War

War

Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Siddharth Anand
Produced by	Aditya Chopra
Screenplay by	Shridhar Raghavan Siddharth Anand
Dialogues by	Abbas Tyrewala
Story by	Aditya Chopra Siddharth Anand
Starring	Hrithik Roshan Tiger Shroff Vaani Kapoor Ashutosh Rana
Music by	Songs: Vishal–Shekhar Score: Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara
Cinematography	Benjamin Jasper
Edited by	Aarif Sheikh
Production company	Yash Raj Films
Distributed by	Yash Raj Films
Release date	October 2, 2019
Running time	156 minutes
Country	India
Language	Hindi
Budget	₹170 crore
Box office	₹475.62 crore

War is a 2019 Indian Hindi-language action thriller movie directed by Siddharth Anand and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films. It is the third film in the YRF Spy Universe. The movie stars Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff in the main roles, with Vaani Kapoor and Ashutosh Rana in supporting roles. The story is about an Indian RAW agent who is ordered to kill his former mentor who has turned against the country.

Filming started in September 2018. The movie was first called Fighters, but the title War was announced on 15 July 2019. It was made on a budget of about ₹150 crore, with an extra ₹20 crore spent on promotions. Vishal–Shekhar composed the songs, and Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara composed the background music.

War was released in cinemas on 2 October 2019 in Hindi, Telugu, and Tamil, during Gandhi Jayanti. It got mixed reviews — many liked the action, visuals, direction, cinematography, music, and acting, but the screenplay got criticism. The film was a huge hit, earning ₹4.75 billion and becoming the highest-grossing Indian film of 2019. Its sequel, War 2, was released on 14 August 2025.

Plot

In New Delhi, Major Kabir Dhaliwal is ordered to kill an Iraqi terrorist, Farid Haqqani. Instead, he kills senior RAW agent V. K. Naidu and goes rogue. Defence Minister Sherna Patel and Colonel Sunil Luthra send Kabir’s former student, Captain Khalid Rahmani, to stop him.

Flashback: Khalid wants to join Kabir’s special squad, but Kabir refuses because Khalid’s father, Major Abdul Rahmani, betrayed the army years ago, injuring Kabir and killing his partner. Colonel Luthra convinces Kabir to give Khalid a chance. The team includes Saurabh, Prateek, Muthu, and Aditi.

On a mission in Iraq, they succeed in capturing terrorist Basheer Hassib, which forces main enemy Rizwan Ilyasi to show himself. Kabir notices Khalid can’t see properly on his right side, but after learning the reason—a childhood injury caused by bullying—he trusts him again. The team catches Ilyasi in Morocco, but Ilyasi warns Kabir there’s a traitor among them. Saurabh is revealed as the mole, killing Prateek and Muthu. Kabir is shot and wakes up in the hospital, where Khalid says he killed Saurabh.

Present day: Khalid fails to stop Kabir from killing his next targets and is suspended. He later learns Kabir is secretly hunting Ilyasi’s network after discovering Ilyasi disguised himself as his own manager through plastic surgery. Kabir faked betrayal to catch the traitors. They recover a hard drive with nuclear missile codes that could destroy India’s Brahma satellite, cutting communication for soldiers on the border. Kabir gives the drive to Khalid for safety.

Twist: On a houseboat, Khalid poisons Kabir, revealing he’s actually Saurabh in disguise. In Marrakesh, Saurabh had killed the real Khalid after Ilyasi shot him. A plastic surgeon changed Saurabh’s face and voice to match Khalid.

In the Arctic, Kabir attacks Ilyasi’s ship, revealing he knew Saurabh’s identity all along because Saurabh could shoot from the right side and drank alcohol—things Khalid couldn’t do. A GPS tracker hidden in the drive lets Kabir redirect the missile to hit the ship instead of the satellite. Saurabh kills Ilyasi and escapes to a church, where Kabir kills him by crushing him under a falling dome.

Khalid is honoured as a hero, and his mother gets an award from the Prime Minister. Kabir later takes care of Ruhi (the daughter of his ally Naina) and goes surfing with her in Sydney, before being called for another mission to finally kill Haqqani.

Cast

• Hrithik Roshan as Major Kabir Dhaliwal, a rogue RAW agent

• Tiger Shroff in a dual role as

• Captain Khalid Rahmani, Kabir's protege

• Ayaan Zubair as young Khalid

• Captain Saurabh Patil (after plastic surgery)

• Vaani Kapoor as Naina Sahni, Ruhi's mother

• Ashutosh Rana as Colonel Sunil Luthra, Joint Secretary of RAW

• Anupriya Goenka as Captain Aditi Nahta, Kabir's teammate

• Yash Raaj Singh as Captain Saurabh Patil, Ilyasi's secret henchman

• Sanjeev Vatsa as Rizwan Ilyasi

• Mashhoor Amrohi as Firoze Contractor / Rizwan Ilyasi (disguised)

• Soni Razdan as Nafisa Rahmani, Khalid's mother

• Dipannita Sharma as Dr. Mallika Singhal, a plastic surgeon in Zurich

• Arif Zakaria as Dr. Utpal Biswas

• Mohit Chauhan as V. K. Naidu, a retired RAW agent

• Amit Gaur as Lieutenant Colonel Jimmy Shroff Para SF

• Dishita Sehgal as Ruhi, Naina's daughter

• Jessey Lever as Muthu, Kabir's teammate

• Imran Ahamed as Saini

• Swaroopa Ghosh as Defence Minister Sherna Patel

• Anil Khopkar as President of India

• Ravi Awana as Basheer Hassib

• Keith Dallison as Farid Haqqani

• Shahbhaz Akhtar as Vishal

• Srikant Dwivedi as Derrick

• Ajit Shidhaye as Accountant

• Farida Venkat as Sister Mary

• Simran Suri as Shruti

• Salmin Sheriff as Oslav

• Richard B. Klein as Captain Grotsky

Production

Development

On Yash Chopra's birth anniversary and after the success of Ek Tha Tiger (2012), Yash Raj Films announced a new action film starring Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff. Vaani Kapoor was confirmed as the female lead. Action choreographers Paul Jennings and Se-Oh Yeong were hired to design the film’s action sequences.

The climax was filmed in the Arctic Circle, making it the first Indian film shot there. Director Siddharth Anand said, “We want to raise the benchmark for action movies in India. We are bringing together two of the biggest action choreographers—Andy R Armstrong from Hollywood and Se-Oh Yeong, a martial arts expert from South Korea—to create visually spectacular sequences.”

Filming

Principal photography started in the second week of September 2018. The film included a dance-off between the two stars in the song “Jai Jai Shivshankar”. Filming wrapped in early March 2019. Locations included Delhi, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Portugal, Italy (Amalfi, Capri, Positano, Matera), Finland, Sweden, Georgia, and Australia. The bike chase between the stars was filmed in Portugal, and the climactic car chase was shot in the Arctic Circle.

Soundtrack

The music was composed by Vishal–Shekhar, with lyrics by Kumaar in his first formal collaboration with Yash Raj Films. The songs received an average response. The background score and themes were composed by Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara, replacing director Siddharth Anand's usual collaborators, Salim–Sulaiman.

Release

The film was released on 2 October 2019, coinciding with Gandhi Jayanti.

Reception

Box Office

War opened with ₹53.35 crore on its first day, marking the highest opening day collection for a Hindi film. On the second day, it earned ₹24.35 crore, and on the third day ₹22.45 crore, bringing its total to ₹100.15 crore in just three days. The film became part of the 100 Crore Club within its opening weekend. Its extended opening weekend collection of ₹166.25 crore was the highest for any 2019 Bollywood film. Crossing ₹200 crore in the first week made it the fastest Bollywood film of 2019 to reach that milestone.

Worldwide, War grossed ₹475.62 crore, with ₹318.01 crore from India and ₹157.61 crore from overseas, making it the highest-grossing Indian film of 2019.

Critical response

War got mostly positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 71% rating based on 17 reviews, with an average of 5.2/10. Critics praised the film for its action, style, and twists. Anupama Chopra called it a "popcorn entertainer" with engaging twists. Bollywood Hungama gave it 4/5 stars, highlighting the stylish action and international locations. Taran Adarsh also rated it 4/5 stars, calling it "escapist cinema at its best". Komal Nahta said the film could start a new YRF franchise, while India TV gave it 3.5/5 stars, praising the visuals and plot twists. Rajeev Masand of News18 rated it 2.5/5 stars, appreciating the actors’ energy in action scenes.

Some critics were mixed or negative. The Times of India gave 3/5 stars, noting it had style and stunts but a weak story. India Today gave 2.5/5 stars, calling it entertaining but not meaningful cinema. DNA rated it 3/5 stars, saying it felt like a Hrithik Roshan and YRF comeback. The Indian Express gave 2/5 stars, criticizing the villains’ lack of development. Firstpost rated it 2/5 stars, pointing out issues with its political messaging. NDTV gave 1.5/5 stars, calling it “all style and no substance” despite the action-packed performances of Hrithik and Tiger.

Awards & Nominations

Awards and Nominations – War (2019)

Date of Ceremony	Award	Category	Recipient(s) / Nominee(s)	Result
15 February 2020	Filmfare Awards	Best Film	Aditya Chopra	Nominated
15 February 2020	Filmfare Awards	Best Director	Siddharth Anand	Nominated
15 February 2020	Filmfare Awards	Best Female Playback Singer	Shilpa Rao ("Ghungroo")	Won
15 February 2020	Filmfare Awards	Best Choreography	Bosco–Caesar ("Jai Jai Shiv Shankar")	Nominated
15 February 2020	Filmfare Awards	Best Choreography	Bosco–Caesar & Tushar Kalia ("Ghungroo")	Nominated
15 February 2020	Filmfare Awards	Best Action	Paul Jennings, Oh Sea Young, Parvez Shaikh & Franz Spilhaus	Won
15 February 2020	Filmfare Awards	Best Special Effects	Sherry Bharda, Vishal Anand for YFX	Won
27–29 November 2020	International Indian Film Academy Awards	Best Music Director	Vishal–Shekhar	Nominated
27–29 November 2020	International Indian Film Academy Awards	Best Male Playback Singer	Arijit Singh ("Ghungroo")	Nominated
27–29 November 2020	International Indian Film Academy Awards	Best Female Playback Singer	Shilpa Rao ("Ghungroo")	Nominated
27–29 November 2020	International Indian Film Academy Awards	Sound Mixing	Anuj Mathur – YRF Studios, Pritam Das	Won
27–29 November 2020	International Indian Film Academy Awards	Best Choreography	Bosco–Caesar & Tushar Kalia ("Ghungroo")	Won
27–29 November 2020	International Indian Film Academy Awards	Best Special Effects	YFX (YRF Studios)	Won
19 February 2020	Mirchi Music Awards	Song of The Year	"Ghungroo"	Nominated
19 February 2020	Mirchi Music Awards	Female Vocalist of The Year	Shilpa Rao ("Ghungroo")	Nominated
19 February 2020	Mirchi Music Awards	Song Engineer – Recording & Mixing	Abhay Rumde & Vijay Dayal ("Ghungroo")	Nominated
8 December 2019	Screen Awards	Best Film	War	Nominated
8 December 2019	Screen Awards	Best Director	Siddharth Anand	Nominated
8 December 2019	Screen Awards	Best Actor	Hrithik Roshan	Nominated
8 December 2019	Screen Awards	Best Supporting Actress	Vaani Kapoor	Nominated
8 December 2019	Screen Awards	Best Choreography	Bosco–Caesar & Tushar Kalia ("Ghungroo")	Won
8 December 2019	Screen Awards	Best Action	Paul Jennings, Oh Sea Young, Parvez Shaikh & Franz Spilhaus	Won
8 December 2019	Screen Awards	Best Editing	Aarif Sheikh	Won
13 March 2020	Zee Cine Awards	Best Action	Paul Jennings, Oh Sea Young, Parvez Shaikh & Franz Spilhaus	Won
13 March 2020	Zee Cine Awards	Best Choreography	Bosco–Caesar ("Jai Jai Shiv Shankar")	Won
13 March 2020	Zee Cine Awards	Best Special Effects	YFX (YRF Studios)	Won

Sequel

During the launch of War, director Siddharth Anand said he was working on a sequel script and planned to turn the film into a franchise depending on audience response. Hrithik Roshan appeared as Kabir in a post-credit scene of Tiger 3. The sequel, War 2, directed by Ayan Mukerji, was released on 14 August 2025, starring Hrithik Roshan reprising his role, along with N. T. Rama Rao Jr. and Kiara Advani.

External links

• IMDb