Preview: Bumper opening expected for 'Gunday'
Unlike every year, this year sees the release of an action crime thriller on Valentine’s Day, as opposed to the usual run of the mill mush audiences are often subject to.
Gunday which features, Ranveer Singh (fresh from the success of Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-leela), Arjun Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra has been made on an approximate budget of Rs.50 crore (£7.4m approx), and is set to hit more than 2,000 screens across the country.
Trade analyst Rajesh Thadani is hopeful about the action thriller's box office prospects.
"The film will have a bumper opening. It might even cross Rs.100 crore," Thadani of Multimedia Combines said to IANS.
Produced under the prestigious Yash Raj banner, Gunday holds a lot of significance for its makers as it was the last narration that the late Yash Chopra, who started YRF, heard.
"It's a very special film for us because this was the last script that Yash Chopra heard. It's special for us to do the film because he really loved the script and he believed in it," said the film's director Ali Abbas Zafar.
Subsequently, the film will also pay tribute to the late filmmaker with a 60-second montage at the beginning of the film.
It was Zafar's idea to include a tribute to the filmmaker, known for directing blockbusters like Deewaar, Kabhi Kabhie and Chandni.
Apparently, Chopra gave his inputs and suggestions and instructed Zafar to shoot the coal mine scenes at the actual locations and not recreate them in a studio, which was also his dream during Kaala Patthar, said a statement.
"It was Ali Abbas Zafar's idea, he was very, very keen as this was Yashji's last script that he had heard. This was an emotional moment for Ali," said a source from Yash Raj Films.
Set in 1970s West Bengal, the film tells the story of two friends — Bala and Bikram, who grow from being small time inconsequential coal thieves to the most powerful members of the mafia.
The plot fits well with the time it portrays and also includes the world of cabaret dancers with Priyanka playing cabaret dancer Nandita.
To look convincing on screen, the actress trained with French cabaret dancers for the song 'Asalaam E Ishqum'.
Parts of the film have been shot in Kolkata and Durgapur in West Bengal. The makers also canned a song in Oman.
Arjun and Ranveer will be seen together for the first in Gunday and viewers are keen to see their on screen chemistry after their crackling off screen bonding. The film also stars Irrfan Khan playing a cop, on a mission to stop the two dead in their tracks.
Are you looking forward to Gunday? Let us know below, and look out for our review of this eagerly anticipated film, this weekend!
Videos: Gunday (Courtesy Yash Raj Films)
You might also like: