In 1934, cadet Sam Manekshaw is amongst the first batch of gentleman cadets to be trained at theIndian Military Academy, Dehradun; amongst his batchmates is his junior-rival,Tikka Khan. Graduating from the academy that year, he is posted as a second lieutenant to the12th Frontier Force Regiment,Ferozpur. Soon after his appointment, he meets Siloo Bode, whom he later marries. In 1942, during theSecond World War, Manekshaw, promoted to the acting rank of major, is sent with the regiment to participate in theBurma campaign. During theBattle of Sittang Bridge, he is wounded in action but survives and is awarded theMilitary Cross for gallantry.
In 1947, amidst the partition of theBritish Indian Army, Manekshaw is approached to join thePakistan Army by his colleague,Yahya Khan; he chooses theIndian Army instead. Upon independence, discord emanates between the two countries over the sovereignty of Kashmir. In October 1947, Pakistan launches itsmilitary campaign to capture the region. In response, Indian prime ministerJawaharlal Nehru and home ministerVallabhbhai Patel dispatch Manekshaw andV. P. Menon to Kashmir; they succeed in securing the accession of Kashmir to India. India counter-attacks, but the war concludes in a stalemate.
In 1962, theSino-Indian War erupts, leading to the army being trounced by the Chinese; Kaul resigns while Nehru dismisses Menon. On the advice ofIndira Gandhi, Nehru has Manekshaw promoted to lieutenant-general and assigns him as commanding officer of theIV Corps,Tezpur. He proposes an advance, but Nehru, forlorn from defeat, refuses; Indira intercedes in Manekshaw's favour. By 1963, Manekshaw manages to re-rally his troops in theNorth-East Frontier Agency. In 1964, Nehru dies, and Manekshaw is promoted asgeneral officer commanding of theEastern Command; two years later, Indira is appointed prime minister. Between 1965 and 1967, Manekshaw involves himself in the anti-insurgency operations against theMizo National Front, for which he earns thePadma Bhushan.
In 1969, with discord amongst the Bengalis inEast Pakistan rising, Yahya, now a general, is made Pakistan's president; elsewhere, Manekshaw is appointed as the Indian Army's next COAS and promoted to general as well. In 1970, the East Pakistan-basedAwami League sweep Pakistan's general elections, however Yahya refuses to cede power to them, resulting inanti-government protests across Pakistan. In response, Yahya authorises Tikka, now a lieutenant-general, to initiateOperation Searchlight – a massive anti-Bengali pogrom, which he executes with ruthless efficiency. Considering the situation, Indira favours war, but Manekshaw opposes it, highlighting the army's hindrances; she agrees to wait. The U.S. warns Indira against war, but she rebuffs them. The army is mobilized and begins training theMukti Bahini.
On 3 December 1971, Pakistan strikes first, launching pre-emptive attacks on Indian territory. India immediately responds with counter-attacks in Pakistan's western and eastern sectors. The opposing armies witness profound clashes, with Pakistan bearing numerous casualties on land, sea and air in both sectors. By 16 December, the Pakistani troops in the east, overwhelmed, surrender to the Eastern Command – ending the war. The conclusion cedes a political triumph to Indira while Yahya resigns from the humiliation of defeat. With Manekshaw's retirement approaching, Indira has him promoted to the rank of field-marshal in recognition of his wartime leadership, which he proudly accepts in January 1973.[9]
In 2017 Meghna Gulzar narrated the story of the biopic on Sam Manekshaw to Kaushal at the sets ofRaazi which she planned to make her next film. Kaushal impressed by the idea decided that he would play the character.[15] She then went for years of extensive research and writing collaborating with Bhavani Iyer and Shantanu Srivastava, also meeting with family members of Sam Manekshaw.[16][17] The film marks the second collaboration between Gulzar and Kaushal. In 2021, the film was announced byRSVP Movies on the 107th birth anniversary of late Sam Manekshaw.[18][19]
Sam Bahadur was filmed with real Indian army soldiers.[20][21]
In December 2021, Shaikh and Malhotra joined the cast, marking their third collaboration afterDangal andLudo.[22][23] Kabi joined in September 2022 to portray the role ofJawaharlal Nehru marking his second collaboration with Gulzar afterTalvar.[24] Kaushal has gone through extensive training in the army under the guidance of the Indian Army's 6 Sikh Regiment in preparing for his role.[25] Kaushal in an interview withFilm Companion revealed that the character would be his toughest onscreen role to date.[26] The film will not have junior artists and instead real-life army personnel and people from the Defence Force have been cast.[27]
The music of the film was composed byShankar–Ehsaan–Loy while the lyrics are written byGulzar. Background score is composed by Ketan Sodha.[38] The first single titled "Badhte Chalo" was released on 13 November 2023.[39] The second single titled "Banda" released on 22 November 2023.[40][41]
Catherine Bray ofThe Guardian rated the film 3 stars and stated "It's a perennial problem for biopics; how to give events the momentum of fiction when the underlying narrative is fact."[50]
Subhash K. Jha ofTimes Now rated 3.5 stars out of 5, critisied "I am afraid Vicky Kaushal, a reasonably talented actor, is not equal to the task. ... But mimicking the original doesn’t quite amount to a comprehensive character creation."[51]Shubhra Gupta ofThe Indian Express gave a rating 2.5/5 and wrote "It's hard to play a character so closely without becoming a caricature, but Kaushal becomesSam Bahadur."[52]Sukanya Verma ofRediff.com gave a rating of 2.5/5 and wrote, "Nothing that the movie tells isn't already available in the public domain."[53]Mayank Shekhar ofMid-Day expressed "Vicky Kaushal is the last person I’d imagine as playing Manekshaw." Shekhar gave 3 stars to the movie and wrote "The trivia that follows is the film. Messing with no known facts, one bit. Only detailing them as they’re widely known."[54] Anuj Kumar ofThe Hindu stated "The film critiques the relationship between the politicians and the military."[55] Reviewing forHindustan Times, Prannay Pathak spotted the music of the movie is underperforming. Pathak wrote "The film’s music is loud, distracting and unmelodious (the war anthem Badhte Chalo is unbelievably insipid and inelegant), which is surprising considering Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s obvious musical prowess and the trio’s last fabulous collaboration with Gulzar, Raazi."[56] Anusha Sundar forThe New Indian Express reviewed and wrote "Sam Bahadur is unfortunately apathetic to both its protagonist and the audience."[57] Devesh Sharma ofFilmfare rated the movie 3.5/5 stars and observed "Vicky Kaushal channels his inner Dev Anand to play the title character."[58]
Nandini Ramnath ofScroll.in observed "The greatest hits approach leans on recorded history rather than compelling fiction for dramatic momentum."[59] Pratikshya Mishra ofThe Quint commented "Sam Bahadur is relegated to the ranks of a simple biography."[60] Tatsam Mukherjee ofThe Wire stated "Sam Bahadur is a painfully ‘safe’ film that is in much awe of its protagonist..."[61]
Writing a review forRediff.com,Lieutenant GeneralSyed Ata Hasnain praised Meghna Gulzar's effort and stated "You have to grant it to Meghna's research team and those sourcing military hardware for the film."[62]
On its first day, the film collected₹6.25 crore, the second day₹9 crore and the third day₹10.30 crore. The film has earned₹110.69 crore (US$13 million) in India and₹17.48 crore (US$2.0 million) in overseas for a worldwide gross collection of₹128.17 crore (US$15 million).[5][63][64]
