Uri: The surgical strike, a dramatised account of the retaliation to the 2016 Uri attack was one of the most successful Hindi films at the box office this year.
The film crossed the INR 200 crore in India in two weeks and by its fourth week of release it had grossed 300 crores.
Starring Vicky Kaushal, Paresh Rawal, Mohit Raina and Yami Gautam in lead roles, the film follows Major Vihaan Singh Shergill of the Indian Army who leads a team to carry surgical strikes in Pakistan Administered Kashmir.
It was his roots in the Kashmir valley that got Aditya Dhar, the writer and director of the film, interested in the subject.
Aditya Dhar Source: Aditya Dhar
“I was very curious to know how they pulled off the operation. I had no idea if there was a story or not but I knew that this is the first time, Indian army had gone to enemy’s space and killed all the terrorists,” says Mr Dhar who wanted to be in Army since he was a kid.
Over the next six months, Dhar dedicated his time and effort to writing the script.
Still from the film Uri: The Surgical strike Source: Aditya Dhar
“… I knew this is an incredible story and I must do it. If I don’t, someone else would do,” said Mr Dhar.
It took him months of extensive research.
‘I went through a lot of articles, met journalists and Army officers. I became an investigating Journalist,” said Dhar.
Once the script was done, Mr Dhar approached RSVP Movies’ Ronnie Screwvala through his associate producer- Sonia.
Within two hours, Aditya got a green light from her.
“Generally Ronnie takes 10-15 days to read and decide but that day he was boarding a flight, so Sonia sent it to him. He read it on the flight and by the time, the plane landed, Ronnie had decided to make the film,” Mr Dhar reveals.
Still from the film Uri: The Surgical strike Source: Aditya Dhar
“It still gives me goosebumps,” says Aditya Dhar about the most challenging and emotional scene of the film
"The scene when the little girl delivers her last salute, her war cry - it still gives me goosebumps,” Mr Dhar said.
He shares how one of the film’s most memorable moment was executed.
“I had briefed the scene to the girl just 10-15 minutes before the shot and hoped to get it right. The shot was not only right but turned out to be the high point of the film,” he says.
Talking about the impact of her acting, he reveals she left people speechless on the scene.
“There was absolute silence on the set after the shot. Everybody present there had wet eyes and was just caught in the moment. She was incredible. Hats off to that girl,” said Mr Dhar.
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The story behind Uri: The Surgical Strike, one of India’s most successful films this year
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