In 1934, Cadet Sam Manekshaw is amongst the first batch of gentleman cadets to be trained at the
Indian Military Academy, Dehradun; amongst his batchmates is his junior-rival,
Tikka Khan. Graduating from the academy that year, he is posted as a second lieutenant to the
12th Frontier Force Regiment,
Ferozpur. Soon after his appointment, he meets Siloo Bode, whom he later marries. In 1942, during the
Second World War, Manekshaw, promoted to the acting rank of major, is sent with the regiment to participate in the
Burma campaign. During the
Battle of Sittang Bridge, he is wounded in action but survives and is awarded the
Military Cross for gallantry.
In 1947, amidst the partition of the
British Indian Army, Major Manekshaw is approached to join the
Pakistan Army by his colleague,
Yahya Khan; he chooses the
Indian Army instead. Upon independence, discord emanates between the two countries over the sovereignty of Kashmir. In October 1947, Pakistan launches its
military campaign to capture the region. In response, Indian prime minister
Jawaharlal Nehru and home minister
Vallabhbhai Patel dispatch Manekshaw and
V. P. Menon to Kashmir; they succeed in securing the accession of Kashmir to India. India counter-attacks, but the war concludes in a stalemate.
In 1962, the
Sino-Indian War erupts, leading to the army being trounced by the Chinese; Kaul resigns while Nehru dismisses Menon. On the advice of
Indira Gandhi, Nehru has Manekshaw promoted to lieutenant-general and assigns him as commanding officer of the
IV Corps,
Tezpur. He proposes an advance, but Nehru, forlorn from defeat, refuses; Indira intercedes in Manekshaw's favour. By 1963, Manekshaw manages to re-rally his troops in the
North-East Frontier Agency. In 1964, Nehru dies, and Manekshaw is promoted as general commanding officer of the
Eastern Command; two years later, Indira is appointed prime minister. Between 1965 and 1967, Manekshaw involves himself in the anti-insurgency operations against the
Mizo National Front, for which he earns the
Padma Bhushan.
In 1969, with discord amongst the Bengalis in
East Pakistan rising, Yahya, now a general, is made Pakistan's president; elsewhere, Manekshaw is appointed as the Indian Army's next COAS and promoted to general as well. In 1970, the East Pakistan-based
Awami League sweep Pakistan's general elections, however Yahya refuses to cede power to them, resulting in
anti-government protests across Pakistan. In response, Yahya authorises Tikka, now a lieutenant-general, to initiate
Operation Searchlight – a massive anti-Bengali pogrom, which he executes with ruthless efficiency. Considering the situation, Indira favours war, but Manekshaw opposes it, highlighting the army's hindrances; she agrees to wait. The U.S. warns Indira against war, but she rebuffs them. The army is mobilised and begins training the
Mukti Bahini.
On 3 December 1971, Pakistan strikes first, launching pre-emptive attacks on Indian territory. India immediately responds with counter-attacks in Pakistan's western and eastern sectors. The opposing armies witness profound clashes, with Pakistan bearing numerous casualties on land, sea and air in both sectors. By 16 December, the Pakistani troops in the east, overwhelmed, surrender to the Eastern Command – ending the war. The conclusion cedes a political triumph to Indira while Yahya resigns from the humiliation of defeat. With Manekshaw's retirement approaching, Indira has him to be promoted to the rank of field-marshal in recognition of his wartime leadership; he proudly retires in January 1973.
Krishna Kant Singh Bundela as Subedar Gurbaksh Singh, Indian Army
Kalki Koechlin in a special appearance in the song "Dum Hai Toh Aaja."
Production
Development
In 2017 Meghna Gulzar narrated the story of the biopic on Sam Manekshaw to Kaushal at the sets of Raazi which she planned to make her next film. Kaushal impressed by the idea decided that he would play the character.[9] She then went for years of extensive research and writing collaborating with Bhavani Iyer and Shantanu Srivastava, also meeting with family members of Sam Manekshaw.[10][11] The film marks the second collaboration between Gulzar and Kaushal. In 2021, the film was announced by
RSVP Movies on the 107th birth anniversary of late Sam Manekshaw.[12][13]
Sam Bahadur was filmed with real Indian army soldiers.[14][15]
Casting
In December 2021, Shaikh and Malhotra joined the cast, marking their second collaboration after their debut film, Dangal.[16][17] Kabi joined the cast in September 2022 to portray the role of
Jawaharlal Nehru marking his second collaboration with Gulzar after Talvar.[18] Kaushal has gone through extensive training in the army under the guidance of the Indian Army's 6 Sikh Regiment in preparing for his role.[19] Kaushal in an interview with Film Companion revealed that the character would be his toughest onscreen role to date.[20] The film will not have junior artists and instead real-life army personnel and people from the Defence Force have been cast.[21]
The music of the film was composed by
Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy while the lyrics are written by
Gulzar. Background score is composed by Ketan Sodha.[32] The first single titled "Badhte Chalo" was released on 13 November 2023.[33] The second single titled "Banda" released on 22 November 2023.[34][35]
The first
teaser was unveiled on 1 December 2022.[36] On 13 October 2023 the official teaser was released by the RSVP production.[37]
The film was theatrically released on 1 December 2023, clashing with Ranbir Kapoor's Animal.[38]
Home media
The film premiered on OTT platform
ZEE5 on 26 January 2024.[39][40]
Reception
Critical reception
On the
review aggregator website
Rotten Tomatoes, 38% of 16 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.9/10.[41]Sam Bahadur received mixed reviews from critics.
Catherine Bray of The Guardian rated the film 3 stars and stated "It's a perennial problem for biopics; how to give events the momentum of fiction when the underlying narrative is fact."[42]
Subhash K. Jha of Times Now rated 3.5 stars out of 5, critisied "I am afraid Vicky Kaushal, a reasonably talented actor, is not equal to the task. ... But mimicking the original doesn’t quite amount to a comprehensive character creation."[43]
Anuj Kumar of The Hindu stated "The film critiques the relationship between the politicians and the military."[44]
Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express gave a rating 2.5/5 and wrote "It's hard to play a character so closely without becoming a caricature, but Kaushal becomes Sam Bahadur."[45]Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com gave a rating of 2.5/5 and wrote, "Nothing that the movie tells isn't already available in the public domain."[46]
Reviewing for Hindustan Times, Prannay Pathak spotted the music of the movie is underperforming. Pathak wrote "The film’s music is loud, distracting and unmelodious (the war anthem Badhte Chalo is unbelievably insipid and inelegant), which is surprising considering Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s obvious musical prowess and the trio’s last fabulous collaboration with Gulzar, Raazi."[47]
Mayank Shekhar of Mid-Day expressed "Vicky Kaushal is the last person I’d imagine as playing Manekshaw." Shekhar gave 3 stars to the movie and wrote "The trivia that follows is the film. Messing with no known facts, one bit. Only detailing them as they’re widely known."[48]
Writing a review for
Rediff.com,
Lieutenant GeneralSyed Ata Hasnain praised Meghna Gulzar's effort and stated "You have to grant it to Meghna's research team and those sourcing military hardware for the film."[49]
Box office
The film was released alongside
Animal on 1 December 2023. On its first day, the film collected ₹6.25 crore, the second day ₹9 crore and the third day ₹10.30 crore. The film has earned ₹110.69 crore (US$13 million) in India and ₹17.48 crore (US$2.1 million) in overseas for a worldwide gross collection of ₹128.17 crore (US$15 million).[5][50][51]