Ground Zero Review

Movies based on legendary personalities or real-life incidents are not new to Indian audiences. There were quite a few films made across film industries in the past. However, this trend has risen in Bollywood over the last few years. So far this year, four Hindi films(i.e. Emergency, Sky Force, Chhaava, Kesari Chapter 2) have been released based on real-life incidents and personalities. Continuing the trend, Emraan Hashmi’s ‘Ground Zero’ was released today in theatres. The film is based on the operation that was led by BSF officer Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey in which the terrorist Rana Tahir Nadeem Aka Ghazi Baba was killed. Did Emraan Hashmi score a much-needed hit at the box office after a long time? Did the director, Tejas Prabha Vijay Deoskar deliver an emotionally charged action thriller film? Let’s figure it out with a detailed analysis.

What is it about?

Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey(Emraan Hashmi), Second-in-Command of the Border Security Force(BSF) in Kashmir Valley manages to get a lead in finding the most wanted terrorist, Ghazi Baba(Rockey Raina), with the help of Husain(Mir Mehrooz), a poor student studying in a local college. Though the lead he finds is right, his operation along with the Intelligence Bureau officers from Delhi fails due to the last-minute plan change by the terrorists. How did Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey eventually find and kill Ghazi Baba? What challenges did Narendra Nath face during the operation? Forms the rest of the story.

Performances:

Emraan Hashmi in the role of Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey did well, especially in the emotional sequences but an actor of Akshkay Kumar or Ajay Devgn’s stature would have added more weight to the role. Sai Tamhankar as Jaya Dubey is the show stealer. She performed very well and undoubtedly she is a best-performed actor in the film.

Mukesh Tiwari & Rahul Vohra in the roles of BSF and IB bosses were loud and annoying at times. Zoya Hussain as Aadila is just ok. Mir Mehrooz in the role of Husain did well. Emotional sequences involving him worked well.

Technicalities:

The background score by John Stewart Eduri is good. His work during the climax portion stands out. The cinematography by Kamaljeet Negi is good. He did capture the picturesque locales of Kashmir very well with his camera. Editing by Chandrashekhar Prajapati could have been better, especially in the first half. Dialogues written by Sanchit Gupta and Priyadarshee Srivastava deserve a special mention.

Positives:

1.⁠ ⁠Climax
2.⁠ ⁠Thought Provoking Dialogues
3.⁠ ⁠Balanced Approach In Dealing With A Sensitive Topic

Negatives:

1.⁠ ⁠Slow Pace
2.⁠ ⁠Documentary Style Execution
3.⁠ ⁠Lack of Strong Emotional Connect

Analysis:

The terrorist attack at Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir this week where twenty-six tourists were killed tells us that the war against terrorism is far from over. People across the country are mourning the loss of the twenty-six innocent civilians and the government is determined to punish the culprits at any cost. Emraan Hashmi’s ‘Ground Zero’ is based on one such terror attack and it also shows the bravery of our border security forces. The film was released at a time when the entire country was consuming a lot of news about terror attacks & national security and riding high on emotions.

The good thing about Ground Zero is that the director, Tejas Prabha Vijay Deoskar, tried to narrate the story as balanced as possible. He neither took sides(i.e. Hindu or Muslim) nor filled the movie with slow-motion shots of Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey to elevate the heroism. Also, he did not take too many cinematic liberties to induce goosebumps driven by patriotism. Right from the start until pre-climax, the director executed the film as realistic as possible.

‘We treat this land(Kashmir) as ours but do we treat the people of this land(Kashmir) as our people’, asks Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey to his colleague during a crucial and impactful sequence in the film. The answer to the aforementioned question from Narendra may vary from person to person but as an audience in the theatre watching the film, we immediately start answering the question in our minds. The director and his writing team need to be appreciated for conceiving a few thought-provoking sequences in the film.

The climax portion where Narendra and two of his colleagues go on a mission to capture and kill Ghazi Baba stands out. It was shot superbly and the patriotic angle along with the terrific background score worked very well. However, apart from the climax portion, the entire movie runs at a slow pace. Also, in the quest of making the film as realistic as possible, the director stayed away from over-dramatization which is a mandatory requisite for this genre of films.

Overall, you may give, Ground Zero, a try for a very well-executed climax, and a few well-written sequences & dialogues. And, also to know the bravery and determination of Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey, Second-in-Command of the Border Security Force(BSF) and his team. Films like ‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’ in 2019 and now, Ground Zero in 2025, celebrate the minor ‘battles’ that were won in the past against terrorism but the ‘war’ against terrorism is still on.

Ground Zero – Partially Engaging

Rating – 2.5/5