Rockstar is a 2011 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film written and directed by Imtiaz Ali. The film features Ranbir Kapoor and Nargis Fakhri in main roles, with Shammi Kapoor, Kumud Mishra, Piyush Mishra, Shernaz Patel, Aditi Rao Hydari, and Sanjana Sanghi in important supporting roles. The music for the film was created by A. R. Rahman. This was the final film appearance of Shammi Kapoor, who passed away on August 14, 2011.
The film was released in theaters worldwide on November 11, 2011. On the day of its release, some Tibetans in Chennai and Kangra protested against the Central Board of Film Certification, a government group that reviews films, because the group asked the filmmakers to remove scenes showing the Tibetan flag. The film was made with a budget of ₹600 million (about $7.1 million) and earned ₹1.08 billion (about $13 million) globally. It became one of the most successful films of that year, especially popular with young city audiences. Critics praised the film’s story, writing, dialogue, music, and the actors’ performances, with special recognition for Ranbir Kapoor’s role.
The film received many awards and was nominated for 10 honors at the 57th Filmfare Awards, including Best Film, Best Director (Imtiaz Ali), and Best Female Debut (Nargis Fakhri). It won five awards, including Best Actor (Ranbir Kapoor) and Best Music Director (A. R. Rahman).
Over time, the film became very popular among fans, and its music album is often called the best of the decade. Because of high demand, the film was shown again in theaters on May 17, 2024, and earned between ₹10 crore and ₹12 crore (about $1.2 million to $1.4 million). After its 2024 re-release, it is now the sixth most successful re-released Indian film.
Plot
A large group of people gathers outside the Verona Arena in Italy to watch rockstar Jordan perform. Even though many fans surround him, he walks confidently onto the stage and begins playing his guitar.
A memory shows Jordan’s past. His real name is Janardan Jakhar, known as "JJ," and he is a Jat boy from Delhi who studies at Hindu College. He dreams of becoming a rockstar, but his friends often laugh at him. Khatana, a canteen owner, tells JJ that all artists share one thing: a life-changing heartbreak. JJ jokes that since he has not experienced this yet, he cannot become like his idol, Jim Morrison. He watches a dance performance by Heer Kaul, a girl from St. Stephen’s College, and hears someone call her the "perfect heartbreaking machine." Remembering Khatana’s words, JJ decides to propose to Heer, but the experience humiliates him. He believes this is the heartbreak he needs to become a star. Over time, he and Heer become friends and share many adventures.
Later, Heer marries a man named Jai and moves to Prague with him. During this time, she develops feelings for JJ and gives him the nickname "Jordan." JJ is forced to leave his home by his brothers after being accused of stealing family money. He stays for two months at the Nizamuddin Dargah, where he sings qawwalis, and then moves into Khatana’s home. Ustaad Jameel Khan, a famous classical musician, hears JJ sing and convinces Dhingra, the owner of "Platinum Records," to sign him. Sheena, a journalist, interviews JJ and suggests that Dhingra is sending artists to Prague for a European tour. JJ volunteers to go there to reunite with Heer.
Meanwhile, Heer faces ongoing health issues. She meets JJ in Prague, and they reconnect. When JJ tries to tell her he loves her, Heer, who is married, refuses him. Their relationship becomes close, and Heer feels guilty. After JJ finishes his tours in Prague, Heer leaves him. JJ tries to visit her one last time but is arrested by Heer’s husband for trespassing. As he is taken away, he sees Heer collapse. After being deported back to India, he receives a lot of attention, which causes conflicts with the media and police. He is jailed, but the event helps Dhingra release JJ’s music, which becomes popular.
After his release, JJ ends his contract with Dhingra, starts a nationwide tour, and fully becomes "Jordan," the rockstar he wanted to be. Over time, he becomes bitter, arrogant, and lonely, but remains famous.
During one of his concerts, Jordan meets Heer’s younger sister, Mandy, who asks him to help Heer, who has been diagnosed with a serious illness. Jordan’s presence helps Heer feel better and improves her health. He begins spending more time with her, ignoring his music duties. Khatana, now his manager, asks Heer to convince Jordan to perform again. Heer does this, and Jordan resumes his tour with a concert in Kangra, Himachal Pradesh. After returning, Heer’s health worsens. She falls into a coma and is found to be pregnant with Jordan’s child. When Mandy tells Jordan about Heer’s condition, he leaves a show to visit her in the hospital. He tries to wake her but fails. Jordan realizes she will not survive and becomes emotionally numb. Heer dies, leaving Jordan in deep grief. He finally achieves the international fame he desired.
The film returns to the concert in Verona, where Jordan sees a vision of Heer smiling and walking toward him. The film ends with a line from a poem by Rumi, which means: "Away, beyond all ideas of right and wrong, there is a field. I will meet you there."
Cast
- Ranbir Kapoor as Janardhan Jhakar (also known as "JJ") and Mohit Chauhan as Jordan (voice)
- Nargis Fakhri as Heer Kaul
- Shammi Kapoor as Ustad Jameel Khan
- Kumud Mishra as Khatana
- Piyush Mishra as Satish Dhingra
- Shernaz Patel as Neena Kaul
- Aditi Rao Hydari as Sheena
- Sanjana Sanghi as Mandy Kaul, Heer's younger sister
- Moufid Aziz as Jai
- Aakash Dahiya as Jordan's friend
- Jaideep Ahlawat as Jordan's brother
- Shreya Narayan as Jordan's sister-in-law
- Nizami Bandhu as Qawwal from Nizamuddin Auliya Dargah
Production
Ranbir Kapoor plays the main male character, Jordan, in the movie Rockstar. Eros International, the production company, previously worked with him on the film Anjaana Anjaani (2010). His role as Jordan was inspired by a friend of the director, Imtiaz Ali, who lived in a small village in Pitam Pura. Ranbir had seen Kareena Kapoor act in the movie Jab We Met (2007), directed by Imtiaz Ali, and wanted to cast her in Rockstar. However, the script required romantic scenes between the main characters. Since Ranbir and Kareena are cousins, this was considered a challenge. Additionally, the filmmakers did not want to replace Ranbir because the character was believed to be suitable only for him. They decided to cast Nargis Fakhri instead of Kareena after first considering Sonam Kapoor and Diana Penty for the role. This film was the last appearance of Shammi Kapoor in a movie; he passed away on August 14, 2011.
Filming for Rockstar began in May 2010. Much of the movie was shot in Kashmir at locations such as Kulgam, Kupwara, Pahalgam, and Srinagar. The final scenes were filmed in Delhi at places like Kotla Mubarakpur, Nizamuddin Dargah, Greater Kailash, Munirka, Indira Gandhi International Airport, Amity School (deleted scenes), Connaught Place, Shri Ram College of Commerce, BL Kapoor Hospital, Rajendra Nagar, St. Stephen’s College, and Hindu College, which was Imtiaz Ali’s school.
Some scenes were filmed in Prague, including Wenceslas Square, Charles Bridge, and the Old Town, as well as in Liberec at Dr. Beneš Square and near the Liebieg Villa. The movie was shot in reverse order to keep Ranbir’s hairstyle consistent throughout the film. The climax, which showed Ranbir with long hair, was filmed first. To prepare for his role as a rockstar, Ranbir practiced playing the guitar at A. R. Rahman’s studio in Chennai, read about the life of musician Kurt Cobain, and studied the culture of the Jat community.
The costumes for Rockstar were designed by Aki Narula and Manish Malhotra. They dressed Ranbir in a simple style, such as denim jeans and sweaters, and later in traditional Pathani-style kurtas with arm bands to match the rockstar image. Nargis Fakhri, who plays a Kashmiri Pandit girl, wore a traditional Kashmiri Pandit wedding outfit in one scene. This included a long tunic called pheran, ear ornaments called dejhoor, and a head cap called taranga, which is worn under a veil. This was the first time in Bollywood that a Kashmiri Pandit wedding was shown on screen.
Soundtrack
The music for the film was composed and scored by A. R. Rahman. This is the first film by Imtiaz Ali since his debut film, Socha Na Tha (2005), to have the same composer for both the film's background music and its songs.
The soundtrack includes 14 tracks, and all the song lyrics were written by Irshad Kamil. The album was recorded in Chennai, London, and Mumbai. Mohit Chauhan sang on nine of the songs. T-Series purchased the audio rights to the album. After its release on September 30, 2011, the album received praise from critics. The song "Sadda Haq" became the most popular track and was called a "youth anthem."
Release
The movie Rockstar was released on November 11, 2011, and had a strong opening in movie theaters near schools and universities. It was shown in 2,500 theaters, with each theater offering 14 to 15 showings per day. The DVD version of the film was released by Eros Home Video. The film first aired on television on Star Gold on February 25, 2012. It has been available for streaming on Eros Now and JioCinema. The movie was re-released in Indian theaters on May 17, 2024.
Reception
Rockstar received mostly positive reviews. Critics praised the film’s new idea, story, screenplay, dialogue, soundtrack, and the actors’ performances. Many highlighted Kapoor’s performance as especially strong.
Raja Sen of Rediff gave the film 4 out of 5 stars and wrote, “Rockstar is a simple, unspectacular story, sometimes predictable, but director Imtiaz Ali carefully adds details that make the film engaging.” Aniruddha Guha of DNA also gave it 4 stars, saying the film “feels like a powerful ending that leaves you wanting more.” Nikhat Kazmi of The Times of India gave 4 stars and noted the film’s “intense, passionate romance between two unlikely characters.” Sukanya Verma of Rediff rated it 3.5 stars, calling it “flawed but impressive.” Mayank Shekhar of Hindustan Times gave 3.5 stars and compared the film’s style to works by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Mani Ratnam, praising the director’s unique touch. Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama gave 3 stars, saying the film did not meet the expectations of its talented director, Imtiaz Ali. Hrithik Sharma of El Viaje Reviews called it a classic Bollywood film, noting the music by A. R. Rahman was excellent and that the film’s cinematography was realistic and striking. Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN gave 3 stars, saying the film had honesty and depth, which are rare in modern Hindi films.
Sumit Bhattacharya of Rediff gave 2.5 stars, calling the film “a one-time watch” and comparing it more to Devdas than The Doors. Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave 2.5 stars, saying the film had a “Sufi soul” but missed opportunities to fully explore its themes. Kaveree Bamzai of India Today gave 2 stars, praising the music but saying the film lacked a strong structure. Yahoo! gave 1 star, criticizing the film’s message about suffering and creativity. A Reuters reviewer said Kapoor and Rahman were the film’s highlights but noted it had many flaws. Anuj Kumar of The Hindu called the film a “good-looking product” but said the director failed to clearly express his ideas.
Major parts of the song “Sadda Haq” were filmed at the Norbulingka monastery in McLeod Ganj, Dharamsala. The video showed people waving the Free Tibet flag, which caused a disagreement between the Central Board of Film Certification and Imtiaz Ali. The board asked Ali to blur the flag before the film was released, but he refused. Ali said, “I don’t think there is anything wrong with showing the flag in the movie. The film is about personal freedom, not politics.” He later removed the scene to get the film approved. A board official later said the cuts were made voluntarily by the director, and there was no disagreement about removing the flag. The controversy led to protests by the Tibetan community in Dharamsala and Chennai. Later, television broadcasts covered up the “Free Tibet” banner in the song.
Box office
Upon its release, the movie Rockstar had a strong start. It opened with high interest in multiplexes, where theaters were filled to about 60–70% of their capacity. Single-screen theaters had lower attendance, around 30–40%. On its opening day, the film earned ₹100 million (US$1.2 million) in total, making it the second-highest-grossing film in a non-festival season after Ready. This success was helped by the presence of multiplexes in many cities, the popularity of actor Ranbir Kapoor, and the film’s youthful theme.
On Saturday, the film earned ₹112.5 million (US$1.3 million) in total, bringing its two-day total to ₹205 million (US$2.4 million). Similar growth happened on Sunday, so the first weekend’s total was ₹337.5 million (US$4.0 million) in total. Most of this money came from cities like Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, and Bangalore.
On Monday, the film earned about ₹57.5 million (US$680,000) in total, which was a 40% drop from the first day. This brought the four-day total to ₹390 million (US$4.6 million) in total. On Tuesday, the film earned ₹42.5 million (US$500,000) in total, making the five-day total ₹432.5 million (US$5.1 million) in total. By the end of the first week, the film had earned ₹474.6 million (US$5.6 million) in total, though it was only appreciated by a small group of viewers. It ranked ninth in the list of all-time highest-grossing films in their first week.
On the second Friday, the film earned ₹25 million (US$300,000) in total, which was a 75% drop from the first day. On Saturday, it earned ₹32.5 million (US$380,000) in total, and on Sunday, ₹42.5 million (US$500,000) in total. This brought the second weekend’s total to ₹100 million (US$1.2 million) in total, which was a 70% drop from the first weekend. After ten days, the film had earned about ₹574.6 million (US$6.8 million) in total.
In the second week, the film earned ₹158.5 million (US$1.9 million) in total, a 67% drop from the first week. This brought the two-week total to ₹633.1 million (US$7.5 million) in total. In the third week, the film earned ₹29.6 million (US$350,000) in total, bringing the three-week total to ₹662.7 million (US$7.8 million) in total. By the end of its fifth week, the film had earned ₹686.15 million (US$8.1 million) in total.
The film earned $3.3 million in total from overseas markets, which was less than expected. It earned £185,000 in the UK, $612,000 in North America, 370,000 in the UAE, and $100,000 in Australia.
In its first week, the film earned ₹40 lakh (US$47,000) in total. In the second week, it earned ₹70 lakh (US$83,000) in total. In the third week, it earned ₹1.25 crore (US$150,000) in total. In the fourth week, it earned ₹2.25 crore (US$270,000) in total. After a month of re-release, it earned ₹5.65 crore (US$670,000) in total. The film’s total gross collection was ₹10 crore (US$1.2 million) in total.