The Big Bull
| The Big Bull | |
|---|---|
 Poster | |
| Directed by | Kookie Gulati |
| Written by | Story: Kookie Gulati Arjun Dhawan Dialogues: Ritesh Shah |
| Screenplay by | Kookie Gulati Arjun Dhawan |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Vishnu Rao |
| Edited by | Dharmendra Sharma |
| Music by | Score: Sandeep Shirodkar Songs: Gaurav Dasgupta Wily Frenzy Mehul Vyas |
Production companies | Ajay Devgn FFilms Anand Pandit Motion Pictures |
| Distributed by | Disney+ Hotstar |
Release date |
|
Running time | 154 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
The Big Bull is a 2021 Indian Hindi-language crime drama film directed and co-written by Kookie Gulati and produced by Ajay Devgn, Anand Pandit, Vikrant Sharma and Kumar Mangat Pathak.[2] The storyline of the film is based on the life of Harshad Mehta, a stockbroker, involved in financial crimes over a period of 10 years, from 1980 to 1990.[3] Abhishek Bachchan portrays the titular protagonist,[4] co-starring with Nikita Dutta, Ileana D'Cruz, Sohum Shah, Ram Kapoor and Saurabh Shukla.[5] Principal photography of the film begun on 16 September 2019.[6]
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the film was not able to be released theatrically. It is available for streaming worldwide from 8 April 2021 on the Indian streaming platform Disney+Hotstar.[1]
Plot
'The Big Bull’ follows the life and times of Hemant Shah – a smalltime stockbroker, who manipulates the loopholes in the country’s archaic banking system to create a massive bull run on the stock exchange. But at a time when the Indian economy was taking its big leap towards liberlisation, it was only a matter of time before Hemant Shah’s dream run, ended in a nightmare.
Cast
- Abhishek Bachchan as Hemant Shah, a stockbroker, based on Harshad Mehta
- Ileana D'Cruz as news reporter Meera Rao, based on journalist Sucheta Dalal
- Nikita Dutta as Priya Patel Shah, Hemant's wife, based on Jyoti Mehta
- Sumit Vats as Hari Vyas
- Mahesh Manjrekar as Rana Sawant
- Ram Kapoor as Ashok Mirchandani, Hemant's lawyer, based on Ram Jethmalani
- Sohum Shah as Viren Shah, Hemant's brother, based on Ashwin Mehta
- Lekha Prajapati as Tara Shah, Viren's wife
- Supriya Pathak as Mrs. Shah, Hemant's mother
- Sanjeev Pandey [7]
- Saurabh Shukla as Mannu Malpani, Chairman of Bombay Stock Exchange
- Samir Soni as Sanjeev Kohli
- Shishir Sharma as Rajesh Mishra, Meera's Boss
- Hitesh Rawal as Kantilal
- Kanan Arunachalam as Venkateshwar
- Rio Kapadia as NCC MD Singh
- Trupti Shankadhar as Ashima
- Abhijit Lahiri as Baldev
- Anand Goradia as Nikhil
- Pankaj Vishnu as CBI Dheeraj
- Rohit Tiwari as Rakesh
- Sanjiv Jotangia as Priya Patel’s Father
- Aarjav Trivedi as Priya Patel’s Fiance
- Vijay Rajoria as Raman
- Akhil Vaid as Vikram Solanki
- Theujsi
Production
In 2018, it was reported that Ajay Devgn will produce the film with Abhishek Bachchan playing the lead role.[5] The film is directed by Kookie Gulati and shows the financial crimes and life of Harshad Mehta. Nikita Dutta and Ileana D'Cruz were brought in to play supporting roles.[8]
The shooting commenced on 16 September 2019.[9]
Release
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Big Bull was released for streaming worldwide from 8 April 2021 on Hotstar.[1]
Soundtrack
| The Big Bull | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by Gourov Dasgupta, Wily Frenzy and Mehul Vyas | |
| Released | 26 March 2021[10] |
| Recorded | 2020 |
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack |
| Length | 15:33 |
| Language | Hindi |
| Label | Zee Music Company |
| Official audio | |
| The Big Bull - Full Album on YouTube | |
The film's music was composed by Gourov Dasgupta, Wily Frenzy and Mehul Vyas while lyrics written by Kunwar Juneja, CarryMinati and Anil Verma. Sandeep Shirodkar composed the background score.
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Ishq Namazaa" | Kunwar Juneja | Gourov Dasgupta | Ankit Tiwari | 4:25 |
| 2. | "The Big Bull - Title Track" | CarryMinati | Wily Frenzy | CarryMinati | 3:15 |
| 3. | "Hawaon Ke Sheher Mein" | Kunwar Juneja | Gourov Dasgupta | Yasser Desai | 4:57 |
| 4. | "Paise Ka Nasha" | Anil Verma | Mehul Vyas | Sunidhi Chauhan | 2:56 |
| Total length: | 15:33 | ||||
Reception
Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV rated the movie 1.5 out of 5 stars commenting that “the film's problems are rooted in the screenplay, stilted dialogues and arbitrary character arcs.”[11] Writing for Film Companion, Rahul Desai called the movie a “rushed portrait of a slow-burned legacy” further adding that “Abhishek Bachchan’s version of Harshad Mehta is far more compelling than the story it defines”.[12] Jyoti Kanyal of India Today gave the movie 2.5 out of 5 stars calling it “an interesting watch, which often oscillates between boredom and excitement.”[13]
Ronak Kotecha of Times of India graded the film with three out of five stars and asked not to let the 'stock of expectations rise too high'. He opined that Abhishek Bachchan 'delivered a decent performance'. In conclusion of review he wrote, "Overall, The Big Bull is a decent attempt to tell a dramatic story of one of India’s biggest financial scams, orchestrated by a man, who seemed more like a common man than a con man."[14]
References
- ^ a b c "The Big Bull teaser out: Abhishek Bachchan, Ajay Devgn introduce film as 'mother of all scams.'". India TV News. 13 March 2021. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
- ^ "Abhishek Bachchan shares the first poster for his next 'The Big Bull'". The Times of India. 16 September 2019.
- ^ "Abhishek Bachchan, Ileana D'Cruz Begin Filming Ajay Devgn's 'The Big Bull'". News 18. 16 September 2019.
- ^ "The Big Bull poster: Abhishek Bachchan begins work on upcoming Ajay Devgn production. See pic". The Hindustan Times. 16 September 2019.
- ^ a b "'The Big Bull': Abhishek Bachchan's film produced by Ajay Devgn goes on floors". Daily News Analysis. 16 September 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
- ^ "Abhishek Bachchan kickstarts The Big Bull, produced by Ajay Devgn. Bollywood says all the best". India Today. 15 September 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
- ^ "Sanjeev Pandey will be see in Abhishek Bachchan's next The Big Bull". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
- ^ "Abhishek Bachchan starts filming for Ajay Devgn's production 'The Big Bull' - Times of India". The Times of India.
- ^ "Abhishek Bachchan starts shooting for The Big Bull, film produced by Ajay Devgn- Entertainment News, Firstpost". Firstpost. 16 September 2019.
- ^ "The Big Bull – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Jio Saavn.
- ^ "The Big Bull Review: Abhishek Bachchan-Led Cast Struggles In Baffling Blob Of A Movie". NDTV.com. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
- ^ Desai, Rahul (8 April 2021). "Big Bull, On DisneyPlus Hotstar, Is A Rushed Portrait Of A Slow-Burning Legacy". Film Companion. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
- ^ Kanyal, Jyoti. "The Big Bull Movie Review. Abhishek Bachchan film adds Bollywood to Harshad Mehta story". India Today. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
- ^ Kotecha, Ronak. "The Big Bull Movie Review: Don't let the stock of your expectations rise too high". India Today. Retrieved 8 April 2021.