Lakshya (transl. Aim) is a 2004 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age war drama film directed by Farhan Akhtar, written by his father Javed Akhtar and produced by Ritesh Sidhwani under the banner of Excel Entertainment, with Ronnie Screwvala serving as co-producer under distributor UTV Motion Pictures. The film stars Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, and Preity Zinta in lead roles. Based on a story written by Javed in response to discussions with several 1999 Kargil War veterans and army officers, the film follows Karan Shergill, a lazy young man and the son of a wealthy businessman from Delhi, who joins the Indian Army and matures into a battlefield hero just as war breaks out.[3]
| Lakshya | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Farhan Akhtar |
| Written by | Javed Akhtar |
| Produced by | Ritesh Sidhwani |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Christopher Popp |
| Edited by | Anand Subaya |
| Music by | Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | UTV Motion Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 185 minutes[1] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹30 crore (US$3.1 million)[2] |
| Box office | ₹41.68 crore (US$4.3 million)[2] |
At the 50th Filmfare Awards, Lakshya received 4 nominations, including Best Director (Farhan) and Best Actor (Roshan), and won 2 awards – Best Choreography (Prabhu Deva for "Main Aisa Kyun Hoon...") and Best Cinematography. Though the film was a box office failure, it gained a cult following later. The film was also instrumental in motivating youths across India to join the Indian Army.[4]
Plot
editKaran Shergill is a thoroughly lazy, irresponsible young man living in Delhi with no ambitions or concrete plans for his future. His girlfriend, Romila "Romi" Dutta, a focused and aspiring journalist, constantly urges him to find a meaningful direction in life. Following a casual suggestion from a friend, Karan decides to apply for the military and takes the Combined Defence Services Examination. To his own surprise and the deep disapproval of his wealthy parents, he clears the exam and is selected to train at the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun.
Karan's initial phase at the IMA is a total disaster. Completely unaccustomed to strict discipline and rigorous physical labor, he struggles to adapt and eventually deserts the academy under the cover of night to return home. His father openly expresses his disappointment, telling him to simply give up and join the family business, while a furious Romi breaks off their relationship due to his absolute lack of conviction and spine. Deeply stung by their reactions and realizing his own shortcomings, a determined Karan chooses to face his reality. He returns to the IMA, willingly accepts his severe punishment for desertion, and undergoes a massive transformation. Becoming a focused, highly disciplined cadet, he excels in all facets of his training, successfully graduates, and is commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Indian Army.
Karan is posted to the 3rd Battalion of the Punjab Regiment in Kargil, Ladakh, under the command of the strict yet inspiring Colonel Sunil Damle. During a brief home leave, Karan discovers that Romi is about to be engaged to someone else. However, his leave is abruptly cut short when full-scale hostilities break out in the region. Returning to the front line, Karan is promoted to the rank of acting Captain. Colonel Damle briefs the officers on the gravity of the situation: Pakistani infiltrators have crossed the Line of Control (LoC) and occupied strategic, high-altitude mountain peaks on the Indian side. The battalion is tasked with securing Point 5179, a critical vantage point that directly dominates the army's primary supply route, National Highway 1D.
Because the northern and western faces of the mountain present near-impossible terrain, the battalion launches an initial assault from the eastern side. The first phase succeeds in clearing the enemy's advanced screening units, with Karan earning praise for his battlefield bravery. Meanwhile, Romi arrives in the war zone as a frontline television correspondent. Encountering Karan after years apart, she is deeply moved by his maturity and realizes she is still in love with him.
The campaign takes a dark turn during the second phase, as the battalion's direct assault on the peak is repelled by heavy enemy mortar and machine-gun fire, resulting in severe casualties. Facing a strict 48-hour deadline from high command, Colonel Damle conceives a high-risk strategy: a small command unit of twelve men, including Karan, must scale a near-vertical, 1,000-foot rock cliff on the western side under the cover of darkness to flank the enemy position. Ahead of the mission, Karan learns that Romi broke off her engagement, and the two happily reconcile. For the first time in his life, Karan finds his ultimate aim: capturing the peak for his country.
The small unit sets out on the perilous trek, but they are spotted, losing their commanding officer and several men to relentless enemy fire. Refusing to retreat, the remaining six soldiers push forward through the freezing night and successfully scale the massive cliff face, launching a surprise guerrilla assault on the fortified Pakistani bunkers. A brutal, close-quarters firefight ensues. Though Karan sustains injuries, the team manages to neutralize the majority of the enemy forces. The following morning, Karan hunts down the final remaining intruders, killing them before limping to the highest point of the mountain. He proudly hoists the Indian national flag and signals victory to Colonel Damle below.
Sometime later, a recovered Karan is discharged from the military hospital, receiving a hero's welcome as he happily reunites with his proud parents and Romi. As the film closes, Colonel Damle and the surviving officers pay a solemn tribute to the brave martyrs who laid down their lives during Operation Vijay.
Cast
edit- Amitabh Bachchan as Colonel Sunil Damle (CO)
- Hrithik Roshan as Captain Karan Shergill, 3 Punjab
- Preity Zinta as Romila "Romi" Dutta (based on Barkha Dutt)[5][6]
- Boman Irani as Sanjeev Shergill, Karan's father
- Anjula Bedi as Shalini Shergill, Karan's mother
- M. K. Raina as Akhilesh Dutta, Romi's father
- Lillete Dubey as Mrs. Dutta, Romi's mother
- Kushal Punjabi as Rajeev Goel, Romi's former fianceè
- Om Puri as Subedar Major Pritam Singh
- Sharad Kapoor as Major Binod Sengupta, OC A Company (3 Punjab)
- Raj Zutshi as Major Kaushal Verma, OC D Company (3 Punjab)
- Sushant Singh as Captain Jalal Akbar, OC E Company (3 Punjab)
- Prashant Chainani as Lieutenant Vishal Srivastav
- Shakeel Khan as Naik Raj Tilak Singh
- Vishal Vijay as Captain Saket Ahluwalia
- Ranvir Shorey as Sepoy Tarsem Singh
- Aarav Chowdhary as Captain Manjit Singh Dhingra, OC C Company (3 Punjab)
- Aditya Srivastava as Lt. Colonel Pradeep, SIC (3 Punjab)
- Abir Goswami as Captain Sudhir Mishra, RMO - Army Medical Corps
- Parmeet Sethi as Major Shahbaaz Hamdani, Pakistan Army
- Nawab Shah as Major Satish Babbar, OC B Company (3 Punjab)
- Abhimanyu Singh as Lt. Colonel Pratap Singh, Adjutant IMA (Kumaon Regiment)
- Ashok Kumar as Sepoy Babulal
- Vipul Gupta as Captain Rakesh Bhavnani
- Nissar Khan as Captain Bairam Khan, Pakistan Army
- Amit Behl as Major Subhash Pant, Company Commander IMA (Dogra Regiment)
- Bhanu Uday as Captain Abeer Saxena, Dogra Regt.
- Surendra Pal as Lt. General, IMA Commandant
- Amrish Puri as Brigadier Gautam Puri
Production
editThe film's production took place across Mumbai and several locations in Uttarakhand. The scenes depicting Kargil were shot in Ladakh. Some parts of the film centered around Hrithik Roshan's military training were shot at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. Actual Indian Army officers also participated in the shooting of the film. Seeing both the actors and officers in the same getup, at times Preity Zinta would get confused separating the actual officers from the actors.[7] Pankaj Tripathi, then a struggling actor, shot for the film at Ladakh with Roshan and the news went viral in Tripathi's village. However, Tripathi's role was cut during the editing, which he expressed disappointment on seeing.[8]
Soundtrack
edit| Lakshya | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 24 April 2004 | |||
| Recorded | Purple Haze Studios | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producers | Farhan Akhtar Ritesh Sidhwani | |||
| Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Lakshya | ||||
| ||||
The film's soundtrack was composed by Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy, with lyrics written by Javed Akhtar.[9] Shaan's "Main Aisa Kyun Hoon", picturized on Hrithik Roshan, was described as a laid-back, funky-hip hop track.[3] The song "Agar Main Kahoon" was a love duet, picturized on Roshan and Preity Zinta. The trio used the harmonica for the track.[10] The title track "Lakshya" was a techno-flavored patriotic song sung by Shankar Mahadevan, which is followed by "Kandhon Se Milte", another patriotic song with the vocals of Kunal Ganjawala and Vijay Prakash. "Kitni Baatein" was sung by Hariharan and Sadhana Sargam. There are two instrumentals, "Victory" and "Separation". The trumpet portion from "Victory" has been used as the background music for their logo by Excel Entertainment.
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Javed Akhtar.
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Main Aisa Kyun Hoon" | Shaan | 4:34 |
| 2. | "Agar Main Kahoon" | Udit Narayan, Alka Yagnik | 4:52 |
| 3. | "Kitni Baatein" | Hariharan, Sadhana Sargam | 5:47 |
| 4. | "Lakshya" | Shankar Mahadevan | 6:15 |
| 5. | "Kandhon Se Milte Hain Kandhe" | Kunal Ganjawala, Sonu Nigam, Roop Kumar Rathod, Kumar Sanu, Hariharan, Shankar Mahadevan | 5:40 |
| 6. | "Separation" | Instrumental | 2:29 |
| 7. | "Kitni Baatein" (Reprise) | Hariharan, Sadhana Sargam | 4:19 |
| 8. | "Victory" | Chorus | 3:20 |
Reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Bollywood Hungama |   [11] |
| PlanetBollywood.com |   [12] |
The soundtrack received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics. Joginder Tuteja of Bollywood Hungama in his review, said "Lakshya does have good music that is very urban and will appeal to the class audience. Going by the theme of the movie, the album is pretty balanced and has been composed with style that speaks of class."[11] PlanetBollywood.com found the album to be "as good as Dil Chahta Hai".[12] Subhash K. Jha described the album as "daringly unusual sound with a show-offy kind of innovativeness".[13] Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com, however, remarked that, though the album was good, it was below expectations and "lacked punch".[14] According to the Indian trade website Box Office India, with around 11,00,000 units sold, this film's soundtrack album was the year's thirteenth highest-selling.[15]
Reception
editBox office
editLakshya netted around Rs. 23 crore at the domestic box office.[2] Lakshya grossed $5,859,242 worldwide including $753,600 from North American markets and $5,105,642 from other markets.[16] In the U.S., it performed better, grossing $380,000 on 59 screens [approx. Rs. 1.75 crore] in its opening weekend with the per screen average being around $6,440.[17]
Critical response
editLakshya was director Farhan Akhtar's second film, following the success of his first film, the cult classic Dil Chahta Hai (2001). However, despite much anticipation, it did not fare as well at the box-office. Nevertheless, after repeated re-runs on TV over the years, Lakshya has been regarded as a cult film among an audience that argues it is Hrithik Roshan's best performance to date.[18] Lakshya was also instrumental in motivating youth across India to join the Indian Army.[19]
Accolades
edit| Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 52nd National Film Awards | Best Choreography | Prabhu Deva for "Main Aisa Kyun Hoon" | Won |
| 50th Filmfare Awards | Best Choreography | Won | |
| Best Cinematography | Christopher Popp | Won | |
| Best Director | Farhan Akhtar | Nominated | |
| Best Actor | Hrithik Roshan | Nominated |
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "LAKSHYA (2004)". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on 7 November 2016. Retrieved 6 November 2016.
- 1 2 3 "Lakshya - Movie - Box Office India".
- 1 2 "Lakshya is about Hrithik, about finding yourself". Rediff.com. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ↑ Yadav, Harikesh (13 August 2023). "How this Indian Movie created an impact amongst Indian Youth back in 2004". Medium. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
- ↑ "Preity Zinta interview". Rediff.com. 28 January 2011.
- ↑ "Farhan Akhtar interview". Rediff.com. 28 January 2011.
- ↑ "Farhan Akhtar recalls shooting Lakshya in Ladakh, calls it 'incredibly special' to return for 120 Bahadur". Hindustan Times. 21 February 2025. Retrieved 1 August 2025.
- ↑ "Pankaj Tripathi recalls working for Hrithik Roshan's Lakshya, but his scene got deleted, actor reveals why he felt bad". Hindustan Times. 22 October 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2025.
- ↑ "Lakshya : Soundtrack listing and details". Bollywood Hungama. 18 June 2004. Archived from the original on 24 July 2009. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ↑ "View topic – Hey SEL". Lifekidhun.com. 16 November 2006. Archived from the original on 26 March 2012. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- 1 2 "Lakshya : Music Review by Joginder Tuteja". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 8 September 2008. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- 1 2 "Bollywood – Music Review – Lakshya". PlanetBollywood.com. 22 April 2004. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ↑ "Lakshya Music Review, Indian Movie Lakshya Music Review, Lakshya movie Music Review, Bollywood movie Music Review". Nowrunning.com. 30 April 2004. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
- ↑ "'Lakshya' needs more punch". Rediff.com. Retrieved 27 February 2012.
- ↑ "Music Hits 2000–2009 (Figures in Units)". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 24 June 2010.
- ↑ "Lakshya (2004) – Box Office Mojo". Box Office Mojo.
- ↑ "Box office: 'Lakshya' overseas". Sify.[dead link]
- ↑ "12 years of Lakshya: The film many did not get". 18 June 2016.
- ↑ "How this Indian Movie created an impact amongst Indian Youth back in 2004". 13 August 2023.
External links
edit- Lakshya at IMDb
- Lakshya at Rotten Tomatoes
- Lakshya at Box Office Mojo