Lal Baadshah (लाल बादशाह)

Lal Baadshah (लाल बादशाह) is a 1999 Hindi-language action drama film directed, produced, and written by K.C. Bokadia, starring Amitabh Bachchan in a dual role as Lal "Baadshah" Singh and Ranbir Singh, with Manisha Koirala, Shilpa Shetty, Amrish Puri, and Raghuvaran in supporting parts.^{1 • 2} It was released in India on 5 March 1999 and was a box office failure, though it performed well in the Hindi-belt territories of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.^{3 • 4}

Cast and production

The film was made under the BMB Productions banner with K.C. Bokadia as director, producer, and writer, Mahavir Bokadia as executive producer, Aadesh Shrivastava as composer, Peter Pereira as cinematographer, and D.N. Malik as editor.^{2 • 3} Shakti Kapoor played Balu, Lal's secretary, and Raadhika Sarathkumar played the wife of Ranbir Singh.⁶

Nirupa Roy's last film. Lal Baadshah is known as the final film appearance of the veteran actress Nirupa Roy, who played Lal's foster mother and had frequently played Amitabh Bachchan's on-screen mother in the 1970s and 1980s.^{4 • 8}

Release and box office

The film was released on 5 March 1999.³ Trade reporting at the time recorded a strong opening in the Hindi belt: it opened in Bombay on 5 March at Dreamland, New Excelsior, and 19 other cinemas, and the opening was described as mindblowing in Uttar Pradesh (released 2 March), West Bengal, Bihar, C.P. Berar, C.I., and Rajasthan, where the first day in Jaipur took 274,000 from five cinemas.⁹ The same trade report attributed this regional appeal to the Bhojpuri dialect of the hero and the action.⁹

The run did not hold. Box Office India records 230 screens, a first day of ₹80,00,000, a first weekend of ₹2,21,00,000, a first week of ₹3,66,00,000, and a total India nett gross of ₹70,850,000 against a budget of ₹11,00,00,000, classifying the film a Flop.³ Bollywood Hungama's compiled figures agree on the shape of the run: opening day 8 million (0.80 crore), opening weekend 22.1 million (2.21 crore), first week 36.6 million (3.66 crore), and a total India nett of 70.9 million (7.09 crore), with a worldwide gross of 108 million (10.8 crore) including 9.5 million (0.95 crore) overseas.¹⁰ In the United States and Canada the film grossed $150,657, with an opening weekend of $81,873.⁵ The Film Information trade paper reported that since it opened to poor houses almost all over India, it would entail heavy losses to its distributors.⁹

Reported running times differ between databases: IMDb, Apple TV, and Box Office Mojo list 180 minutes, while Box Office India lists 152 minutes and The Times of India lists 2 hours 14 minutes.^{1 • 3 • 11}

Reception

Contemporary reviews were negative. Anupama Chopra's review in India Today was titled around the idea that Bachchan's new film tried in vain to capture his old magic.¹² A Rediff review called the film an insult to Amitabh Bachchan's stature, criticized the editing, cinematography, sets, and action sequences as products of the mid-eighties, and found nothing catchy in Aadesh Shrivastava's music beyond "Dhanno ki aankh".¹³ The Film Information trade review was milder, calling the story as routine as routine can be but noting a good dose of action for the masses, effective work from Amrish Puri, and appealing camerawork; it judged the film an average fare with an impressive initial value for B and C class centers but without the power to sustain a long run.⁹

Retrospective aggregate scores remain low: IMDb records 3.4/10 from 793 votes.¹ The film is also noted as Bachchan's third film after his comeback following a five-year hiatus, and it failed at the box office nationally while hitting in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.⁴

Music

The soundtrack was composed by Aadesh Shrivastava.² The trade review singled out "Dhanno ki aankh" as very good, called a couple of other songs okay, and judged the "Mera munna" number dull.⁹ The Rediff review likewise found nothing very catchy in the music beyond "Dhanno ki aankh".¹³

Availability

In India the film streams on Amazon Prime Video, JioHotstar, and MX Player, among other services, with an A (adults only) age rating.¹⁴

References

1. Lal Baadshah (1999) – IMDb
2. Lal Baadshah (1999) – Full cast & crew, IMDb
3. Lal Baadshah – Movie – Box Office India
4. Lal Baadshah (1999) – The Movie Database
5. Lal Baadshah (1999) – Box Office Mojo
6. Lal Baadshah (1999) – FMDb
7. Lal Baadshah (1999) – Plot, IMDb
8. LAL BAADSHAH – B4U Entertainment
9. FLASHBACK | 1 March, 2024 (From our issue dated 6th March, 1999) – Film Information
10. Lal Baadshah Box Office Collection – Bollywood Hungama
11. Lal Baadshah Movie – eTimes, The Times of India
12. Film review: 'Lal Badshah' – India Today, 15 March 1999
13. The review of K C Bokadia's Lal Badshah – Rediff, 6 March 1999
14. Lal Baadshah streaming – JustWatch India

Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Indian films (individual works) › Hindi films of the 1990s › Action and thriller films › Released 1996 to 1999

Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026

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