Mumbai, Oct 13 (PTI) Anurag Kashyap's "Mukkabaaz"kicked off the 19th edition of Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festivalhere and opened with resounding chants of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai'amidst applause.
The film chronicles the story of a boxer from UttarPradesh, Shravan Singh, enacted by Vineet Kumar Singh, whofalls in love with a Brahmin girl.
Things take a turn when he lands a punch on head ofboxing federation and politician-gangster, Bhagwan Das, playedby Jimmy Shergill.
The film then sets out on the journey of the underdog,who fights a corrupt system and deep-rooted casteism to pursuehis boxing dreams and win over the love of his life.
Before the premiere at the iconic Liberty Cinema herelast night, Kashyap said he was "nervous" and thanked producerAanand L Rai and Eros Now.
"I am dying to see how everybody reacts to it becausewe have tried to make the film under the radar. The one man Iwant to thank is Aanand Rai and Eros. They gave me totalfreedom to do what I wanted to do. They didn't tell meanything, except 'go ahead.' I hope I don't let my producersand exhibitors down," he said.
In the movie, Kashyap bravely draws references to some ofthe biggest headlines of the past few years - from moblynching to 'gau rakshaks', with the opening scene itselfbeginning with a man tied to tree, supposedly a cow trader,beaten up by men who ask him to chant 'Jai Shri Ram'.
The venue was packed with the audience hooting andclapping at regular intervals throughout the two-and-a-halfhour runtime of the film.
After the closing credits rolled, Kashyap, along with thecast and crew, went onto the stage to thank the audience.
They were then greeted with continuous applause andeven chants of "Bharat Mata ki Jai" from the audience - inreference to a scene from the film when Shravan chants thesame while beating the baddie.
The movie also features Zoya Hussain, Ravi Kissan,Sadhana Singh among others.
"Mukkabaaz" is scheduled to release theatrically inJanuary. PTI JUR GKRDS.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.