Saina is a 2021 Indian Hindi-language biographical sports film directed by Amole Gupte and produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Sujay Jairaj and Rashesh Shah under the banner of T-Series and Front Foot Pictures. Based on the life of badminton player Saina Nehwal, the film stars Parineeti Chopra as Nehwal.[3][4]
| Saina | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Amole Gupte |
| Written by | Amole Gupte |
| Based on | Saina Nehwal |
| Produced by | Bhushan Kumar Krishan Kumar Sujay Jairaj Rashesh Shah |
| Starring | Parineeti Chopra |
| Cinematography | Piyush Shah |
| Edited by | Deepa Bhatia |
| Music by | Amaal Malik |
Production companies | T-Series Films Front Foot Pictures |
| Distributed by | Cinestaan AA Distributors |
Release date |
|
Running time | 135 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹26 crores[2] |
| Box office | ₹1.5 crore[2] |
The film was initially set to release in September 2020, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India.[5] It was theatrically released on 26 March 2021 to mixed reviews with praise towards Chopra’s performance.[1]
Plot
editThe film traces Saina's journey from her training at Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium, Hyderabad, her struggles, her parents sacrifices for her dreams, her passion for badminton, her relationship with Kashyap and her coach Rajan to her becoming World's No.1.
Cast
edit- Parineeti Chopra as Saina Nehwal
- Manav Kaul as Coach Sarvadhamaan Rajan, a fictionalized version of Pullela Gopichand
- Eshan Naqvi as Parupalli Kashyap[6]
- Meghna Malik as Usha Rani Nehwal, Saina's mother[7]
- Subhrajyoti Barat as Harvir Singh Nehwal, Saina's father[7]
- Ankur Vikal as Coach Jeewan Kumar[7]
- Tawhid Rike Zaman as Rohan's Friend
- Sharrman Dey as Damodar
- Sameer Bassi as Rohan
- Taiyaba Mansuri as young Abu Nehwal
Production
editDevelopment
editSaina Nehwal revealing the details of the film, on her Twitter account announced the film on 26 April 2017. Earlier, Shraddha Kapoor was signed to play Nehwal's role, and she even started filming in September 2018 after training, but later she opted out of the film due to health issues.[8] On 15 March 2019, it was confirmed by T-Series head honcho Bhushan Kumar that Shraddha Kapoor will not be playing the role of Nehwal. In a statement they said, "Due to circumstances beyond her control, the actress kept giving other films priority over the national badminton champion’s biopic, so the makers have decided to go ahead with Chopra."[9]
In June, Manav Kaul was finalized to play the role of Pullela Gopichand who is Nehwal's coach.[10]
Training
editFrom mid June, Chopra was training herself in playing badminton and practicing the stances of Nehwal.[11] As many as 12 courts were recreated to represent international venues where Saina Nehwal has played.[12]
Reception
editBox office
editThe film collected total ₹ 1.2 crore in its theatrical run, it was declared flop and disastrous.[13]
It was impacted due to Covid-19.
Critical reception
editSaina received mixed to positive reviews from critics with praises towards Chopra's performance. Yogesh Mishra of 'Bollywood Town' says "Movie beautifully talks about the success saga of a middle-class girl from Haryana". Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express gave 3 out of 5 stars and noted that Parineeti "serves, drops and smashes as [the] badminton champ", writing "[Chopra] gives us a good, solid Saina Nehwal. When she raises her racket after a hard-fought win, you cheer."[14]
Film critic Anna M. M. Vetticad applauded Chopra for rising to the challenge of playing the sports icon, writing "The actor plays down her naturally vivacious personality and sparkling eyes for the not-so-showy character she plays here. Most impressively, she gets the body language of a sportsperson right and actually looks the part on court."[15] She gave the film 2.75 star out of 5 and pointed out that the film erases Gopichand and skirts inconvenient truths.
Renuka Vyavahare of Times Of India gave the film 3.5 stars out of 5 and wrote, "Saina is a simple ode to eternal optimism". For Chopra's performance she said, "Parineeti push herself in this physically demanding role".[16]
Accolades
edit| Award | Date of the ceremony | Category | Recipients | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 67th Filmfare Awards | 30 August 2022 | Best Supporting Actress | Meghna Malik | Nominated | [17] |
| Best Supporting Actor | Manav Kaul | Nominated | |||
| Best Music Album | Amaal Malik | Nominated | |||
| Best Lyrics | Manoj Muntashir | Nominated | |||
| 68th National Film Awards | 30 September 2022 | Best Lyrics | Manoj Muntashir | Won |
Soundtrack
edit| Saina | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 26 March 2021[18] | |||
| Recorded | 2020 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 37:18 | |||
| Language | Hindi | |||
| Label | T-Series | |||
| Producer | Meghdeep Bose | |||
| Amaal Mallik chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Official audio | ||||
| Saina - Full Album on YouTube | ||||
The soundtrack is composed by Amaal Mallik, produced, arranged & co-written by Meghdeep Bose with lyrics by Manoj Muntashir and Kunaal Vermaa.[19]
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Exordium" | — | — | 1:20 |
| 2. | "Chal Wahin Chalein" | Manoj Muntashir | Shreya Ghoshal | 5:10 |
| 3. | "The Staircase Of Life" | — | Shreya Ghoshal | 2:31 |
| 4. | "Embrace Yourself" | — | Shreya Ghoshal | 1:38 |
| 5. | "Parinda" | Manoj Muntashir | Amaal Mallik | 5:14 |
| 6. | "One Point For The Sky" | — | — | 1:52 |
| 7. | "A Mother's Love" | Manoj Muntashir | Suvarna Tiwari | 1:14 |
| 8. | "Confluence Of Dreams" | — | — | 1:22 |
| 9. | "Main Hoon Na Tere Saath" | Kunaal Vermaa | Armaan Malik | 5:27 |
| 10. | "A Rally Of Love & Success" | — | — | 1:46 |
| 11. | "The Curse Of A Champion" | — | Snigdha Pious | 3:06 |
| 12. | "Hall Of Mirrors" | — | Shreya Ghoshal | 3:38 |
| 13. | "The Sword Of Saina" | — | Suzanne D'Mello | 3:00 |
| Total length: | 37:18 | |||
References
edit- ^ a b "Parineeti Chopra-starrer Saina Nehwal biopic to release in March". Outlook India. 2 March 2021. Archived from the original on 24 April 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
- ^ a b "Saina - Movie - Box Office India". Box. Office India. 26 March 2021. Archived from the original on 7 April 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
- ^ "Parineeti Chopra starts her day at 5 am to prep for her role as Saina Nehwal!". Bollywood Hungama. 3 April 2019. Archived from the original on 3 April 2019. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
- ^ "Parineeti Chopra: I want to do justice to the film and to Saina Nehwal". The Times of India. 3 April 2019. Archived from the original on 3 April 2019. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
- ^ "Saina Nehwal Biopic: Badminton Star REACTS To Parineeti Chopra's UNSEEN Look From Film, Calls Pari Her 'Lookalike'". ABPLive. 5 November 2020. Archived from the original on 5 November 2020. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
- ^ "Manav Kaul: When I met Eshan Naqvi, I realised I knew nothing about badminton". Mumbai Mirror. Archived from the original on 26 April 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
- ^ a b c "Saina trailer out. Parineeti Chopra-starrer promises to be an inspiring ride". India Today. 8 March 2021. Archived from the original on 10 March 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2021.
- ^ "Is Saina Nehwal biopic delayed due to Shraddha Kapoor's struggles with learning badminton?". The Times of India. 24 October 2017. Archived from the original on 17 September 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
- ^ "Here's Why Shraddha Kapoor Was Replaced by Parineeti Chopra in Saina Nehwal Biopic". News 18. 19 March 2019. Archived from the original on 26 June 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
- ^ "Manav Kaul to play Parineeti Chopra's coach in Saina Nehwal biopic". India Today. 22 June 2019. Archived from the original on 26 June 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
- ^ "Parineeti Chopra gets trolled by her team as she trains in badminton. Saina Nehwal has epic response". India Today. 26 June 2019. Archived from the original on 26 June 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
- ^ "Saina Nehwal biopic set to chronicle Indian star's incredible career". Olympic Channel. 29 June 2020. Archived from the original on 16 November 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
- ^ Hungama, Bollywood (26 March 2021). "Saina Box Office Collection | India | Day Wise | Box Office - Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 24 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
- ^ Gupta, Shubhra (26 March 2021). "Saina movie review: Parineeti Chopra serves, drops and smashes as badminton champ". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ Vetticad, Anna M. M. (26 March 2021). "Saina movie review: Saina Nehwal's biopic is inspiring but erases Gopichand and skirts inconvenient truths". Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ "Saina Movie Review: A simple ode to eternal optimism". Times Of India. 25 March 2021. Archived from the original on 24 April 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
- ^ "Sidharth, Vicky in race for Best Actor trophy at 67th Wolf777news Filmfare Awards 2022; see full list of nominations". Times Now. 18 August 2022. Archived from the original on 19 August 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
- ^ "Saina – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Jio Saavn. 26 March 2021. Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
- ^ "Amaal Mallik on recording 'Parinda' for 'Saina' with live orchestra". Telangana Today. 14 March 2021. Archived from the original on 21 September 2021. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
External links
edit- Saina at IMDb
- Saina on Bollywood Hungama
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