruthyunjaya of ''
Deccan Herald
''Deccan Herald'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper published from the Indian state of Karnataka. It was founded by businessman K. N. Guruswamy and launched on 17 June 1948. It is published by The Printers Mysore, a privately hel ...
'' gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote, "'Attack’ does not preach patriotism with painfully long dialogues and agonising sentiments. It relies wholly on lightning and thunder and Abraham delivers both in equal measure."
Shubham Kulkarni of ''Koimoi'' gave 2/5 stars and wrote, "Lakshya Raj Anand only focuses on the battle sequences and everything that happens between them looks lazy." Tatsam Mukherjee of ''
Firstpost
Firstpost is an Indian news website owned by Network18 Group, which also runs CNN-News18 and CNBC TV18. It has posted misinformation on multiple occasions.
The Network 18 group was originally owned by Raghav Bahl. In January 2012, the gro ...
'' gave 1/5 stars and wrote, "Whatever might be the measures taken by an earlier John Abraham film, there seems to be a renewed bloodlust in Attack, that’s actively trying to court the ‘masses’ of ''
Uri: The Surgical Strike'' and ''
The Kashmir Files
''The Kashmir Files'' is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language drama film written and directed by Vivek Agnihotri. The film presents a fictional storyline centred around the 1990 exodus of Kashmiri Hindus from Indian-administered Kashmir. It depicts ...
.''"
Monika Rawal Kukreja of ''
Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media Limited, an entity controlled by the Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia, the daughter o ...
'' wrote, "Attack is your high-on-action sci-fi flick which is slick and savvy. Watch it for John being at his best after a long time and don't care too much about the unrealistic world it takes you to." Anuj Kumar of ''
The Hindu
''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...
'' wrote, "Taut and fast-paced, the action choreography is closer to the stuff that Hollywood offers and the electric background score provides reason for the adrenaline glands to make their presence felt." ''
Onmanorama'' wrote, "Overall, the film is well-written, but the story seems to be an amalgamation of many sci-fi English films. The film is slickly shot and the director wastes little time getting to the action."
Soundtrack
The film's music is composed by
Shashwat Sachdev while lyrics written by
Kumaar
Rakesh Kumar Pal, known mononymously as Kumaar, is an Indian lyricist who works in Hindi cinema. Some of his songs include "Rula Ke Gaya Ishq", " Tu Bhi Royega", "Dil Ki Aadat", " Baby Doll', " Chittiyaan Kalaiyaan", " Sooraj Dooba Hain", "Lo ...
and
Bjorn Surrao
Bjorn Surrao is an Indian singer-songwriter, performer, music producer and actor. He initially gained fame for his vocals in the song "Master the Blaster" from the Tamil film ''Master'' (2021). The track went on to become #1 on iTunes, Apple Mu ...
.
Future
As indicated by the title, the film was made as part of a planned franchise. Director Anand has stated to ''
Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media Limited, an entity controlled by the Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia, the daughter o ...
'', "We have created these characters whose journey doesn’t end after part one, the journey begins. And he takes the learning from what happens in part one to part two and three. It automatically lends itself to action films". For ''Attack: Part 2'', John Abraham has said that a script is ready and they "signed on for Attack 2 with Jayanthi Bhai even before the release of Attack."
See also
*
2001 Indian Parliament attack
The 2001 Indian Parliament attack was a terrorist attack on the Parliament of India in New Delhi, India on 13 December 2001. The attack was carried out by five Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists that resulted in the deaths of six Delhi Police perso ...
Top 10 Adventure Bollywood Movies
References
External links
*
Attackat
Bollywood Hungama
Bollywood Hungama (lit. "Bollywood Madness" in Hindi), previously known as IndiaFM (or IndiaFM.com), is an Indian entertainment website, owned by Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, which acquired the website in 2000.
The website provides n ...
Attackat
ZEE5
ZEE5 or Z5 is an Indian subscription video on demand and over-the-top streaming service, owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. It was launched in India on 14 February 2018 with content in 12 languages. The ZEE5 mobile app is available on We ...
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