Rashmi Rocket

Rashmi Rocket
Official release poster
Directed by	Akarsh Khurana
Written by	Kanika Dhillon Akarsh Khurana Aniruddha Guha Lisha Bajaj
Screenplay by	Aniruddha Guha Kanika Dhillon
Story by	Nandha Periyasamy
Produced by	Ronnie Screwvala Neha Anand Pranjal Khandhdiya
Starring	Taapsee Pannu Priyanshu Painyuli Abhishek Banerjee
Cinematography	Neha Parti Matiyani
Edited by	Ajay Sharma Shweta Venkat Mathew
Music by	Amit Trivedi
Production companies	RSVP Movies Mango People Media Network
Distributed by	ZEE5
Release date	15 October 2021 (2021-10-15)
Running time	129 minutes
Country	India
Language	Hindi

Rashmi Rocket is a 2021 Indian Hindi language sports drama film directed by Akarsh Khurana and produced by Ronnie Screwvala. ^[1] It stars Taapsee Pannu as the titular character alongside Abhishek Banerjee and Priyanshu Painyuli. ^{[2] [3]} The film premiered on 15 October 2021 on ZEE5. ^[4]

Cast

• Taapsee Pannu as Rashmi Chibber aka Rashmi Rocket, an Indian track and field athlete from Bhuj in Kutch, Gujarat. Competitor at the Indian National Open Athletics Championships, 2014 Asian Games and the 2016 South Asian Games qualifiers. The character is based on several Indian sportswomen who were subject to gender testing due to being diagnosed with hyperandrogenism; such as Dutee Chand and Pinki Pramanik. ^{[5] [6]}
• Priyanshu Painyuli as Captain Gagan Thakur, Indian Army captain (later Major) and Rashmi's husband
• Abhishek Banerjee as Eeshit Mehta, Rashmi's lawyer
• Shweta Tripathi as Maya Bhasin ^[7]
• Supriya Pathak as Bhanuben Chibber, Rashmi's mother ^[8]
• Manoj Joshi as Ramnik Chibber, Rashmi's father, killed in the 2001 Bhuj earthquake
• Mantra as Coach Tejas Mukherji
• Supriya Pilgaonkar as Judge Savita Deshpande, judge at the Bombay High Court
• Miloni Jhonsa as Niharika Chopra, Dilip's daughter who's jealous of Rashmi
• Namita Dubey as Priyanka Kapoor
• Varun Badola as Dilip Chopra, Niharika's father and a Senior Selector
• Boloram Das as Coach
• Chirag Vora as Nileshbhai Virah Chibber
• Dharak Chhaya as Kartik Virah Chibber
• Dhwanish Chhaya as Paresh Virah Chibber
• Akash Khurana as Dr. Ejaz Qureshi
• Kshitee Jog as Dr. Jagdish Mahatre
• Zafar Karachiwala as Mangesh Desai
• Aseem Jayadev Hattangady as Praveen Sood
• Umesh Jagtap as Inspector Jagan Sathe
• Akshay Taksale as Sub-Inspector Jagtap Rana
• Kritika Bharadwaj as Vaidehi Thakur

Production

The principal photography began in November 2020 at FLAME University in Pune. ^{[9] [10]} The film was wrapped up on 26 January 2021 in Gujarat. ^{[11] [12]} Shooting locations included Bhuj and the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat as well as Ranchi in Jharkhand.

Soundtrack

Rashmi Rocket
Soundtrack album by Amit Trivedi
Released	28 September 2021 [13]
Recorded	2021
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Length	15:07
Language	Hindi
Label	Zee Music Company
Amit Trivedi chronology
Haseen Dillruba (2021) Rashmi Rocket (2021) Maidaan (2022)
Official audio
Rashmi Rocket - Full Album on YouTube

The film's music was composed by Amit Trivedi while lyrics written by Kausar Munir.

Track listing

No.	Title	Singer(s)	Length
1.	"Ghani Cool Chori"	Bhoomi Trivedi	3:35
2.	"Zidd"	Nikhita Gandhi	4:08
3.	"Rann Ma Kutchh"	Swaroop Khan, Mooralala Marwada	3:47
4.	"Zindagi Tere Naam"	Amit Trivedi	3:37
Total length:			15:07

Critical reception

Anna M. M. Vetticad of Firstpost said “Here for a change is a Hindi film that knows how to portray male allies without allowing them to cross the line into male saviour territory. Here for a change is a Hindi film featuring female adversaries sans the all-women-are-enemies-of-women stereotype, and spotting female allies in unexpected places.” ^[14]

Writing for Scroll, Nandini Ramnath said, “Light on its feet and often as fleet as Rashmi, the movie cruises along on the strength of several heart-warming scenes (many of them involving Rashmi’s tough-loving mother Bhanu), a foot-tapping folksy score by Amit Trivedi, and basic insights into the debate over hyperandrogenism that continues to rage in all manner of sport.” ^[15]

Ronak Kotecha of The Times of India gave the film four stars and said, “Nanda Periyasamy’s riveting story, Aniruddha Guha’s sharp screenplay and Akarsh Khurana’s able direction, holds your attention right from the beginning until the end, where the race for justice is played out in a court.” About lead actor Taapsee Pannu, the publication said, “Taapsee Pannu once again proves her mettle, embodying Rashmi’s persona, physically and mentally. Her effort to celebrate Rashmi’s victory and endure her pain, is as real as it gets and the actress doesn’t miss the beat when it comes to making us root for her character.” ^[16]

Shubhra Gupta, in her review of the film in Indian Express, wrote: "When you see Taapsee Pannu’s Rashmi fighting the good fight, for herself and for other athletes who have been done against in similar fashion, you want to cheer. For keeping sporting women on top, and for the very worthy cause." ^[17]

In his review for Cinema Express, critic Avinash Ramachandran wrote: "It is brave of Taapsee to do a film where the battle against the system takes paramount importance, and rightly so." ^[18]

Zee News said in its review that "Akarsh Khurana's Rashmi Rocket has an unconventional storyline that can greatly contribute to conversations around gender equality." ^[19]

In her review for Mashable, Sushri Saha writes, "With strong performances led by Pannu and a well-written screenplay, the film does justice to the issues it raises and challenges." ^[20]

Critic Shomini Sen, in her review for WIONews, wrote that Rashmi Rocket “is an important film. It treads on an unknown track and it shines because of its important message.”

Accolades

Award	Date of the ceremony	Category	Recipients	Result	Ref.
67th Filmfare Awards	30 August 2022	Best Film	Ronnie Screwvala, Neha Anand, Pranjal Khandhdiya	Nominated	[21]
		Best Director	Akarsh Khurana	Nominated
		Best Actress	Taapsee Pannu	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actor	Abhishek Banerjee	Nominated
		Best Story	Nandha Periyasamy	Nominated
		Best Screenplay	Aniruddha Guha	Nominated
		Best Dialogue	Kanika Dhillon	Nominated
		Best Production Design	Durga Prasad Mahapatra	Nominated
		Best Cinematography	Neha Parti Matiyani	Nominated
		Best Costume Design	Rohit Chaturvedi	Nominated
		Best Editing	Anjay Sharma, Shweta Venkat Mathew	Nominated

References

1. "Taapsee Pannu shares a cheerful picture from the sets of 'Rashmi Rocket'". The Times of India. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
2. "TAAPSEE PANNU GIVES 'RASHMI ROCKET' TWIST TO HER LIFE". Mid Day. 17 November 2020. Archived from the original on 28 January 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
3. "Abhishek Banerjee bags a new role in Taapsee Pannu starrer Rashmi Rocket". Bollywood Hungama. 20 October 2020. Archived from the original on 4 December 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
4. "Taapsee Pannu starrer Rashmi Rocket to premiere on ZEE5 on October 15". Bollywood Hungama. 20 September 2021. Archived from the original on 20 September 2021. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
5. Sen, Srijita (7 October 2021). "Rashmi Rocket is Not Dutee Chand's Story, But Tribute to Several Sportswomen: Writer Aniruddha Guha". News18.com . Archived from the original on 8 October 2021. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
6. Movie Rashmi Rocket reminds you of Pinki Pramanic and Dutee Chand Archived 4 November 2021 at the Wayback Machine . Afternoon Voice.
7. "Shweta Tripathi joins Taapsee Pannu's Rashmi Rocket". The Indian Express. 6 July 2021. Archived from the original on 10 July 2021. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
8. "Rashmi Rocket: Taapsee Pannu shares pic with Supriya Pathak giving her a head massage". Hindustan Times. 8 January 2021. Archived from the original on 12 August 2021. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
9. "Taapsee Pannu shares behind-the-scenes photos as she shoots in Pune for Rashmi Rocket". Bollywood Hungama. 15 November 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2020.^{[ dead link ][ failed verification ]}
10. "Rashmi Rocket: Taapsee Pannu wraps up Pune schedule, team gives her a surprise". Mid Day. 17 November 2020. Archived from the original on 4 February 2024. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
11. "Taapsee Pannu wraps up shooting for 'Rashmi Rocket'; pens a heart-touching post". The Times of India. 26 January 2021. Archived from the original on 4 February 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
12. "Taapsee Pannu wraps up Rashmi Rocket, says 'this rocket has left us sky bound'". Bollywood Hungama. 26 January 2021. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
13. "Rashmi Rocket – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Jiosaavn. 27 September 2021. Archived from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
14. Anna MM Vetticad (15 October 2021). "Rashmi Rocket movie review: Taapsee Pannu's role spotlights modern sport's oppressive notion of womanhood". Firstpost. Archived from the original on 15 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
15. Ramnath, Nandini (15 October 2021). "'Rashmi Rocket' review: A hurdle-free sprint to the finish". Scroll.in. Archived from the original on 15 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
16. "Rashmi Rocket Review: This one races ahead with powerful performances", The Times of India, archived from the original on 14 October 2021, retrieved 15 October 2021
17. "Rashmi Rocket movie review: Taapsee Pannu-starrer balances high drama with a rooted story". The Indian Express. 16 October 2021. Archived from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
18. "Rashmi Rocket Movie Review: Effective performances push the film comfortably past the finish line". Cinema Express . Archived from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
19. "Rashmi Rocket review: Taapsee Pannu shines in a melodramatic yet eye-opening story on gender testing". Zee News. 15 October 2021. Archived from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
20. Sahu, Sushri (14 October 2021). "'Rashmi Rocket' Review: Abhishek Banerjee Co-Pilots The Sports/Court Drama Led By Taapsee Pannu To Great Heights". Mashable India. Archived from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
21. "Nominations for the 67th Filmfare Awards 2022 are out; Check the list here". Firstpost. Archived from the original on 19 August 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.

External links

• Rashmi Rocket at IMDb
• Rashmi Rocket at ZEE5
• Rashmi Rocket at Bollywood Hungama