Directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, the 2014 political crime drama Haider starred Shahid Kapoor, Tabu, Kay Kay Menon, Shraddha Kapoor, and Irrfan Khan in the leading roles.
The 2014 release Haider is often counted amongst the finest Indian films of the 21st century. Shahid Kapoor played the titular role in the film for free. Manoj Bajpayee was the first choice to play the villain, but he was replaced by Kay Kay Menon. The political crime drama also starred Tabu, Irrfan Khan, Shraddha Kapoor, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Narendra Jha, and Aamir Bashir in the leading roles. Haider is a modern-day adaptation of William Shakespeare's Hamlet.
1. Shahid Kapoor did Haider for free
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Shahid Kapoor gave a brilliant performance as Haider Meer in Haider, and didn't even take a single penny for the same. In an interview with Film Companion last year, the actor shared the reason behind doing the film for free as he said, "They couldn’t afford me. They said if they had to pay me, then the budget of the film wouldn’t get sanctioned because it was a very experimental subject. They really didn’t know if it would land at all but it was a very compelling kind of product to make and so I said, ‘Yeah, I will do it for free.'" Shahid went on to win his first Filmfare Award for Best Actor.
2. Haider won five National Awards
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The 2014 film Haider was one of the most critically-acclaimed films in the last decade. It received five National Film Awards for Best Screenplay and Best Music Direction to Vishal Bhardwaj, Best Male Playback Singer to Sukhwinder Singh for Bismil, Best Choreography to Sudesh Adhana for Bismil, and Best Costume Design to Dolly Ahluwalia.
3. Manoj Bajpayee was first choice for Haider
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In a recent interview, while promoting his latest web series Shekhar Home, Kay Kay Menon shared that he wasn't the first choice to play the villain Khurram Meer. He told Indian Express, "Manoj was the first choice for Haider. He, however, didn’t have dates, and most probably Vishal (Bhardwaj) and Manoj discussed and said 'Kay Kay ko lete hai (let’s take Kay Kay instead).'" The actor won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his terrific performance.
4. Haider at the box office
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Haider clashed with Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif-starrer actioner Bang Bang at the box office. While Bang Bang was a major commercial success with global earnings of over Rs 300 crore, Haider also did good business. As per the entertainment tracking portal Sacnilk, the Vishal Bhardwaj film was made in Rs 45 crore, earned Rs 56 crore in India, and grossed Rs 80 crore worldwide.
5. Haider was banned in Pakistan
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Set amidst the insurgency-hit Kashmir in the 1990s, Haider was banned in Pakistan. Though the film was denied certification by the Pakistani Central Board of Film Censors for depicting the sensitive issue of Kashmir, it received acclaim for its brilliant direction, excellent performances, gripping screenplay, beautiful music, and stunning cinematography from around the world.
6. Vishal Bhardwaj previous Shakespeare's adaptations
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Haider was adapted from William Shakespeare's Hamlet. Previously, Vishal Bhardwaj had adapted Shakespeare's Macbeth into Maqbool in 2003 and Othello into Omkara in 2006. While Maqbool starred Irrfan Khan, Tabu, Pankaj Kapur, Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, and Piyush Mishra; Omkara featured Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Vivek Oberoi, Konkona Sen Sharma, and Bipasha Basu.
