Mumbai Saga stars John Abraham and Emraan Hashmi in lead roles. (Photo: John Abraham/Instagram)Even as the coronavirus cases show a steady increase in some parts of the country, some cheer is finally returning to the theatres. As John Abraham-Emraan Hashmi film Mumbai Saga releases on Friday, March 19, trade is hopeful that single-screen theatres will get footfalls. After Janhvi Kapoor-Rajkummar Rao starrer Roohi saw over Rs 20 crore box office collection in less tha a week, things are looking promising, as per trade.
Directed by Sanjay Gupta, Mumbai Saga is a gangster drama that pits John’s Amartya Rao against Emraan’s cop character. The film, set in the 1980s and 90s, chronicles the transformation of Bombay to Mumbai. The crime drama shows the changing face of the city as mills close down to make way for malls and high-rise buildings.
John Abraham plays the character of Amartya Rao, who has only one goal in life β to rule the city. His plans can come askew as Emraan’s inspector Vijay Savarkar dogs his every step.
In a media interaction that followed the trailer launch, John was asked what is in the gangster genre that lures him to keep coming back to it. To this John said that he picks these films to connect with the audiences because thatβs where βhe belongsβ.
Mumbai Saga’s songs are composed by Yo Yo Honey Singh and Payal Dev while lyrics written by Hommie Dilliwala and Yo Yo Honey Singh.
The Indian Express film critic Shubhra Gupta gave Mumbai Saga one and a half stars. Read her review here.
Aditi Raval tweeted, "Just starter watching #MumbaiSaga ... background score... some one liner... and @TheJohnAbraham ki power pack action."
Twitter user @EmraanianZ shared a screen grab of Emraan Hashmi's introduction scene in Mumbai Saga.
Fans have been going gaga after Emran's performance.
John Abraham told PTI, "For me, the joy is reaching out to common people through my films because we are here to entertain them. I want to make good films. I don’t care about success and failure. I like to succeed in reaching out to more people. I want the audience to have that big screen experience. We lost that sense of big screen, heroism in films and Mumbai Saga will bring that back."
"Except for Amole Gupte, who is clearly enjoying himself, reminding one of similar roles he has played before, there really is no one who is self-aware enough to carry off this saga," writes The Indian Express film critic Shubhra Gupta.
Read the full review here
Ahead of the theatrical release of Mumbai Saga, John Abraham told PTI, "The OTT platform is a great avenue and an option. But for me, it has always been about the big screen, being a big screen hero. I won’t be available for subscription fee."
Abhishek Bachchan, who will next be seen in The Big Bull, tweeted his wishes for Mumbai Saga.
Mumbai Saga director, writer and producer Sanjay Gupta said, "While narrating a story soaked in reality, one has to ensure that no aspect is barred from representation. For instance, when I was working on the story of Mumbai Saga for years together, the only thing that held my hand was the belief that I have to be true to the story, and I have to depict all the stakeholders in the story the way they were back in the day. Every character is a mix of several individuals who existed at that time in the said space. They’re real and yet, larger than life."
Suniel Shetty's post caption read, "Sada Anna hopes to see you in the theatres tomorrow! 19th March 2021 #mumbaisaga ππ½ππ½."
Sumit Kadel took to Twitter to post, "Sunil Shetty stands out in his role, rest of the supporting cast performances are weak specially villain played by Amole Gupte. Green & yellow color tone of the film is extremely irritating. Over all #MumbaiSaga is a poorly made film which’ll fail to rake good moolah at the BO."
Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar, the other theatrical release of the week gets love from the audience too. "@Nikku_baba_ tweeted, "Just Finished FirstDayFirstShow of #SandeepAurPinkyFaraar This movie shows Perfect vision of a director and also @arjunk26 @ParineetiChopra. Shows Impactful perfomance and also supporting cast show Main Importance in film but last in the climax."
Sumit Kadel shared today's box office opening collection and tweeted, "BO opening today- #MumbaiSaga 10-12% #Sandeepaurpinkyfaraar 3-5 %."
It is a clash on the Box office today. Dibakar Banerjee's film Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar, starring Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra in the lead roles, is also out in the cinemas.
What makes for a Sanjay Gupta film? The director is known for films like Kaante, Zinda and Shootout at Wadala, and returns to the director's chair with Mumbai Saga. With Mumbai Saga, Gupta is trying to bring back the classic Hindi film theatrical experience where every little detail is amped up and you realise that if this was not a theatre, then you would have probably turned the volume down. READ MORE
@KEmranians tweeted, "#MumbaiSaga Is "MAJESTIC"@TheJohnAbraham & @emraanhashmi Done Brilliant Job ..With Top Dialogue & Strong Acting The first half* is full of Action. The second half* suits the Emotional scene Overall A Must* Watch Movie. #Rating : βββ Medium star #Emraan sir aap cha gaye Boss Love u."
@imshiva17 shared on Twitter, "#MumbaiSaga winning hearts running successfully #MumbaiSagaReview A Must Watched Mass Masala Entertainer Rating : βββ Glowing star 3½ #JohnAbraham & #EmraanHashmi looks effortlessly awesome @TheJohnAbraham @emraanhashmi."
@ygskPHu3Oi4EpVn tweeted, "#MumbaiSagaReview: It is a film that deserves to be experienced on the big screen. It is embellished with massy moments, clap worthy dialogues, sudden twists and loads of style. Ratings: ββββ."
A fan of Kajal Aggarwal, @KajalholicSRS tweeted, "#MumbaiSaga . Full Masala Action Entertainment . John Vs Emran @MsKajalAggarwal performed well as a college life girl frnd & Wife . Her pairing with John looks lovely . Climax was emotional . Another Hit in Bwood #KajalAggarwal."
@ShaikhI74160378 shared via Twitter, "#MumbaiSaga #MumbaiSagaReview : It's Mind Blowing...Fantastic..The Fight Battles Between @TheJohnAbraham and @emraanhashmi is Superp.... Outstanding @_SanjayGupta Rating: ββββ."