Doosra premiere packs Bollywood power ahead of October 23 release
Anil Kapoor, Rajkumar Hirani and Sharman Joshi led the Mumbai premiere of Abhinay Deo's cricket-inspired Doosra ahead of its Oct 23 release.
Mumbai’s premiere circuit turned into a multigenerational Bollywood reunion as Doosra: India’s Other Freedom Struggle held its first big screening ahead of a nationwide release on Friday, October 23, 2026.
Anil Kapoor led the arrivals, with filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani, Sharman Joshi and Jaaved Jaaferi also turning up to support director Abhinay Deo. The guest list cut across eras: Prem Chopra, Arunoday Singh, Ajinkya Deo and Sumeet Raghavan were spotted, along with Divya Khosla Kumar, Taha Shah Badussha, Meezaan Jafri and Yukti Thareja.
The cricket moment behind the film
At the centre of Doosra is one of Indian cricket’s most replayed celebrations: Sourav Ganguly waving his shirt from the Lord’s balcony after India’s dramatic win over England in the 2002 NatWest Series final.
The film treats that moment as more than a sporting flashpoint. It uses documentary footage to revisit the match and then asks how a public act of defiance can ripple into private lives.
A story within the story
The fictional thread belongs to Tara, played by Plabita Borthakur, a young woman growing up in a conservative, patriarchal home. As she watches that victory on television, Ganguly’s celebration becomes a cue for her own questions about the limits placed on her.
That framing makes Doosra feel less like a standard sports drama and more like a coming-of-age story built around self-belief, identity and social change.
Who showed up and why it matters
- The generations: Prem Chopra and Anil Kapoor brought veteran weight, while Taha Shah Badussha and Meezaan Jafri drew a younger fan base.
- The makers: Director Abhinay Deo and distributor PVR INOX Pictures had a full house for the film’s first big night.
- The endorsement: Anil Kapoor and Rohit Sharma have already praised the trailer, giving the film a boost just before release.
What to expect in cinemas
Doosra is not a ball-by-ball replay. It blends historical footage with scripted storytelling to examine how a cricket triumph can shift attitudes far beyond the stadium.
If you are planning a theatre outing this weekend, this is a film that pairs a familiar sporting memory with a personal story of finding one’s voice. The nationwide release arrives on Friday, October 23, 2026 through PVR INOX Pictures.
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