Top critic
Rediff
Film review ·
10.0
Haider is one of the most powerful political films we've ever made, a bonafide masterpiece that throbs with intensity and purpose
Haider
out of 10
Recommendedmost critics liked it
Monk Score · 32 scored reviews · 9 not ratedA bold, deeply felt Kashmir tragedy carried by Bhardwaj and a fearless Shahid Kapoor.
Verdict tier Recommended, most critics liked it, on a scale of Unfavorable, Mixed, Recommended, Exceptional.
- Praised: performances and Bhardwaj's direction
- Criticised: uneven pacing and excessive length
Audience
User score 8.3 out of 10 from 53 ratings, Exceptional
Read 9 audience reviews ↓Not streaming in India
Top cast
Critic consensus
What 36 critics are saying
Critical reception for Haider is strongly positive, with the large majority of reviewers recommending it as a rare and accomplished piece of Indian cinema. Critics most consistently praised Vishal Bhardwaj's direction, the ensemble performances — particularly from Shahid Kapoor, Tabu, and Kay Kay Menon — and the film's unforgettable climax and evocative use of the Kashmir setting. The most common criticism across reviews was pacing, with several critics noting sluggishness in the first half and a dip in the second half, while a handful of dissenters felt the film never cohered into more than the sum of its impressive parts and risked alienating mainstream audiences.
How the 32 scores spread
9 not-rated reviews aren't plotted
Positive / mixed / negative reviews
Positive = 6.5/10 and up · negative = below 5/10
AI-generated summary of 36 critic reviews · may contain errors
Report inaccuracyFrom the papers
Critic reviews (41)
Top critics first, then by score · not-rated last · updated
Top critic
Hindustan Times
Film review ·
7.0At the heart of Haider is the love between a passionate, complex woman who seeks a sliver of happiness amidst overwhelming circumstances, and her son, who both loves her with an unnatural intensity and hates her for her betrayal of his father. Vishal handles the Oedipal undertones with exquisite daring and understanding. This relationship powers the film. Haider must be seen for this alone.
Top critic
IBNLive
Film review ·
7.0A few such hiccups aside, Haider is an elegant, thrilling film that casts a brave, unflinching eye on the Kashmir struggle. In deviating from the original ending of Hamlet, it also makes a necessary point about the cyclical nature of revenge and violence. Its deliberate pacing may not work for all, but this is a solid, well-acted movie that deserves your time.
Top critic
Indian Express
Film review ·
4.0I doubt if I will be able to forget the stunning visuals which dot the film, but the sum is never more than its terrific parts. The craggy old gravediggers in a scene that soars, and the truest character of the film, Haider's father ( played by Jha), channel the continuing tragedy that is Kashmir. As do the lovely `kani' shawls flung over the shoulders of the characters, the wispy steam rising from the `kahwa' cups, the conflicted tears that flow out of Tabu's eyes . If only they had a film to match.
SKJBollywoodNews
Film review ·
10.0Vishal Bhardawaj's third Shakespearean sojourn is his best yet.Haider is like a painting viewed from the road inside an art gallery…distant yet vivid,unforgettable layered lifelike and yet exquisitely poetic.
KoiMoi
Film review ·
9.0Haider is an unforgettable film that never fumbles, never stumbles, and is so sure of itself that it cannot go wrong. From Shahid to Tabu to Kay Kay to the powerful cameo of Irrfan, everything in the film works. It's a Guztaq film that audaciously breaks every rule in the book, everything that you could have expected from it and ends up being that edgy watch which you'll savor, while you watch it from the edge of seats. Haider is Chutzpah and inkeeping with the same vein, I will rate this film the highest I have ever gone with a movie.
Mid-Day
Film review ·
9.0As you watch the beauty of the valley wide-eyed, you can almost smell the Gulmohar in the air and touch the icy waters of Jhelum.The second half dips a bit before it picks up again with an unforgettable climax. Please watch this film. It has chutzpah (Haider's favourite word for obvious reasons) and a lot of soul too.
Bollyspice
Film review ·
8.0Haider is an experience which needs to be watched by audiences all over for it's cinematography, directing, performances and as an accomplished adaptation of a literary classic. Encore team and cast of Haider, Encore!
Deccan Chronicle
Film review ·
8.0The pace slumps a little in the second half, but the slack is short-lived. By then the director's craft has hypnotised you enough to overlook the slips. Considering Hamlet, with all its complexity, is certainly not an easy adaptation to venture into — that alone could well make this Vishal's finest film yet.
Glamsham
Film review ·
8.0Watching Vishal Bharadwaj's HAIDER is like watching a classical concert on stage with 'live' musicians. There's a Violin, Viola and Cello (all stringed instruments from the same family); all these instruments perform in perfect harmony. A flute renders its soulful melody whilst a piano pitches in perfectly to sync in harmony with the rest of the orchestra.
Hindustan Times
Film review ·
8.0Watch the film for Vishal Bhardwaj's direction, dialogues and touching acting prowess that almost everyone in Haider shows. Skip it if an intense, disturbing film is not your cup of tea or if entertainment is what you seek at movie theatres.
NDTV
Film review ·
8.0With scintillating performances by almost all the actors and music which can give you goosebumps, Vishal Bhardwaj has literally created magic on screen. Shahid Kapoor, Tabu, Kay Kay Menon, Irrfan Khan as well as Narendra Jha have delivered scintillating performances, which keep you hooked to the plot from the word go.
NowRunning
Film review ·
8.0It isn't everyone's cup of tea. The body count is extremely high (there are more corpses above ground than there are buried below it) and the film is dark and edgy to the point of excluding people. It is, after all, a Shakespearean tragedy. If this doesn't interest you, you might want to look elsewhere for a "Bang" for your buck. On the other hand, if this is your kind of cinema, you won't find a better way to spend 3 hours of your life.
Rediff
Film review ·
8.0Haider is bewitchingly clever...And it will haunt you long after you've left the theatre...
The Navhind Times
Film review ·
8.0Haider is eminently worth a watch. Above everything else, it has the chutzpah.
Times Of India
Film review ·
8.0Sometimes, Haider wanders - elaborate background music frames some scenes too richly while the second half could've been tighter. But these are tiny ripples on this filmi lake. For the most, Haider is superb, witty, violent, tragic - magic. To see or not to see is no dilemma here. Don't miss Haider - he's got chutzpah like none other.
Wogma
Film review ·
8.0After having seen films week-after-week and knowing there are so many more to be seen out there, very few inspire you to watch it again. And even fewer because each department played its role very close to perfection. Vishal Bharadwaj's Haider is one of those rare ones. Yes, I will certainly watch this one again. Soon.
Zee News
Film review ·
8.0After watching 'Haider', all that can be said is that — It is a perfect example of how many have suffered in the Valley and are just left with the question— 'To be or not to be'!
Bollywood Life
Film review ·
7.0Haider is not just another movie but a brilliant cinematic experience that is beyond melodrama and unrealistic fantasies and typical Bollywood cliches. If you have an appetite for tragedy and revenge dramas, this one cannot be skipped.
BookMyShow
Film review ·
7.0Haider is packed with memorable scenes and an underlying message, which stays with you long after you have left the cinema hall. The director treats the topic of political unrest in Kashmir nicely, and tries not to take sides. Yet the movie is not overtly sentimental and delves into the psyche of the characters and the effect the war has on them. This movie has a few minor pitfalls here and there, but otherwise it is a wonderful effort by Bhardwaj, and deserves to be watched.
DNA India
Film review ·
7.0No matter what and how small the faults in the film, it deserves an audience. To experience a film that is so mesmerising that it will stay with you forever, even if it is in bits and pieces.
IANS
Film review ·
7.0"Haider" is a well made film complimented with dramatic performances, strong script and fine music. Don't miss this one.
India Today
Film review ·
7.0Haider may seem a bit sluggish in the first half and slightly long. However, it makes up for most of it in the dramatic, intense climax that you are treated to towards the end. Haider is definitely a film you should not miss.
India Today
Film review ·
7.0I will definitely recommend Haider, it's a sure shot winner! Vishal Bhardwaj impresses once again! The only problem with Haider is it's length of 2 hours and 40 minutes, it could have been much shorter with as much impact. Music by Vishal Bhardwaj is right for the film but not great, like it been in the past.
Sify
Film review ·
7.0Bhardwaj and co-writer Basharat Peer (who authored the book Curfewed Night based on the Kashmir conflict) give us a film that leaves you in its spell long after. And if you can overlook certain blemishes, you'll be happy to be mesmerized!
Daily Bhaskar
Film review ·
6.0If you are amongst those cinema fans, who wait for a good movie, and typical Bollywood masala is not your cup of tea, then Haider is the film for you. It is cinema on canvas.
FilmiBeat
Film review ·
6.0A truly touching story that en-captures the saga of Hamlet in the best way possible. The climax is one of the best in Bollywood and the movie should not be missed for it has a soul that will touch you deep.
India Glitz
Film review ·
6.0'Haider' is in a strange bracket it's not at all mass friendly and its not rare piece of cinema like 'Kaminey' either. Falling in between 'Haider' is still is not a bad film, it's a disappointment by the standards set by Bhardwaj in his earlier adaptations. 'Haider' narration, style and technique will initially attract the high end niche audience for whom any form of sensationalisms with or without conviction is artistic intelligence.
Mumbai Mirror
Film review ·
6.0A more loosely based version might have provided a better structure and unpredictability to Haider's psychological battle. Even though the film's flaws are largely down to the nature of work it chooses to adapt, the universe it functions in is occasionally at odds with the characters.
India Today
Film review ·
5.0This film is not only a terrible missed opportunity but also an utter waste of heart wrenching performances and a beyond perfect costume and production design.
Bollywood Hungama
Film review ·
4.0HAIDER is targeted more at niche multiplex audience and not for the masses, which may work against the film. Add to that, the lesser number of screens available for the film and its release alongside the gigantic competitor film BANG BANG may just see the film struggling at the Box-Office.
The W14
Film review ·
4.0What you're left with then are a series of scenes stretching the film to almost 3 hours (without even a fulsome soundtrack) that tries to fit the original Hamlet—singing gravediggers, play within the play etc—into a movie with a hole. Eventually you start feeling vaguely distant and cold. I don't know about you, but I'm sorry—I was kinda bored.
Filmfare
Film review ·
Haider doesn't have an ounce of the commercial thrills and spills that entertain the 100-crore masses. But it does have an undeniable dramatic punch. It is one of the best stories you'll every watch on celluloid. Give this edgy film a chance to entertain you. Because it will do so with aplomb. It's certainly better than the other chutzpah out there.
Firstpost
Film review ·
Haider is a moving film that tells the story of not just a character or a family, but of Kashmir itself. ...It may ultimately leave you dissatisfied and heartbroken, but just for the first half, Haider is worth watching again and again.
Firstpost
Film review ·
If we get a movie better than Haider in the remainder of 2014, let's count this as a really good year. At this point, the chances of that happening don't seem likely.
IndiaTvNews
Film review ·
Haider is a classic creation minus Bollywood's cliché elements. It needs patience and your devotion.
Jagran
Film review ·
Helmed by the brilliant story teller Vishal Bharadwaj, 'Haider' comes with an unforgettable climax.
Komal Nahta's Blog
Film review ·
Haider is a class-appealing fare which will do well in premium multiplexes and high-end single-screen cinemas of the big cities mainly. It will be enjoyed by the classes but it will not be liked by the masses. Business in lesser multiplexes and lesser single-screen cinemas as also in 'B' and 'C' class centres will be rather dull. Overall, average.
LiveMint
Film review ·
Haider is an immensely effective reimagination of Shakespeare—and the film's biggest triumph is that the provincial, in this case Kashmir and the characters defined by its reality, shine in a universal and timeless tragedy.
Reuters
Film review ·
Haider has a lot of things going for it, but it doesn't live up to what it could have been. In that way, it's a little like Hamlet's description of his his new step-father, the naughty uncle Claudius: "A little more than kin, and less than kind."
The Hindu
Film review ·
An absolutely delightful and lyrical adaptation of Hamlet that takes some liberties, for Kashmir's sake...
From our readers
Audience reviews (9)
53 ratings · user score 8.3
- TanviOct 201410/10
Actors director crew writers music set design just one word fr all of them BEAUTY
- VishalOct 201410/10
best cinematic movie ever made in indian cinema....best film in Shakespeare trilogy(maqbool,omkara and haider) of vishal sir.
- AgnicheOct 20149/10
If there is one place that has taken more lives & larger than imagination space in our daily newspapers since 1947, it has to be Kashmir; for all the wrong reasons of course. Shell out your hard earned money on this and you will be surprised with its returns. Comprises of an unperturbed Tabu act, a grown up Shahid Kapoor, a larger than life Irrfan Khan cameo and a charismatic yet selfish Kay Kay Menon role If that's not enough, then witness this epic & dramatic, slow yet gripping Masterpiece by Vishal for Kashmir ;pause; for India, and try to re-live a 'reel' life of the 'real' life of 'Kashmir-ki-Awaam'.
- Tazz SaeedOct 201410/10
While watching this film I think Haider has done justice to each and every element that was depicted in the film. You get a feel not just for the film but also for the people of Kashmir. The thing that I loved most about the entire film was the attention to details, I loved the way the actors in the film used Kashmiri language in various parts just make it more real and natural. Simply Fantabulous.
- Sandeep GuptaOct 20147/10
Haider. After Maqbool and Omkara, Vishal once again seeks inspiration from Shakespeare and this time he picks Hamlet and gives us one poignant and beautiful piece of revenge drama set in the backdrop of struggling Kashmir. The strength of Haider lies in powerful performances of its actors and above all Tabu. Tabu embraces her character so well and makes it so mysterious that you are confused whether to sympathize or not with her. Shahid as Haider, Kay Kay Menon as his evil uncle, Irrfan Khan as mysterious helper and Shraddha as Haider's love interest, all give their best. Surprisingly, the movie is laced with dark humour. You won't be able to forget the die hard Salman fans named Salman and Salman and a bunch of aged grave diggers singing "Aao Na, So Jao Na" But Haider is a beauty with flaws. Vishal looses its grip in last half an hour and lets movie wander for extra 15-20 minutes before taking it to the grand finale. There are few unexplained sequences like what was the military mission all about? I am going with strong 7 out of 10 for Haider. Watch it for Tabu, watch it for its emotional complexity and watch it for carefully done Oedipal undertones.
- NeonikaOct 20148/10
'Haider' may turn the tide for Shahid Kapoor, much like 'Omkara' had for Saif Ali Khan. He has long deserved to play a role like this one and he genuinely exceeds our expectations. I don't remember when was the last time I was mesmerized by a song and dance number in Hindi cinema, as I was by 'Bismil'. How refreshing to see a male star do that, in folk costume and tribal make-up. For once, the choreography is so powerful that I wasn't even paying attention to the lyrics. Situating Hamlet in the Kashmir situation is a pretty clever idea and Vishal Bhardwaj manages to stay faithful to the original play to a very large extent. The dark ominous undertones are present from the first frame to the last, so it doesn't make for a light-hearted family outing at all. The editing is patchy and abrupt at times, but it can all be excused for the powerhouse acting by Tabu, Kay Kay Menon and Irrfan. Shraddha Kapoor is also perfectly cast. The mother-son chemistry between Tabu and Shahid is so strong and arresting - not at all like the superficial 'ma-beta' stereotypes that we are used to.
- SimoneOct 201410/10
Haider is super movie and Shahid's best performance but also that no one else could have done as much justice to the role as Shahid has done.
- Saheb AbdullahMay 20167/10
I Guess I Need To Watch It Again To Understand It Better But I Really Liked It While Watching It 1st Time, Vishal Is A Genius Filmmaker, Shahid Finally Show's His Exceptional Acting Skills, Screenplay Is Gripping. Tabu & Kay Kay Were Too Good In Their Roles.But All In All It's Vishal's Vision & Shahid's Dominance Which Makes It A Brilliant Movie.
- Shashwat SisodiaMar 20207/10
'Haider' stands magnificently in between as the king of the Shakespearean trilogy of Vishal Bharadwaj. 'Maqbool' is undeniably the wisest of them all, sitting atop as the igh priest of VB filmography. 'Maqbool' wasn't all suitable, a film existing to provide it's lip service to Saif Ali Khan, flair in writing and execution, but not much else. But this one lies in the world in between: it's way better than 'Omkara', even when it doesn't match the opulence of 'Maqbool'. This is the best mounted film by Vishal, in his whole career. The astounding cinematography, entertaining undertones, grim period and aesthetic of performances is what makes this a winsome. Shahid Kapoor is masterful and unflinching, transcending Irrfan's vulnerability and Saif's artfulness. He is faultless, graceful and effective. He's just like Tabu, the beautiful, sultry mother and her believable, uncomfortable equation with her son that goes from absurd to unpredictable. Kay Kay Menon and Irrfan Khan deliver wholeheartedly the short bits with awesome grip. 'Haider' is politically correct and absolute. But the film has a radically unsmooth start, it's first act is not entirely convincing to the viewer in spite of the visual mountings of the Shikara and ailing people. The change-of-climax of the original 'Hamlet' is not too workable. As it is, it is an entertaining, carefree thing to watch, brimming with texture and handsomely written. And that's an achievement 3.5/5.
Credits
Cast & crew
Cast
Shahid KapoorHaider
TabuGhazala (Haider's mother)
Kay Kay MenonKhurram, Haider's uncle
Shraddha KapoorArshee
Narendra JhaHaider's Dad
Irrfan KhanRoohdaar
Kulbhushan KharbandaHussain Mir
Aamir BashirLiyaqat, Arshia's brother
Sumit Kaul
Ashish Vidyarthi
Director
Music
Cinematography
Editing
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