Yodha (2024 film)

Yodha is a 2024 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed by Sagar Ambre and Pushkar Ojha. Ambre also wrote the screenplay, while it was produced by Hiroo Yash Johar, Karan Johar and Apoorva Mehta under the banner of Dharma Productions. The film stars Sidharth Malhotra, Raashii Khanna and Disha Patani.

Yodha was theatrically released on 15 March 2024. It underperformed at the box office.

Cast

 * Sidharth Malhotra as Arun Katyal, an army soldier and a member of the Yodha Task Force
 * Raashii Khanna as Priyamvada "Priya" Katyal, Arun's wife
 * Disha Patani as Laila Khalid, a flight attendant
 * Ronit Roy as Major Surender Katyal, Arun's father and the founder of the Yodha Task Force
 * Tanuj Virwani as Sameer Khan
 * Sunny Hinduja as Jalal, Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist
 * Kritika Bhardwaj as Tanya Sharma
 * S. M. Zaheer as Anuj Nair
 * Chittranjan Tripathy as S N Dhingra
 * Farida Patel Venkat as Mrs. Katyal, Arun's mother
 * Mikhail Yawalkar as Ahmed Khalid
 * Sanjay Gurbaxani as Indian Head of State

Production
The film is inspired by the various aircraft hijackings in Indian history, particularly Indian Airlines Flight 814 in 1999. Principal photography began on 27 November 2021 and would go on to include shootings in Delhi, Bhopal, Manali, Pune and Ladakh. On 18 December 2021, Raashii Khanna and Disha Patani were announced as the leading actresses. In December 2021, Patani wrapped up her portion of the shoot and wrote a rap song for Badshah. In March 2022, Raashii Khanna wrapped up her portions. Later, Tanuj Virwani was cast in a prominent role.

Soundtrack
The music of the film is composed by Tanishk Bagchi, Vishal Mishra, B Praak, Aditya Dev and John Stewart Eduri while lyrics are written by Manoj Muntashir, Jaani, Kunaal Vermaa, Vishal Mishra and Kaushal Kishore. The first single titled "Zindagi Tere Naam" was released on 24 February 2024. The second single titled "Tere Sang Ishq Hua" was released on 7 March 2024.

Theatrical
The film was scheduled to be released on 7 July 2023 but was delayed. The film was then postponed to 8 December 2023 and finally released on 15 March 2024.

Reception
Bollywood Hungama critic gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote "Yodha is not the usual hijack film and features a fine performance; however, it is quite technical and confusing." NDTV's Saibal Chatterjee rated the film 1.5/5 and wrote "No matter how lenient you might want to be and how much of a Sidharth Malhotra fan you are, this pulpy action movie is a bumpy ride that lurches from one misstep to another."

Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com gave 2.5/5 stars and observed "A light-footed Sidharth single-handedly going at the baddies is a slick sight. Armed in swag, sunglasses and slow motion, the man is more than fit for the job. And it’s on his charm and rugged shoulders that Yodha shamelessly rests".

Anupama Chopra, in her review for Film Companion said that "Yodha is a cheesy, chest-thumping, low-on-logic thriller that rides brazenly to a crowd-pleasing finale, mostly on the shoulders of a solid Sidharth Malhotra." Rishil Jogani of Pinkvilla rated the film 2.5/5 and opined that "Yodha has redeemable qualities and offers thrills too but the film in totality is a tiresome watch, full of clichés, cheesy dialogues and overused tropes."

Other media
The marketing of the film included a tie-in comic by Pratilipi Comics, Adventures of Yodha: The Case of the Missing Ship, written by Akash Pathak and illustrated by Ayantika Roy.