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Secret Superstar is a 2017 Indian musical drama film written and directed by Advait Chandan, and produced by Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao under the studio Aamir Khan Productions. for The film stars Zaira Wasim, Aamir Khan, Meher Vij and Raj Arjun. The film tells the coming-of-age story of a teenage girl who aspires to be a singer, uploading videos on YouTube while disguising her identity with a niqab, and her relationships with her mother, father and mentor. The film deals with social issues including feminism, gender equality and domestic violence. This marks the penultimate film of Wasim's career in Indian cinema.
The film received overall positive reviews from critics. Wasim won the National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement. Secret Superstar received ten nominations at the 63rd Filmfare Awards, including Best Film, Best Director for Chandan, Best Actress for Wasim, and Best Supporting Actor for Khan. It won three Filmfare Awards, including Best Actress (Critics) for Wasim, Best Supporting Actress for Vij, and Best Playback Singer (Female) for Meghna Mishra. The film serves as the second collaboration between Wasim and Khan following Dangal (2016).
Secret Superstar became one of the most profitable films of all time, grossing () worldwide on a Low-budget film of , with over % return on investment (ROI). The film is also the highest-grossing Indian film featuring a female protagonist, the highest-grossing 2017 Hindi film, the seventh highest-grossing Hindi film of all-time and the second highest-grossing Indian film overseas. In China, it is the fifth highest-grossing foreign film of 2018, and the second highest-grossing non-English foreign film ever (after Dangal).
She records a song wearing a niqab, so Farookh can't find out her identity, and uploads the video on YouTube under the name of 'Secret Superstar' using the laptop gifted by Najma. She becomes an overnight sensation and grabs the attention of Shakti Kumar, a talented but pretentious music director based in Mumbai. He requests Insia to record a song, but she refuses as she hears a lot of negative things about him. Due to her poor academic grades, Farookh rips out all the strings from her guitar.
The next night, after discovering that Najma sold a valuable necklace to buy Insia's laptop, Farookh thrashes her and tells Insia to throw out the laptop. Insia gets so angry that she snatches the laptop and drops it from the balcony where it falls and shatters on the street. After fleeing from school to record a song for Kumar, she is unable to sing a certain party song. Insia tells this to Kumar who reveals that it is a remix. He tells her about the original version which was launched ten years ago. After singing the original song, her fame grows and she is nominated for the Best Female Singer. Insia persuades Kumar to arrange a meeting with his ex-wife's lawyer. The lawyer prepares divorce papers for Najma to sign, and gives them to Insia.
Insia gives her mother divorce papers to sign, but her mother angrily rejects Insia's demand that her parents divorce. Insia becomes frustrated with her mother, but later forgives her, after her grandmother reveals how Najma struggled to keep Insia alive. Farookh is offered a job in Riyadh and he makes it known to Insia that he plans to marry her off to his friend's son. Devastated, Insia gives up her dream of singing and deletes her YouTube channel. Farookh confirms their departure on the last day of Insia's exams.
At the airport, Farookh spots Insia's guitar case. Unwilling to pay the extra fee for the case, he demands that Insia throw the guitar in the nearest trash can. After initially holding back her emotions, Najma finally stands up for herself and boldly protests. She angrily warns Farookh that should he lay hands on her or her kids, he will face severe consequences and even lose his job in Riyadh. Najma then unpacks the divorce papers, signs them, and thrusts them into Farookh's hands. Najma says her goodbyes to Farookh's mother (Insia and Guddu's grandmother) and storms out of the airport with her kids in tow leaving Farookh as he tries to beg Najma and Insia for forgiveness. Najma borrows a stranger's cell phone and asks Insia to contact Kumar. All three ultimately end up at the awards ceremony where Insia has been nominated for Best Female Singer. Unfortunately, Insia does not win the award. But the winner, Monali Thakur, graciously offers Insia her award believing she rightfully deserved it. Kumar stands up and calls attention to Insia's presence in the audience. Once onstage, Insia reveals her true identity and dedicates her award to her mother and proclaims her the true 'Secret Superstar' since Najma supported and fought for Insia even before her birth.
The screen fades to a message dedicating the movie "To Mothers And Motherhood." Later, Shakti kumar releases a cheesy party song on YouTube dedicated to Insia.
During the third season of Satyamev Jayate, the first episode narrated the success story of ten year old Shubham Jaglan, son of a milkman and the youngest golf champion of India. Shubham revealed that he learned 60 per cent of Golf through YouTube videos. The story of Shubham further helped Advait Chandan in the development of his film Secret Superstar. Advait says that, "I feel like the middle class is really getting affected by the internet. I never went to film school, but I can sit here and watch a lesson on Stanley Kubrick's camera movements, for example. The internet is empowering the middle class in a way that really needed to be captured on film. That was the umbrella idea—a mother and daughter in middle-class, small-town India getting empowered by this amazing tool that is giving platform to talent."
In July 2015 it was reported that Aamir Khan shall be collaborating with his manager Advait Chandan and music composer A. R. Rahman for a film that was initially titled Aaj Phir Jeene Ki Tamanna Hai. In late April 2016, the title of the film was said to be Secret Superstar. A.R. Rahman later opted out of the film, citing schedule conflicts. He was replaced by Amit Trivedi.
The principal photography of the film commenced on 1 September 2016. The film is shot in Vadodara and Mumbai.
The film was produced with a Low-budget film. Most sources state the production budget is . Rob Cain gives the film's total production and marketing budget as . Box Office India gives its budget as , but it is not known if this includes marketing costs.
Secret Superstars China premiere was in Beijing on 16 January 2018, and was attended by director Advait Chandan, actress Zaira Wasim, and singer Meghna Mishra. Khan could not attend, but planned to visit China shortly after the film's release. The premiere was also attended by Chinese filmmakers such as Peter Chan, Tsai Yueh Hsun, Daming Chen, and Zhang Jiajia, and Chinese actors such as the Luu Brothers. The film's reception at the premiere was positive, which includes Hong Kong filmmaker Peter Chan calling it his second-favourite Indian film after 3 Idiots (2009), and writer-director Zhang Jiajia being impressed with the film's theme of empowering women to pursue their dreams. Upon release, the film was promoted with a manhua comic featuring Aamir Khan with the same title as the film.
Khan began his tour of China on 22 January 2018, and was greeted by film star Deng Chao upon arrival. He visited Shanghai, where he was welcomed by large crowds of fans. He then visited Beijing, where he attended the "Red Carpet for Aamir Khan and His Friends" event with Chandan and Wasim, then the Chinese-Indian Film Forum, and the film's press conference. The Chinese-Indian Film Forum, held by CCTV, was attended by a number of Chinese directors, stars, and film critics, including Yu Baimei and Hong Kong filmmaker Stanley Tong, as well as former Olympic champion Liu Guoliang with whom Khan played a competitive ping pong (table tennis) match. Khan was also greeted by actor-singer Huang Bo, as well as other film stars including Liu Yifei and Jackie Chan in video messages.
The film's worldwide gross was by 31 October 2017, and then by 18 January 2018 prior to its China release. Compared to its limited budget, Secret Superstar became one of the most profitable films of all time. Following its China release on 19 January 2018, it grossed more than worldwide by 15 February 2018, on a budget of , over % return on investment (ROI), one of the highest of all time. In comparison, only two films have exceeded $6,000% ROI at the US box office, Paranormal Activity (2009) and The Gallows (2015).
It is the highest-grossing 2017 Hindi film, and the third-highest-grossing Hindi film of all time, behind only Dangal (2016) and Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015). It is also the fourth-highest-grossing Indian film of all time, behind only Dangal, (2017) and Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015), after surpassing Aamir Khan's own PK (2014). With Secret Superstar, Aamir Khan has become the only Indian actor with four films in the 500-crore club, after Dhoom 3 (2013), PK, and Dangal (2016), as well as the only Indian actor with three grossers, after PK and Dangal. Secret Superstar grossed worldwide by 27 February 2018.
| India | Net income | 5,087,000 |
| China | () | 24,884,000 |
| Hong Kong | () | ,000 |
| South Korea | ($69,323) | 10,758 |
| Russia | US$6,682 () | |
| United States and Canada | () | ,000 |
| Arab States of the Persian Gulf (GCC) | ,000 | |
| Taiwan | NT$26.2million (US$900,000) | 114,505 |
| United Kingdom | Pound sterling628,000 | 82,491 |
| Turkey | US$468,276 () | 162,567 |
| European Union | 9,261 | |
| Australia | A$294,096 US$212,844 () | ,000 |
As of 28 January 2018, its domestic gross is , including a nett , with footfalls of 5.1million audiences. It was declared a hit at the Indian box office, and is domestically one of 2017's five most commercially successful Bollywood films, along with Tiger Zinda Hai, Golmaal Again, Raees, and Badrinath Ki Dulhania.
In Taiwan, where it released on 24 November 2017, the film grossed US$285,000 () in five days, which is 77% of the amount that Dangal grossed in its first five days there, as of 29 November 2017. The film entered at number three on the Taiwan box office charts. Seventeen days after release, Secret Superstar grossed in Taiwan, where it crossed US$815,000 () by 19 December 2017, increasing the film's overseas gross to . As of 28 January 2018, the film's Taiwan gross is NT$26.2million, equivalent to (US$900,000). Excluding China, the film has grossed in other overseas territories as of 28 January 2018.
During its opening weekend in China, the film's overseas gross reached by 21 January 2018. It established Aamir Khan as the only Indian actor with five films crossing overseas, after 3 Idiots (2009), Dhoom 3 (2013), PK (2014), and Dangal (2016). During its opening weekend in China, Secret Superstar emerged as the weekend's highest-grossing film in a single international market, and the second-highest-grossing film overall at the worldwide box office, behind only (in 93 markets), and above other Hollywood films such as , , and . In its second weekend, Secret Superstar remained the second-highest-grossing film at the international box office, behind Maze Runner and ahead of Jumanji. By 8 February 2018, Secret Superstar grossed overseas, establishing Aamir Khan as the only Indian actor with two overseas grossers. It is the highest-grossing 2017 Indian film overseas, surpassing Tiger Zinda Hai and , and the second-highest-grossing Indian film ever overseas, surpassing PK and behind only Dangal.
Secret Superstars opening weekend gross was (), after its show count rose from 56,000 screenings on Friday to 63,000 on Sunday. It topped the Chinese box office in its opening weekend, despite crowded competition, from Chinese films such as Forever Young and A Better Tomorrow 2018 as well as Hollywood films such as Ferdinand, Wonder, and . Secret Superstars opening weekend gross in China more than doubled its lifetime gross in India. It set the record for the highest opening weekend gross for an Indian film in China, surpassing Dangal, and is the second Indian film in less than a year to top the Chinese box office, after Dangal. Secret Superstar also became the second-highest-grossing Indian film in China, surpassing PK and behind only Dangal. Secret Superstars weekend gross in China is also the highest single-territory weekend gross for a 2017 Hindi film, surpassing the opening-weekend India gross of Tiger Zinda Hai () and the Hindi version of Baahubali 2: The Conclusion ().
In four days, the film grossed $33million () in China. On its fifth day, its daily show count increased to over 64,000 screenings, and it gained a 33.7% market share of the Chinese box office. In six days, the film grossed $43million, surpassing the lifetime China gross of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Secret Superstars first-week gross in China was $47.1million (), a record for an Indian film and surpassing the first-week gross of Avatar (2009) in China. On its second Friday, new Hollywood release took the top spot, before Secret Superstar regained the top spot on Sunday, grossing $20million in its second weekend. It crossed the milestone within nine days, and beat Maze Runner to top the weekly box office with $41million, giving a cume of $70million grossed in ten days by 28 January 2018, compared to Dangal which grossed in two weeks. Secret Superstar grossed $77million in 13 days, surpassing the lifetime China gross of Dwayne Johnson starrer Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle to become China's highest-grossing foreign film in the first quarter of 2018. In two weeks, Secret Superstar grossed $80million.
It topped the box office again in its third weekend with $12 million, beating seven new releases, including Hugh Jackman starrer The Greatest Showman, Chinese films Till the End of The World and , and Japanese film Miracles of the Namiya General Store. Secret Superstar also topped the weekly chart again with $26 million, giving a cume of $96million grossed in 17 days by 4 February 2018. The film remained at the top of the box office in its fourth weekend with $8.7million, and it topped the weekly box office again with $19million. As of 18 February 2018, the film's China gross is $124.4million (), from an audience of 25million viewers. It was China's third-highest-grossing film in the first quarter of 2018, behind only two domestic productions, and one of the top 70 highest-grossing films ever in China. It also surpassed Japanese anime film Your Name to become the second-highest-grossing non-English foreign film ever in China, after Dangal, and the third-highest-grossing non-English foreign film in any market, after Dangal in China and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) in North America. Secret Superstar was also the highest-grossing foreign film in China during the first quarter of 2018, ahead of Hollywood films including Black Panther, , Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Tomb Raider, Maze Runner: The Death Cure and Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
In four days, the film grossed HK$6,059,989, equivalent to . In ten days, the film grossed HK$8,953,60, equivalent to . In 12days, the film grossed HK$9.07million, equivalent to . By its third week, the film had grossed HK$11,470,497, equivalent to . By its fourth week, the film had grossed HK$12,016,153, equivalent to . In 26 days, as of 6 May 2018, the film grossed , equivalent to . As of 7 September 2018, the film grossed , equivalent to ().
Mike McCahill of ''[[The Guardian]]'' gave the film a rating of 4 out of 5 stars and praised the film by saying that "This is first-class entertainment, the best imaginable antidote to the toxicity presently leaking out of western movie circles." Meena Iyer of ''The Times of India'' gave the film a rating of 4 stars out of 5 and said that, "If your world revolves around your mother, you're going to root for this film."
Rajeev Masand gave the film a rating of 3.5 stars out of 5 describing it as "an inspiring journey towards empowerment, a case for pursuing one's passion against all odds, a testament to the deep mother-daughter bond, and a convincing depiction of teenage years." He praised the performances of the actors with a special mention for the lead actress Zaira Wasim saying "Standing tall amidst a pitch-perfect ensemble, is Zaira Wasim as Insiya, who comes off as something of an old soul trapped in a teenager's body. Wise beyond her years, she is riveting on screen, in the manner in which she appears to sing using her entire being, or the little moments of crushing disappointment and excitement that are reflected on the canvas that is her expressive face."
Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV said Secret Superstar "is a bit like an over-enthusiastic child gifted a new bicycle. It never takes the foot off the pedal. The overlong film could have done with more restraint. It frequently seems to get carried away by the urge not to miss any trick in the book." However, he praised the performances of its actors, saying, "Zaira is an absolute treat—a bundle of miracles! As for the wonderful Meher Vij, one can only ask: where was she all these years? We hope to see more of her on the big screen." He concluded that " Secret Superstar is a winner notwithstanding the bumps along the way." Raja Sen of NDTV gave the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and said, "Aamir Khan has a blast in this sweet and simple film about a young girl who dares to dream."
Rohit Vats of Hindustan Times gave the film a rating of 3 stars out of 5. He highlighted the positive aspects of the film saying that, " Secret Superstars biggest asset is Aamir Khan. His comedy despite being slapstick in nature, is worth noticing. Zaira Wasim lives up to the expectations and the film has a message." and the negative aspect of the film as well saying that, " Secret Superstar has everything you ask for, but it isn't exceptional storytelling. If there is one thing that can be blamed for it, it's the overt melodrama."
Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express praised the acting performances and the first half of the movie saying that, "The biggest strength of Secret Superstar is the wonderful Wasim who was also in Dangal. Both Vij as the mother and Arjun as the father are terrific, especially the latter, who doesn't put a foot wrong." but she wasn't impressed with the second half of the film and said that, "The second half slides. The confidence that the narrative shows in the beginning begins to waver as it includes contrivances and predictable curves." She gave the film a rating of 2.5 stars out of 5.
In China, the film also received critical acclaim. Chinese newspaper People's Daily, for example, praised the film for "touching the soul". In Hong Kong, Nicola Chan of South China Morning Post rated the film 4 out of 5 stars. She called it a "crowd-pleaser that explores the sacred mother-daughter bond" and praised the performances of Khan, Wasim and Vij. Richard James Havis of South China Morning Post also rated it 4 out of 5 stars. He called it "a tough story about domestic abuse and female empowerment" and noted "India's energetic and freewheeling style of cinema can offer a new way of telling a story," such as the "idea of having Insia – who does not usually wear a burka – don the garment to disguise herself when she performs on YouTube is very clever, in the sense it's a reasonable way for her to solve her problem of anonymity."
| 16 November 2017 | National Child Awards | Exceptional Achievement | Zaira Wasim (also for Dangal) | ||
| 4 December 2017 | Screen Awards | Most Promising Newcomer – Female | Zaira Wasim (also for Dangal) | rowspan="2" | |
| Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Female | Meher Vij (jointly with Neha Dhupia for Tumhari Sulu) | ||||
| Most Promising Debut Director | Advait Chandan | ||||
| 30 December 2017 | Zee Cine Awards | Best Actor – Female (Viewer's Choice) | Zaira Wasim | rowspan="2" | |
| Best Actor – Female (Jury's Choice) | |||||
| Best Film (Viewer's Choice) | Secret Superstar | rowspan="2" | |||
| Best Film (Jury's Choice) | |||||
| Best Writing | Advait Chandan | rowspan="2" | |||
| Best Director | |||||
| Most Promising Director | Advait Chandan | rowspan="4" | |||
| Best Music Director | Amit Trivedi | ||||
| Best Actress in Supporting Role | Meher Vij | ||||
| Best Actor in a Negative Role | Raj Arjun | ||||
| Best Playback Singer – Female | Meghna Mishra (for the song "Main Kaun Hoon") | rowspan="2" | |||
| Best Lyricist | Kausar Munir (for the song "Main Kaun Hoon") | ||||
| 20 January 2018 | Filmfare Awards | Best Film | Secret Superstar | ||
| Best Director | Advait Chandan | rowspan="2" | |||
| Best Screenplay | |||||
| Best Actress | Zaira Wasim | ||||
| Best Actress (Critics) | Zaira Wasim | ||||
| Best Supporting Actor | Aamir Khan | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | Meher Vij | rowspan="2" | |||
| Best Playback Singer – Female | Meghna Mishra (for the song "Nachdi Phira") | ||||
| Best Music Album | Amit Trivedi | rowspan="2" | |||
| Best Lyrics | Kausar Munir (for the song "Nachdi Phira") | ||||
| 24 January 2018 | Lions Gold Awards | Best Supporting Actor (Male/Female) | Meher Vij | ||
| 28 January 2018 | Mirchi Music Awards | Upcoming Female Vocalist of The Year | Meghna Mishra (for the song "Main Kaun Hoon") | ||
| Meghna Mishra (for the song "Meri Pyaari Ammi") | |||||
| Meghna Mishra (for the song "Nachdi Phira") | |||||
| Album of The Year | Amit Trivedi, Kausar Munir | ||||
| 6 March 2018 | Bollywood Film Journalists Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Meher Vij | ||
| Best Male Debut | Tirth Sharma | ||||
| Best Music Director | Amit Trivedi | ||||
| Best Playback Singer – Female | Meghna Mishra (for the song "Nachdi Phira") | ||||
| Meghna Mishra (for the song "Main Kaun Hoon") | |||||
| Best Lyrics | Kausar Munir (for the song "Main Kaun Hoon") | ||||
| 20 March 2018 | News18 Reel Movie Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Meher Vij | ||
| Best Playback Singer – Female | Meghna Mishra (for the song "Nachdi Phira") | ||||
| Best Actress | Zaira Wasim | ||||
| Best Screenplay | Advait Chandan | ||||
| Best Sound | Amit Trivedi | ||||
| 22 June 2018 | International Indian Film Academy Awards | Best Playback Singer – Female | Meghna Mishra (for the song "Main Kaun Hoon") | ||
| Best Actress | Zaira Wasim | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | Meher Vij | ||||
| 10 August 2018 | Indian Film Festival of Melbourne | Best Film | Secret Superstar | ||
| Best Director | Advait Chandan | ||||
| Best Actress | Zaira Wasim | ||||
| Best Supporting Performance (Male/Female) | Meher Vij |
The film, along with previous Aamir Khan successes such as Dangal, has driven up the buyout prices of Indian film imports for Chinese distributors. The success of Dangal and Secret Superstar contributed towards Salman Khan's Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015) securing a wide release in China, along with Irrfan Khan's Hindi Medium (2017) getting a release in the country.
As with previous Aamir Khan films such as 3 Idiots and Dangal, Secret Superstars social themes such as feminism and domestic violence are universal issues that resonated with Chinese audiences, many of whom could relate to the film's themes. According to Maoyan, the film's audiences were about 57% female and 43% male, and the majority were in the 20–34 age group. Secret Superstar has reportedly influenced an increase in Chinese women calling police for help with domestic violence.
Secret Superstar contributed towards the Chinese market's growth in early 2018, along with domestic productions. Secret Superstars gross dwarfed every Hollywood film released in the first two months, including , , and . Secret Superstar also contributed towards China setting the record for the highest-grossing month ever in any territory during February 2018, when Secret Superstar (rather than Hollywood) was the strongest foreign presence among several dominant domestic Chinese New Year productions.
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