Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai

About the film

Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai is a 2010 Indian Hindi-language neo-noir crime thriller film written by Rajat Arora and directed by Milan Luthria. It stars Ajay Devgn, Emraan Hashmi, Kangana Ranaut, Prachi Desai and Randeep Hooda. Produced by Ekta Kapoor under the Balaji Motion Pictures banner, Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai was released on 30 July 2010 to generally positive reviews from critics, and was a commercial success. The film is loosely based on the lives of Mumbai underworld gangsters Haji Mastan and Dawood Ibrahim. It was made on a budget of ₹38 crore (₹28 crore for production and ₹10 crore for publicity and advertising). A sequel, Once Upon a Time in Mumbai Dobaara!, was released in 2013.

Plot

The film opens in March 1993 in Mumbai, with a suicide attempt by DCP Agnel Wilson on the pretext of the recent Mumbai bombings. When questioned by his superior, Inspector General Aditya Mandke, over his actions, he breaks down and claims that the bombings are his own fault. Wilson then recounts that 18 years ago, when he was posted as the ACP in the Mumbai crime branch, his inability to take necessary action led to the rise of Shoaib Khan, a dreaded gangster who played a central role in the bombings.

Throughout the film, Wilson narrates the story of 1970s Mumbai, when it was ruled by a kind-hearted smuggler Sultan Mirza, and how Mirza's eventual downfall led to Shoaib's rise to power.

After experiencing a flood in his hometown of Madras, a young Mirza arrives in Mumbai, where he lands a job as a coal shoveller near the docks. Despite his modest earnings, Mirza consistently aids the poor and needy, earning their respect and admiration. As a result, Mirza has been given the nickname Sultan.

Reception

Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN rated the film 2.5 out of 5 saying, "The film is watchable and enjoyable in parts even, but it doesn't quite pull off the retro chic tone it was going for". IANS rated the movie 3.5 out of 5 saying, "Rajat Arora's dialogues flow from the storytelling in a smooth flow of poetry and street wisdom." Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama gave it 4/5 and called it "An outstanding Cinematic experience". Nikhat Kazmi of the Times of India gave it 4/5 and stated, "Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai offers you both substance and soul, even as it dabbles with a slice of reality". Rediff gave it 4/5 and said, "Book your tickets now".

Box office

Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai managed to have a decent weekend despite starting slowly. The film picked up from Friday evening and managed to have good Saturday and Sunday collections. The approximate breakdowns are 55.0 million (Friday), 70 million (Saturday) and 77.5 million (Sunday) for a 202.5 million weekend. The film grossed Rs. 585.0 million in India at the end of its ninth week. Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai was declared a hit by Box Office India.

In its opening weekend the film showed a day-wise growth in U.K. [Friday £15,755, Saturday £19,381 and Sunday £19,644] and a decent start in U.S. [approx$. 137,000 at 32 venues]. In its second weekend, the film collected £16,249 on 14 screens, with the per screen average working out to £1,161. Total: £1,07,988 at U.K boxoffice. In its third weekend, the film collected £5,909 on 8 screens, with the per screen average working out to £739 (total: £122,257 in U.K.). In its fourth weekend in U.K, the film collected £743 on four screens, with the per screen average working out to £186 (total: £1,26,696). In its fifth weekend in the U.K, the film collected £105 on two screens, with the per screen average working out to £53 (total: £1,27,338). In its fifth weekend at the U.S. boxoffice, the film collected $1,131 on two screens, with the per screen average working out to $566 (total: $3,02,862).

Accolades

The film received many awards at several award functions. Ajay Devgn and Prachi Desai received accolades for their nominations, while other awards were won for the film's music, playback and technical direction.

Soundtrack

The film's songs were released on 29 June 2010. There were a total of 14 songs composed by Pritam with lyrics penned by Irshad Kamil, Neelesh Misra and Amitabh Bhattacharya.

The film score was composed by Sandeep Shirodkar. All Qawwali Voices By Rakesh Pandit, Sabri Brothers, Irfan And Arshad.

Additional Chorus And Backing Voice By Rana Mazumder, Anupam Amod, Joy, Clint, Mariam, Niesha.

Sequel

Due to the film's commercial and critical success, a sequel was planned. Akshay Kumar (taking over Hashmi's role) and Imran Khan were roped in as the male leads. The sequel, Once Upon a Time in Mumbai Dobaara!, features Sonakshi Sinha playing a role inspired by actress Mandakini, whilst Sonali Bendre was also roped in (taking over Desai's role). The film started shooting in August 2012, whilst the film released on 15 August 2013, thus avoids clashing with Rohit Shetty directorial Chennai Express, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone, which released one week before the release of OUATIMD. The film was a flop at the box office as it had very slow opening with very low occupancy while Chennai Express was breaking various box office records throughout its release.

Key details