Saand Ki Aankh (transl. Bull's eye) is a 2019 Indian biographical drama film directed by Tushar Hiranandani and produced by Anurag Kashyap, Reliance Entertainment and Nidhi Parmar.[4][5][6] The film stars Taapsee Pannu, Bhumi Pednekar, Prakash Jha, and Vineet Kumar Singh. It highlights the lives of sharpshooters Chandro and Prakashi Tomar.
| Saand Ki Aankh | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Tushar Hiranandani |
| Written by | Jagdeep Sidhu (dialogue) |
| Screenplay by | Balwinder Singh Janjua |
| Produced by | Anurag Kashyap Reliance Entertainment Nidhi Parmar |
| Starring | Taapsee Pannu Bhumi Pednekar Prakash Jha Vineet Kumar Singh |
| Narrated by | Sara Arjun |
| Cinematography | Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti |
| Edited by | Devendra Murdeshwar |
| Music by | Songs: Vishal Mishra Score: Advait Nemlekar |
Production companies | Reliance Entertainment Chalk and Cheese Films |
| Distributed by | Reliance Entertainment PVR Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 146 minutes[2] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Box office | est. ₹30.7 crore[3] |
Filming began in February 2019 at Baghpat, with principal photography also held in Hastinapur and Mawana.[7] The film was released on 25 October 2019, coinciding with the Diwali festival.
Cast
edit- Taapsee Pannu as Prakashi Tomar
- Bhumi Pednekar as Chandro Tomar
- Prakash Jha as Rattan Singh Tomar
- Kuldeep Sareen as Bhanwan Singh Tomar
- Pawan Chopra as Jai Singh Tomar
- Vineet Kumar Singh as Dr. Yashpal
- Yudhvir Ahlawat as Young Rambir Tomar
- Yogendra Vikram Singh as young Rattan Singh Tomar
- Ronak Bhinder as young Bhanwar Singh Tomar
- Amol Nikhare as Young Jai Singh Tomar
- Navneet Srivastava as Farooq
- Shaad Randhawa as Rambir Tomar
- Pritha Bakshi as Seema Tomar
- Sara Arjun as Shefali Tomar
- Himanshu Sharma as Sachin Tomar
- Kavita Vaid as Bimla Tomar (Prakashi Tomar and Chandro Tomar's sister-in-law)
- Akshay Kumar Jinagal as captain
- Trupti Khamkhar as young Bimla Tomar
- Sandeep Sharma as Reporter
- Nikhat Khan as Maharani Mahedra Kumari
- Dinesh Mohan as Maharaja of Alwar
Production
editDevelopment and casting
editInitially the film was titled Womaniya with Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar in lead roles. But due to controversy over legal rights of the title which is held by Pritish Nandy Communications, the film was renamed as Saand Ki Aankh.[8] Later on Prakash Jha was also included in the cast to play a vital role.[6] In the last week of February 2019, Vineet Kumar Singh was added to the cast.[9] Giving details of the film, the co producer Anurag Kashyap stated that the film is a biopic based on the life of the oldest sharpshooters, Chandro Tomar and her sister-in-law Prakashi Tomar.[5]
Filming
editFilming began on 10 February 2019 in Baghpat. The second part of the film is to be shot in Hastinapur and Mawana.[7] Pannu trained in air pistol and rifle shooting to reprise the role of a sharpshooter in the film.[10] The filming was completed in the last week of April as Pannu shared the news on social media.[11]
Promotion and release
editOn 14 February 2019, the lead actors shared the first look of the film from location.[12] Giving wishes on Holi festival, Pannu shared another look from the film on Twitter on 21 March 2019.[13] A short video introducing Chandro and Prakashi Tomar, on whose life the film is based was released by Reliance Entertainment on 14 April 2019 on YouTube.[14] First look posters of the film were released on 16 April 2019. In the posters, Pannu and Bhumi are posing with their pistols. The poster gives the release date as Diwali.[15]
The film was theatrically released on 25 October 2019.[1] It was screened as opening film at 51st International Film Festival of India in January 2021 in Indian Panorama section.[16]
Soundtrack
edit| Saand Ki Aankh | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | |||||
| Released | 15 October 2019[17] | ||||
| Recorded | 2019 | ||||
| Studio | YRF Studios | ||||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | ||||
| Length | 36:16 | ||||
| Label | Zee Music Company | ||||
| Producer | Gaurav Vaswani | ||||
| Vishal Mishra chronology | |||||
| |||||
| |||||
The music of the film is composed by Vishal Mishra, with lyrics written by Raj Shekhar.
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Udta Teetar" | Sunidhi Chauhan, Jyoti Nooran | 4:30 |
| 2. | "Womaniya" | Vishal Dadlani, Vishal Mishra | 3:54 |
| 3. | "Aasmaa" | Asha Bhosle | 6:09 |
| 4. | "Baby Gold" | Sona Mohapatra, Jyotica Tangri | 3:35 |
| 5. | "Jhunna Jhunna" | Pratibha Singh Baghel, Krutika Borkar | 4:11 |
| 6. | "Womaniya" (Raw Version) | Vishal Mishra | 3:54 |
| 7. | "Aasmaa" (Studio Version) | Vishal Mishra | 6:09 |
| 8. | "Womaniya" (Film Version) | Palak Muchhal | 3:54 |
| Total length: | 36:16 | ||
Reception
editCritical response
editOn review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 56% based on 16 reviews with an average rating of 6/10.[18]
Priyanka Sinha Jha of News18, praising Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar for their 'endearing' performances, rates the film with three and half stars out of five. She writes, "What sets apart Saand Ki Aankh is that director Tushar Hiranandani frames the issues of patriarchy and gender discrimination within the structure of a family drama which is heart-wrenching and triumphant in equal measure." Concluding, she opined, that the simple storytelling, with good background score and suitable production design the film has hit the bullseye.[19] Sonal Gera of India TV gave three and half stars out of five and noted that Saand Ki Aankh is a 'compelling feminist statement'. Criticising make-up and prosthetics used on Taapsee and Bhumi she felt that they looked too young to be 60-year-olds. Nevertheless, praising the performance of Pannu, Pednekar and Prakash Jha, she concluded, "The films needs to be watched but for powerful performances by inarguably two of the best actresses of recent times, Prakash Jha's baddie, an inspiring narrative and for the sheer joy of watching a good female-centric movie".[20] Mike McCahill of The Guardian gave two stars out of five and concluded "This feels like a waste of rich narrative possibilities, as mechanically feelgood as those two dozen Britflicks that have cast Dames Dench, Smith et al as old dears who shoot from the lip".[21]
Box office
editSaand Ki Aankh's opening day domestic collection was ₹48 lakhs. On the second day, the film collected ₹1.08 crore. On the third day, the film collected ₹91 lakhs, taking total opening weekend collection to ₹2.47 crore.[3]
As of 30 December 2019[update], with a gross of ₹27.86 crore in India and ₹2.84 crore overseas, the film has a worldwide gross collection of ₹30.7 crore.[3]
Awards and nominations
edit| List of awards and nominations | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref(s) | ||
| Filmfare Awards | 15 February 2020 | Best Debut Director | Tushar Hiranandani | Nominated | [22] | ||
| Best Screenplay | Balwinder Singh Janjua | ||||||
| Critics Award for Best Actress | Bhumi Pednekar | Won | |||||
| Taapsee Pannu | Won | ||||||
| Best Playback Singer-Female | Sona Mohapatra and Jyotica Tangri for "Baby Gold" | Nominated | |||||
| Best Sound Design | Pritam Das | Nominated | [23][24] | ||||
| Star Screen Awards | 8 December 2019 | Critics Award for Best Actress | Bhumi Pednekar | Won | [25] | ||
| Taapsee Pannu | Won | [25] | |||||
References
edit- ^ a b Mohan Dixit, Ayush (16 April 2019). "Saand Ki Aankh first look: Bhumi Pednekar, Taapsee Pannu age to portray Prakashi and Chandro Tomar". Times Now News 18. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ "Saand Ki Aankh (2019)". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
- ^ a b c "Saand Ki Aankh Box Office". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 31 December 2019.
- ^ Taran Adarsh [@taran_adarsh] (11 March 2019). "From the sets of #SaandKiAankh... Stars Taapsee Pannu, Bhumi Pednekar, Vineet Singh , Prakash Jha and Kuldeep Sareen... Directed by Tushar Hiranandani... Produced by Reliance Entertainment, Anurag Kashyap and Nidhi Parmar. https://t.co/nwnAhUTmWK" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ a b "Saand Ki Aankh: Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar kick off Anurag Kashyap's production". India Today. 9 February 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
- ^ a b "Prakash Jha joins the cast of Saand Ki Aankh". The Indian Express. 17 February 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
- ^ a b न्यूज डेस्क (10 February 2019). "बॉलीवुड फिल्म 'सांड की आंख' की शूटिंग आज से शुरू, बागपत के इस गांव में पहुंची दो मशहूर अभिनेत्रियां". Amar Ujala (in Hindi). Retrieved 10 March 2019.
- ^ "Anurag Kashyap, Pritish Nandy fight over Womaniya; film to star Bhumi Pednekar and Taapsee Pannu". Hindustan Times. 7 February 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
- ^ "Mukkabaaz Actor Vineet Singh Finalised for Anurag Kashyap's Saand Ki Aankh". News 18. 26 February 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
- ^ VIJAYAKAR, R.M. (22 February 2019). "Taapsee Pannu Learning Air Pistol for Sharpshooter Role in 'Saand Ki Aankh'". India West. Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
- ^ Singh, Raghuvendra (30 April 2019). "Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar wrap-up Saand Ki Aankh". Filmfare. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- ^ न्यूज डेस्क (17 February 2019). "सांड की आंख: गन और घाघरा के साथ तापसी- भूमि का खेत में वेलंटाइन". Jagran (in Hindi). Retrieved 23 March 2019.
- ^ Taapsee Pannu [@taapsee] (21 March 2019). "तम सब को मारे #साँडकीआँख के परिवार के तरफ़ से "हैपी होली" ! रंग चढ़ने वाला है .... #ComingSoon #SaandKiAankh #HappyHoli https://t.co/TNFYSPejQT" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Saand Ki Aankh |Shooter Daadi - Loaded and Ready|Taapsee Pannu,Bhumi Pednekar|Tushar Hiranandani". YouTube. Reliance Entertainment. 13 April 2019.
- ^ "Saand Ki Aankh first look: Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar play world's oldest sharpshooters". Indian Express. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ "Indian Panorama announces official selection for 51st International Film Festival of India, 2020". PIB GOI. 19 December 2020 – via Press release.
- ^ "Saand Ki Aankh - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Jio Saavn. 15 October 2019.
- ^ "Saand Ki Aankh". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
- ^ Sinha Jha, Priyanka (22 October 2019). "Saand Ki Aankh Movie Review: Taapsee Pannu-Bhumi Pednekar Hit the Bullseye". News18. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
- ^ Gera, Sonal (23 October 2019). "Saand Ki Aankh Review | A compelling feminist statement with a few flaws". India TV. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
- ^ McCahill, Mike (24 October 2019). "Saand Ki Aankh review – women take aim at Indian convention". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
- ^ Dubey, Rachana (3 February 2020). "Nominations for the 65th Filmfare Awards 2020 are out!". The Times of India. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
- ^ "Technical Nominations for the 65th Amazon Filmfare Awards 2020". Filmfare. 31 January 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
- ^ "65th Amazon Filmfare Award 2020 Technical and Short Film award winners". Filmfare. 2 February 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
- ^ a b "Taapsee Pannu And Bhumi Pednekar Share 'Undying Sisterhood' After Winning Filmfare Award For Saand Ki Aankh". India.com. 16 February 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2020.