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Mirzapur The Movie: A film for the fans, by the fans, that shows how fan service can be good storytelling
Mirzapur The Movie is set to cross ₹200 crore at the box office in its first week, and is also entering mainstream pop culture.
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When Mirzapur first arrived on the Prime Video some seven years ago, we all knew it was pathbreaking. There had been gangster dramas on streaming before it, but nothing set the trend quite like it. Every streaming service wanted ‘their Mirzapur’. To the original’s credit, it sustained the hype for three seasons. And now, it has expanded with a successful film. Yes, only five days have passed since the film released in theatres, but it is already a runaway hit. And beyond the box office numbers, Mirzapur The Movie’s success lies in how it has worked with the fans to create a film that is arguably the most ‘democratic’ of them all.
A film for the fans
Videos from the theatres screening Mirzapur The Movie emerged on Friday morning itself. You had fans cheering in theatres as Munna and Guddu went toe-to-toe, or when Kaleen Bhaiya delivered yet another classy one-liner to shut someone up. The film’s opening and subsequent box office avalanche are proof that its loyal support base is expanding. It is a franchise that has existed for seven years, growing in the heartland of India, a territory where the film is selling out.
We now see pictures of fans getting tattoos of Ali Fazal’s character’s face and putting Divyenndu’s one-liners on their vehicles. This is taking the film to mainstream pop culture in a way that only the likes of Sholay have gone before it.
Deep Dive
A film by the fans
Mirzapur is a film made for the fans. The decision to bring Divyenndu’s Munna Tripathi is enough proof of that. But it is also made by the fans. Every character gets a moment and an arc. Ravi Kishan’s villain gets to flex his green flag qualities, while Divyenndu and Ali Fazal get great action sequences. Even new entrants like Mohit Mallik get their fair share of not just screen space but impact. The most-talked-about track from the film (I’ll avoid spoilers) involved Rasika Duggal and Mohit, and not any of the leading men. And when you see Abhishek Banerjee and Shaji Chaudhary also get their moments in an action set piece, you marvel at just how the makers managed it. Could the movie have been shorter? Sure! But does it feel too long? Not for a second!
The problem is that when an Avengers: Endgame brings together 50 characters, giving each their moment, and neatly ties the franchise together, we call it ‘marvellous’, but when Mirzapur does a version of that, arguably not on that scale, we dismiss it as ‘mere fan service’. But none of that negates the film’s quality. It is an entertaining ride, backed by solid storytelling and cleverly-woven tropes. Yes, it may be predictable, but one does not go into the theatre expecting a thriller. We want to be engaged, entertained. Mirzapur The Movie does it.
Trendsetter again?
Mirzapur, the show, created the blueprint for small-town gangster drama on Indian streaming platforms. The film’s success will inspire more movie adaptations of successful web series. Now, it will be seen as a lucrative business idea, even though only months ago, many industry insiders questioned Amazon MGM Studios and Excel Entertainment’s decision to back such an audacious idea. Hats off to the makers’ conviction, even as they kept hearing questions like: ‘Who will watch a gangster drama without stars?’ The answer is: most of the country.
Mirzapur: The Movie, directed by Gurmeet Singh and produced by Amazon MGM Studios and Excel Entertainment, is running in theatres, and is set to gross ₹200 crore worldwide in just seven days.
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