Sardaar Gabbar Singh is a 2016 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film co-written and directed by Bobby Kolli, (credited as K. S. Ravindra) based on an original story by Pawan Kalyan. In the film, brave policeman Gabbar Singh (Kalyan) rescues the residents of Rathanpur when they are forced to face the wrath of Bhairav Singh (Kelkar), who unceremoniously usurps their land.
Sardaar Gabbar Singh is not a remake or sequel — it's an original script written by Pawan Kalyan as a spiritual successor to Gabbar Singh (2012), which was a remake of Dabangg.
Initially titled Gabbar Singh 2, the film began production on 21 February 2014 in Hyderabad with Sampath Nandi as the film. He later walked out of the film and was replaced by Ravindra. Principal photography began in May 2015 at Maharashtra. The film was renamed Sardaar Gabbar Singh in mid-2015. Filming took place extensively in Hyderabad, Secunderabad, Gujarat and Kerala before concluding in March 2016. Devi Sri Prasad composed the film's music, while Arthur A. Wilson and Gautham Raju served as the cinematographer and editor, respectively.
Sardaar Gabbar Singh was released worldwide on 8 April 2016, along with a Hindi dubbed version.
Plot The story is set in the princely town of Rattanpur, which is under the oppressive rule of Bhairav Singh (Sharad Kelkar), a ruthless landlord who exploits the villagers and forces them to obey his commands.
In an effort to maintain order in the region, the government assigns Sardaar Gabbar Singh as a policeman. Sardaar comes into conflict with Bhairav Singh, who controls the territory through fear and power. Sardaar also develops a romantic relationship with Princess Arshi (Kajal Aggarwal). His attempts to challenge Bhairav's dominance result in conflicts and betrayal culminating in a confrontation between the two.
The film blends action, comedy, and romance, with Pawan Kalyan's energetic performance and mass appeal driving the narrative.
Cast
Pawan Kalyan as Sardaar Gabbar Singh Sathwik Varma as Young Gabbar Singh/Sardaar Kajal Aggarwal as Arshi Devi Sharad Kelkar as Raja Bhairav Singh Sanjjana as Gayathri, Bhairav Singh's wife Brahmanandam as Shekhar Singh Chauhan Rajput Ali as Samba Tanikella Bharani as Gabbar Singh's adopted uncle Mukesh Rishi as Hari Narayana Rao Ramesh as Ramesh Talwar Pradeep Rawat as Rajbeer (Bhairav Singh's father) Kabir Duhan Singh as Dhannu Urvashi as Madhumati Tisca Chopra as Geetha Devi Pooja Ramachandran as a girl in Ratanpur Posani Krishna Murali as Appaji (Sketch Master) Brahmaji as Raja Manikhyam IPS (Corrupted Police Officer) Sudigali Sudheer as Police Constable Raghu Babu as Govinda Dheer Charan Srivastav as Hakeem John Kokken as Pathaan Prabhas Sreenu Krishna Bhagavan as Mandu Raju Vineet Kumaras Bihar Local Gang Head Salim Baig Charandeep Narra Srinivas as Constable in Ratanpur Ashwini Aravind Shakalaka Shankar RK as Matka Seenu Venu Yeldandi Raai Laxmi as a bar dancer (cameo appearance in the item song "Tauba Tauba")
Production Development In October 2012, Pawan Kalyan agreed to act in a film produced by Sharrath Marar, the former CEO of Maa TV, after completing work on Attarintiki Daredi (2013). Before the release of Dabangg 2 (2012), producer Bandla Ganesh registered the title Gabbar Singh in Hyderabad at the Andhra Pradesh Film Chamber, fueling speculation that this would be the remake of Dabangg 2 and the sequel to Gabbar Singh (2012), which was the official Telugu remake of Dabangg. Devi Sri Prasad and Jayanan Vincent were retained as the film's music director and cinematographer. Sampath Nandi was chosen to direct the film, and Marar was announced to oversee the production. At the same time, the film was reported to have a fresh storyline.
Kalyan wrote the story and clarified that the sequel would be based on an original script, not a remake of Dabangg 2. Considering the response to Attarintiki Daredi and the change in his on-screen image, Kalyan put pre-production on hold to make script changes. He added family drama elements and toned down the aggression of the lead character. Kalyan also decided to complete his work on Gopala Gopala (2015) first, while Nandi produced Galipatam (2014) on a low budget.
The film's official launch took place on 21 February 2014 in Hyderabad and was tentatively titled Gabbar Singh 2. L. Satyanand supervised the script, assisted by Sridhar Seepana and Kishore Gopu. Harish Pai was chosen as the creative head, and Gautham Raju was signed to edit the film. Due to delays in finalizing the female lead, Kalyan joined the sets of Gopala Gopala and worked on his political outfit, Jana Sena Party. The crew was instructed to regroup when Kalyan summoned them. Nandi left the project in November 2014 for undisclosed reasons. Vincent suggested K. S. Ravindra, who was then finalized as the new director. Sai Madhav Burra was chosen to write the dialogues.
The film was renamed Sardaar in late July 2015 to avoid paying royalty for the title Gabbar Singh. Kalyan chose this title since the character of Gabbar Singh, played by Amjad Khan, was referred to as Sardaar in Sholay (1975). Eros International announced on 15 August 2015 that it would co-produce the film with Pawan Kalyan Creative Works and Northstar Entertainment Pvt. Ltd., and the title was changed to Sardaar Gabbar Singh. Arthur A. Wilson replaced Vincent as the cinematographer due to creative differences between Vincent and Ravindra.
Casting Kalyan sported a long hair and thick beard for a few important sequences in the film and a clean shaven look for the rest of the film. The makers were reportedly planning to introduce a fresh face for the film. Shruti Haasan and Asin were approached to play the female lead in the film. Navneet Kaur Dhillon was reported to be signed as the female lead in late May 2014. Akshara Haasan was approached for the same later who declined the offer gently saying that it would raise expectations on her next films and so responsibilities. Deepika Padukone, Sonakshi Sinha, Parineeti Chopra and Katrina Kaif were approached for the female lead role who turned down the offer citing unavailability of bulk dates and Anisha Ambrose, who made a cameo appearance in Gopala Gopala, was chosen by Kalyan as the female lead.
Ambrose was trained in the nuances of acting, perfecting dancing and several other aspects in the workshop sessions conducted by Ravindra in April 2015 before joining the film's sets. During the shoot of the first schedule, the makers saw Sharad Kelkar performance in a soap opera and approached him to play the antagonist. Kelkar's inclusion in the cast was confirmed in June 2015. Charandeep, known for his work in the films Jilla (2014) and Pataas (2015), was signed as one of the antagonists in the film. Kajal Aggarwal, who initially declined to be a part of the film two years ago due to scheduling conflicts, was approached again in August 2015 for the female lead role. She met the film's unit and gave her consent, marking her first collaboration with Kalyan.
Kabir Duhan Singh confirmed his inclusion in the film's cast after completing a schedule and said that he would be seen as the one who handles all the activities of Kelkar in the film. During the scripting stage, there was a shorter role for a second, parallel female lead which was developed by the creative team on par with the first female lead after the shooting began. A source from the film's unit called it a "very energetic and active character". Trisha Krishnan was approached for the same in mid April 2015. Raai Laxmi inclusion in the film's cast was confirmed on 2 September 2015. She was reported to play a crucial role in the film and to be appeared in a special song along with Kalyan. Speaking about her role, Laxmi said that her role is a crucial one and shall stay till the end of the film, adding that it "starts off as something in the beginning, it transitions into something else altogether as the movie unfolds".
Sanjjana was signed to play the role of a Gujarati princess in the film who subserviently follows her husband. She called it an important character with a "traditional and royal persona", adding that it is not "one of those blink-and-miss roles" and will be seen right from the start to the end. The film's unit revealed that her wardrobe consists largely of nine-yard sarees and heavy jewellery. In mid March 2016, Kajal revealed that she would be seen as a princess, who was from another era dressed in exquisite Indian attires which is a very contemporary character unlike Indu from Magadheera (2009).
Filming Anand Sai and Rajesh and Archa Mehta were signed as the film's art director and costume designer respectively. Bhaskar Raju was signed as the film's production controller. The film's shoot began on 29 May 2015 at Malshej Ghat in Maharashtra. Some important sequences of the first schedule were shot in a special village set and Kalyan was expected to join the sets from the first week of June. The film's unit took a break after completing the first schedule since Kalyan was busy with his political commitments. A fight sequence featuring Kalyan and others were shot at the Aluminium factory located in Gachibowli in late July 2015. The second schedule was wrapped up on 5 August 2015, and filming continued at Ameerpet in mid August 2015.
The third schedule commenced on 8 September 2015 at Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad where key scenes were shot. Kalyan joined the film's sets on the next day and the schedule lasted till the end of September 2015. Filming of the item number commenced on 30 September 2015 in a set erected by Brahma Kadali at Ramanaidu Studios in Nanakramguda. Laxmi however chose not to call it an item number and termed it an "inspirational song that will everyone will love and remember for a long time". The song's shoot was wrapped up on 8 October 2015. Kalyan and the film's unit left for Gujarat in late October 2015 for location scouting. They returned to Hyderabad shortly and the next schedule commenced from 1 November 2015.
Few scenes on Kalyan, Ali, Brahmaji and others were filmed near the Le Palais Royal and Crown Villa Gardens in Secunderabad. A 25-day long schedule began from 15 November 2015 at Gujarat. Ali and Brahmaji joined the film's shoot shortly. Kajal joined the film's sets at Vadodara on 27 November 2015 and few scenes featuring her and Kalyan were filmed. She completed her part in the schedule on 4 December 2015. Kabir Singh Duhan joined the film's sets on the next day and scenes featuring him and Kalyan were filmed. After Kalyan completed his portions and left for Hyderabad, Marar said that scenes on the remaining cast would be filmed at Rajkot in Gujarat.
The final schedule, starting on 4 January 2016 at Hyderabad, was announced to last for a month and on its completion, the film's post-production activities were planned to be commenced. A village set worth 2 crore was erected in Hyderabad for the same in the place where Gabbar Singh was filmed. A schedule of 20 days was planned and all the principal cast participated in the shoot. The set featured an elaborate railway track, a market, and a group of houses and the cost escalated to 4.5 crore. Upon its completion, the next schedule commenced in Kerala in February 2016 and a few portions were filmed at the Athirappilly Falls. Upon its completion, the film's shoot continued in Hyderabad and by mid-February 2016, 90% of the film's talkie part was wrapped up.