Awarapan 2 writer Bilal Siddiqi finds learnings in criticism of Emraan Hashmi-starrer: 'No one has an invalid opinion'

Awarapan 2 writer Bilal Siddiqi talks to HT about the film's reception, and how he absorbs the good, the bad, and the ugly in terms of feedback.

Awarapan 2, the new film starring Emraan Hashmi, has been lapped by audiences. In six days at the ticket window, the sequel has grossed over ₹150 crore worldwide. Yet, its critical reception has not been as grand. In a chat with Hindustan Times, the film’s writer Bilal Siddiqi reflects on the reaction and how he is treating the critique.

Bilal Siddiqi, the co-writer of Awarapan 2, talks about the film's reception.

‘There is a tonal shift in the film’

Bilal was a school-going pre-teen when the first Awarapan released in 2007. He confesses he is a fan, but adds that this did not hinder him from writing the sequel. “This film didn't actually require me to detach completely as a fan, because there were moments built for fans, such as callbacks to dialogue from the first film. So those were what the fan in me would want to see,” he says.

But the writer explains that Awarapan 2 has a different tone compared with the first part. “When Vishesh (Bhatt, the producer) and I sat down to brainstorm this, we knew we needed to bring back the themes from part one while making it contemporary. Also, I think there's a slight shift in the film's tonality, driven solely by the urgency of the inciting incident. In part one, it was a slow-burn thriller because the man had already lost someone, and he was living as a shell. In this film, he didn't want to lose again. Not wanting to lose again comes with a sense of urgency,” he adds.

‘No one has an invalid opinion’

Deep Dive

What are the key themes and tonal shifts in Awarapan 2 compared to the original?

Why has Awarapan 2 received mixed reviews despite its box office success?

How did Bilal Siddiqi respond to criticism of Awarapan 2?

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The box-office success has shown the audiences are loving the film, but the critics have been harsher. On review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a lowly approval rating of 45%. Many critics have compared it unfavourably to the first part, which was widely praised. Bilal admits he is ‘looking at everything’. Bilal adds, “It's not like anyone has an invalid opinion. I'm reading everything and hoping to learn something from it. It’s my first film, after all. There are some people who probably prefer part one because of the way they approached the screenplay and the time it took to build up. But they also have to understand that this film, as I said earlier, is a slightly different approach to advancing the character. Overall, I think a large number of people have liked it.”

‘Audience response is the real validation’

Bilal is happy about the audience’s reaction to the film. He informs he watched the film at Gaiety Galaxy in Mumbai a day after its release, with the general audience. “Till then, I'd only seen the film in the edit room with Vishesh and the director (Nitin Kakkar) and Emraan. But, when I finally got to see the film in Gaiety Galaxy on Saturday night, it felt like a stadium, and that was really fun to see,” he says. “That felt like real validation because you just saw them cheering at every line the way you intended. You'd see every scene get the response you hoped it would get while writing it. So those things were extremely validating.”

Awarapan 2 also stars Disha Patani, Shabana Azmi, Puran Gabbi, Suvinder Vicky, Vijayant Kohli, and Atul Kumar in key roles. Directed by Nitin Kakkar, the film has earned ₹113 crore net domestically and ₹161 crore gross worldwide.