Ek Ajnabee was released theatrically on 9 December 2005.
Plot
Colonel Suryaveer "Surya" Singh is a bitter man and ex-Army officer, hired by his friend and former comrade Captain Shekhar Verma to protect a little girl, Anamika R. Rathore (Rucha Vaidya), who resides in Bangkok, Thailand with her Non-resident Indian (NRI) family. He drinks alcohol frequently, and is not interested in befriending the girl. Eventually, she wins his heart, and he helps her to prepare for a swim meet. One day Anamika gets kidnapped, and Surya receives serious injuries in his attempt to prevent the kidnapping. Her father is not able to pay the sum to release his daughter. So Suryaveer uses all his skills to save the life of the child, only to find out about the conspiracy that is behind the little girl's kidnapping. Surya learns that Chang, Shekhar's lawyer, is behind some of this. The real mastermind behind this is Chang's brother. Surya holds Chang hostage, while Chang's brother holds Anamika hostage. When they come to exchange the people, Chang's brother reveals a great secret to Surya. Surya learns that Shekhar was all behind this. Surya kills Chang's brother's men. A great fight between Shekhar and Surya starts. Shekhar is killed, and Surya spends the rest of his life with Anamika and her mother. In the end, Anamika gets a new bodyguard, and the film shows her during her swimming practice, with Surya and her new bodyguard 15 years later.
Kelly Dorjee as Bangkok Police Officer Inspector Kelly
Also appearing in the film in Special apperances are Abhishek Bachchan as a Bodyguard, and Lara Dutta as Adult Anamika.[3]Sanjay Dutt makes a special apperance as Hip-Hop MC in the song "They Dont Know." Czech dancer, Hanah appeares in the song "Ek Ajnabi (Mama Told Me)."[4]
Production
Apoorva Lakhia said that the script was written with the lead actor, Amitabh Bachchan, in mind.[5]." Lakhia explained that "Man on Fire has been made into four films in five different languages. [sic] So this is the Indian version. It has all the necessarily ingredients required for a movie to come out of India."[5]Vikram Chatwal, who plays Ravi Rathore in the film, said, "People talk a lot about cross cultural films. These films don't necessarily have to be like Monsoon Wedding or Bend It Like Beckham. This is not another Hindi film. This is not a remake of Man on Fire. If you see the way it is shot, edited and directed, it is setting new standards. Mr Bachchan is reinventing himself. So please don't turn this film into another Bollywood film."[5]
The film was shot on location in Bangkok, Thailand, for 35 days. Lakhia said that he and Bunty Walia, a producer, chose Bangkok because "we wanted our characters to stand out. When they are walking on the street, they will look different. Both my heroes are over six feet, and Thai men are not as tall. So it was really important to be in a place where they could stand out."[5]
Manish Gajjar of BBC Shropshire wrote, "Overall, this thriller is a must-see if you are an Amitabh fan."[6] Vipin Vijayan of Rediff.com said that the film "reinvents Vijay Dinanath Chauhan (Bachchan's very popular character in Agneepath)," and that the film has "a racy first" act but that it "loses steam in the second half."[1]
Bunty Walia, the producer, said that there had been accusations that the film had been plagiarised. He said "To our credit, [ Apoorva Lakhia ] and I never hid the fact that Ek Ajnabee was adapted from Man on Fire. Quite unlike some others who borrow blindly and presume others are blind to their intentions."[2]
In 2006 the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences stated an interest in acquiring a copy of the Ek Ajnabee screenplay for its collection. Walia said that this was an "honour" after the plagiarism accusations.[2] Subhash K. Jha of the Hindustan Times said, "Isn't it ironical that the Americans want a copy of a script, which is straightaway inspired by the Hollywood film Man on Fire?"[2]
Box office
In the United Kingdom, the film was screened in 20 cinemas during its opening weekend, making £35,058, with an average of £1,757 per showing. Manish Gajjar of BBC Shropshire said, "It has not done so well in the UK cinemas."[6]
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