Simmba is a 2018 Indian Hindi-language action film directed by Rohit Shetty and produced by Karan Johar, Hiroo Yash Johar, Apoorva Mehta and Rohit Shetty. The film stars Ranveer Singh in the title role, alongside Sara Ali Khan in her Hindi film debut, with Sonu Sood as the antagonist. It is the third instalment in Rohit Shetty's cop universe, following Singham (2011) and Singham Returns (2014), and is an official Hindi remake of the 2015 Telugu film Temper, directed by Puri Jagannadh.
| Title | Simmba |
|---|---|
| Director | Rohit Shetty |
| Producers | Karan Johar, Hiroo Yash Johar, Apoorva Mehta, Rohit Shetty |
| Production companies | Dharma Productions, Reliance Entertainment, Rohit Shetty Picturez |
| Distributor | Reliance Entertainment |
| Lead cast | Ranveer Singh, Sara Ali Khan, Sonu Sood |
| Music | Tanishk Bagchi, Lijo George–DJ Chetas, Thaman S |
| Cinematography | Jomon T. John |
| Editor | Bunty Nagi |
| Language | Hindi |
| Release date | 28 December 2018 |
| Based on | Temper (2015, Telugu) |
| Franchise | Cop Universe (Rohit Shetty) |
The film follows Sangram "Simmba" Bhalerao, an orphan from Shivgadh who grows up idolising the corrupt practices of police officers and joins the Indian Police Service to enrich himself. Posted as a sub-divisional officer to Miramar police station in Goa, he initially colludes with the local crime lord Durva Ranade. A personal tragedy involving a young medical intern, Akruti Dave, transforms him, and he turns against Ranade's narcotics and human-trafficking network, eventually pursuing extrajudicial justice with the help of senior officer Bajirao Singham.
The project was announced in 2017 as a collaboration between Dharma Productions, Reliance Entertainment and Rohit Shetty Picturez. Principal photography began in mid-2018, with shooting locations including Hyderabad, Goa and Mumbai. The film marked the first lead pairing of Ranveer Singh and Sara Ali Khan, and the first formal expansion of Rohit Shetty's police-themed franchise into a connected universe through the appearance of Ajay Devgn as Singham and the introduction of Akshay Kumar as Sooryavanshi in the closing sequence.
The soundtrack was composed by Tanishk Bagchi, Lijo George–DJ Chetas and Thaman S, with the background score by Thaman S. Songs included Aankh Marey (a recreation of the 1997 song from Tere Mere Sapne), Aala Re Aala, Tere Bin and Mera Wala Dance. The album was released by T-Series.
Simmba released theatrically in India on 28 December 2018 during the year-end holiday window. The film opened to a strong commercial response and emerged as one of the highest-grossing Hindi films of 2018. Critical reception was mixed, with reviewers praising Ranveer Singh's performance, Rohit Shetty's mass-entertainer staging and the cameo-driven climax, while criticising the formulaic narrative and the film's handling of its sexual-violence subplot.
Simmba consolidated Rohit Shetty's cop universe as a continuing franchise in Hindi cinema, paralleling shared-universe approaches seen in international film series. The post-credits sequence directly set up Sooryavanshi (2021), and the franchise was further extended with Singham Again (2024). The film is also notable for launching Sara Ali Khan's career in mainstream commercial Hindi cinema following her debut in Kedarnath earlier in the same month.