Ra One
Ra One is a 2011 Indian Hindi-language superhero film directed by Anubhav Sinha and produced by Gauri Khan under Red Chillies Entertainment. The film stars Shah Rukh Khan in a dual role and Arjun Rampal as the titular antagonist, with Kareena Kapoor, Armaan Verma, Shahana Goswami, Tom Wu, Dalip Tahil and Satish Shah in supporting roles. The name is inspired by Hindu mythological character Ravana.
Ra.One, the antagonist of a video game, breaks out of the game and arrives in the real world to hunt down Lucifer, the ID of Prateek, the son of Ra.One’s creator Shekhar Subramaniam, who had defeated Ra.One in a game. Shekhar gets killed by Ra.One, but Prateek resurrects G.One, the video game protagonist and Shekhar’s lookalike, to defeat Ra.One and protect him and his family.
Principal photography began in March 2010 and took place in India and the United Kingdom and was overseen by an international crew. The post-production involved 3-D conversion and the application of visual effects, the latter being recognised as a technological breakthrough among Indian films.
Ra.One was the most expensive Indian film at the time of release, surpassing Enthiran’s budget of 132 crore, which was equivalent to 296 crore, or US$35 million, in 2023. It had a budget of 150 crore, or 309 crore, or US$36 million, including publicity costs. The producers spent 150 crore, or 309 crore, or 36 million US dollars in 2023. They also spent 52 crore, or 107 crore, or 13 million US dollars, on marketing, which included a nine-month publicity campaign, brand partnerships, merchandise, video games, and viral marketing. There were issues with copyright, content leaks, and plagiarism in the film.
Ra.One was released theatrically on October 24, 2011, the first day of the five-day Diwali weekend, in Tamil and Telugu in 2D, 3D, and dubbed versions, with three international premieres taking place between October 24 and October 26. The film witnessed the largest international theatrical release for an Indian film as of 2011 and was preceded by high audience and commercial expectations. Upon release, Ra.One earned praise for the visual effects, action sequences, direction, music and the performances of Khan and Rampal, but criticism for the script.
The film broke a number of opening box office records and became the third highest-grossing Indian Hindi language film of 2011 domestically, the second highest-grossing Hindi film of 2011 worldwide. In addition, the film was a commercial success and earned more than 207 crore (US$24 million) worldwide against a budget of 150 crore (US$18 million). A National Film Award, a Filmfare Award, and four International Indian Film Academy Awards were among the accolades it received for its technical aspects. While initially mixed around its time of release, the film’s reception has improved over the years.
Plot
In London, Jenny Nair, an employee of UK-based company Barron Industries, introduces a new technology that allows things from the digital world to enter the real world using wireless transmissions from multiple devices. A final opportunity to create a one-of-a-kind video game is given to Shekhar Subramaniam, who also works for the company. Shekhar uses his son’s idea that the antagonist should be more powerful than the protagonist to impress his skeptical son Prateek and at his wife Sonia’s request.
Shekhar’s colleague Akashi does the motion capture of the game’s characters, Jenny does the programming, and Shekhar gives his face to the game’s protagonist, G. One, while the antagonist, Ra. One, is faceless and has substantially greater powers than those granted to G. One, including shapeshifting and mind reading.
Ra. One is imbibed with a self-learning AI. The two characters are given a H.A.R.T, which gives them powers, but also without which they cannot be killed. The game has three levels, and either of the players can only be killed in the third level using a special gun that holds a single bullet, which destroys the opponent’s H.A.R.T. While designing the game, Akashi notices some malfunctions but ignores them. When the game is finally launched, it receives a standing ovation, and Prateek is so impressed that he insists on playing it immediately.
Prateek logs in under the alias Lucifer and proceeds to the final level but is interrupted by Akashi. Ra, the self-aware One decides that Lucifer will die because he cannot complete his turn with him. Akashi calls Shekhar, who notices a game issue, when the mainframe fails to shut down. Ra. One uses the new technology to enter the real world, breaks free, and goes to find Lucifer. Ra. One first assumes Akashi’s form and asks him about Lucifer.
When Akashi does not respond, Ra One abruptly murders him. Shekhar rushes home after finding Akashi dead, but Ra confronts him on the way. One. In an attempt to save Prateek, Shekhar claims that he is Lucifer, but Ra. After determining that Shekhar is lying, one person examines his ID and kills him.
Prateek notices the strange circumstances of his father’s death and realises that Ra. One has taken on new life. Prateek and Jenny attempt to bring G.One to life. Sonia informs Prateek that the family will return to India in the meantime. Having taken the form of Akashi, Ra. One chases them, but G. After a fight with Ra, one enters the real world through Jenny’s computer.
One, causes a gas explosion, which breaks Ra. One into cubes and temporarily disables him. G. One gets Ra. Ra would not exist without one’s H.A.R.T. The other is weak but cannot die. Sonia realizes that she can’t leave G. One and takes him along with them to India through Shekhar’s passport. G. One promises Sonia that he will protect Prateek from all harm. Ra. One returns to life takes the form of a billboard model and tracks G. One and Prateek by infiltrating Baron’s office.
During Prateek’s birthday party, Ra. Sonia is hypnotized, taken over by one, and Prateek is kidnapped. Ra. G is then directed by one. One to give him his H.A.R.T. back and sends the real Sonia in an uncontrollable Mumbai Suburban Railway train. G. One saves Sonia just in the nick of time despite the train crashing and the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus getting destroyed. He returned to save Prateek after spending a brief moment with Sonia.
Prateek takes control of G as the game continues. One’s moves. Following a lengthy fight, they successfully beat the first and second levels and reach the third level. With little power left, G. One and Prateek trick Ra. One into shooting G. One without his H.A.R.T. attached as he shields it with his hand, which leaves Ra. One powerless.
Furious, Ra. One creates ten copies of himself. Prateek is unable to differentiate the real Ra. One, and asks G.One to quote one of Shekhar’s sayings, which was actually a hint in disguise: “If you join the forces of evil, its shadows shall always follow you.” The pair then realise that only one of the ten Ra. Ones has a shadow. G. One shoots and destroys him. After absorbing Ra.One’s remains, G. The individual is transported back into the digital world. After a period of time, Prateek and Sonia make their way back to London, where Prateek finally succeeds in restoring G. One to the real world.
Cast
Credit – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ra.One
- Shah Rukh Khan in a dual role as
- Shekhar Subramaniam, a video game programmer
- G.One (Good One), a superhero player character who came out of the game
- Arjun Rampal as the final form of Ra.One (Random Access One, also sounds similar to Ravana, the antagonist demon king of Lanka in Ramayana), a supervillain player character who comes out of the game into the real life.
- Kareena Kapoor as Sonia S. Subramaniam: Shekhar’s wife and Prateek’s mother.
- Armaan Verma as Prateek Subramaniam / Lucifer: Shekhar and Sonia’s son.
- Shahana Goswami as Jenny Nair
- Tom Wu as Akashi
- Dalip Tahil as Barron
- Satish Shah as Iyer
- Suresh Menon as the taxi driver[15]
Additionally, Priyanka Chopra and Sanjay Dutt appears in cameos as the Desi Girl and Khal Nayak, respectively.[16] Delnaaz Irani as the school teacher aboard the hijacked train.[17] Amitabh Bachchan provides the voiceover for the introduction sequence of the game ‘Ra.One’ in the film. The character Chitti, played by Rajinikanth, from Enthiran appears in the film. The character is computer-generated and is not played by the actor himself.[18]
Our General Review
Alright, buckle up, folks, because it’s time to dive into the wild, wacky, and wonderfully chaotic world of *Ra.One*—a 2011 Bollywood sci-fi extravaganza that’s equal parts ambitious, absurd, and “did I just see that?” Directed by Anubhav Sinha and starring Shah Rukh Khan in not one but *two* over-the-top roles, this movie is like someone threw a superhero flick, a video game, and a dance party into a blender and hit puree. Spoiler alert: the result is a smoothie that’s equal parts delicious and “what is this texture?”
Let’s start with the plot—or, as I like to call it, “a fever dream with a budget.” Shah Rukh Khan plays Shekhar, a nerdy game developer who’s so uncool he makes your dad’s flip-phone look hip. He’s got a loving wife (Kareena Kapoor, radiant as always) and a son who thinks he’s a total dork.
To win his kid’s approval, Shekhar designs a video game with an unbeatable villain named Ra.One (pronounced “Ravan,” because subtlety is for losers). Naturally, because this is a movie and not real life, the AI villain escapes the game, becomes real, and decides to wreak havoc in Mumbai. Why? Because he’s programmed to be evil, and apparently, no one thought to add an off switch. Classic rookie mistake.
Enter G.One (short for “Good One,” because creativity peaked at the title), Shekhar’s digital alter-ego who also jumps out of the game to save the day. Shah Rukh Khan doubles up as this blue-tinted, spandex-clad superhero who looks like he’s auditioning for a *Tron* reboot while simultaneously trying to flirt with Kareena Kapoor. The plot then spirals into a whirlwind of CGI explosions, train chases, and dance numbers—because it’s Bollywood, and no one’s leaving without a song stuck in their head.
Now, let’s talk about the visuals. *Ra.One* reportedly cost a gazillion rupees (okay, 130 crores, but who’s counting?), and you can see every penny on screen—sometimes literally, in the form of shiny, over-the-top effects. The CGI is ambitious for its time, but it’s also hilariously dated now.
Ra.One himself looks like a cross between a Terminator knockoff and a guy who got lost on his way to a cosplay convention. G.One’s glowing blue suit screams “I’m a hero!” while also whispering “I was designed in 2011, please forgive me.” The action scenes are a mixed bag—some are genuinely thrilling, like the train sequence that feels like a rollercoaster on steroids, while others look like someone forgot to render the physics engine.
Shah Rukh Khan is, as always, the beating heart of this madness. As Shekhar, he’s awkward and endearing, fumbling through dad jokes and dance moves. As G.One, he’s all charisma and quips, delivering lines like “I’m programmed to protect” with the gravitas of a man who knows he’s carrying this film on his spandex-covered shoulders. Kareena Kapoor is the emotional anchor, juggling grief, sass, and a wardrobe that screams “I’m too fabulous for this chaos.” The kid, played by Armaan Verma, is… well, a kid in a movie—annoying enough to make you root for Ra.One for about five minutes.
The humor? Oh, it’s there, whether intentional or not. From G.One’s robotic attempts at human emotion (think Siri trying to flirt) to Ra.One’s over-the-top villainy (he literally shapeshifts into random people like a discount Mystique), the movie is a goldmine of unintentional comedy. And then there’s the *Chammak Challo* song—catchy as hell, with Akon belting out lyrics that make zero sense but somehow work. It’s the kind of earworm that’ll have you humming in the shower while questioning your life choices.
Is *Ra.One* a masterpiece? No. Is it a mess? Absolutely. But it’s a glorious mess—like a buffet where half the dishes are questionable, but you keep going back for more because the vibes are immaculate. It’s got heart, it’s got hustle, and it’s got Shah Rukh Khan doing slow-mo hair flips in a digital suit. For every clunky line or dated effect, there’s a moment of pure Bollywood magic that reminds you why this industry is a global juggernaut.
Final verdict: *Ra.One* is the cinematic equivalent of a sugar high—wild, ridiculous, and a little exhausting, but you can’t look away. Watch it with friends, a bucket of popcorn, and zero expectations, and you’ll have a blast. Just don’t ask too many questions, like “How does an AI villain know how to drive a car?” or “Why is everyone dancing in the middle of an apocalypse?” Because, my friends, this is *Ra.One*—logic is optional, entertainment is mandatory.
People Review (taken from google)
