Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone starrer Fighter was 2024’s big Republic Day release.
The movie opened to better reviews than numbers at the box office.
However, its fate cannot be judged yet and the film is sure to score huge numbers in the long run.
Here is an ending explanation of the Siddharth Anand directorial. The starting point of my description is when Bash’s dead body is received by the Indian Air Force.
Before beginning, please remember, this blog is full of spoilers, and descriptive in nature.
Fighter Detailed Ending Explained
After promising to send both Sartaj (Taj) and Bashir (Bash) back to India alive, Pakistan instead transfers the dead body of the latter, crushed into pieces.
Rakesh Jaisingh (Rocky) asks his boss to launch an attack on Pakistan; however, he denies his request calling it an angry reaction.
They carry Bash’s body to his home and the whole team consoles his parents. Patty asks for confidence from Sanchi as he promises her to bring Taj back alive.
Mazhar meets Taj where the latter is held captive. He tells the Indian soldier that his life is now worthless for his end goal.
One of his associates informs Akhtar about a video call from Srinagar on their secure line. As the conversation begins and the caller greets Mazhar, Zarina Begum’s voice stuns Sartaj.
He tells Akhtar that their plan worked and asks him to be prepared as the Indian Air Force will attack tomorrow during nighttime.
Mazhar turns the laptop’s screen towards Taj. Zarina blows a mocking chuckle before greeting Sartaj. He uses sarcasm to highlight the soldier’s disoriented and injured body.
The call ends with Begum promising Taj of their next meeting in heaven.
Akhtar reveals to the Indian pilot that Zarina Begum is a top ISI agent, living in India under the disguise of an R&AW agent for years, sending secret Indian information to Pakistan.
The scene cuts to the Indian Air Force Station in Srinagar. Inside the Air Commodore’s office, Rocky explains to his senior the plan for Taj’s rescue mission.
While they discuss, a junior officer informs the duo that Pakistan has entirely shut down its airspace even for domestic flights.
Now, no aircraft can fly over their territory. Moreover, they have deployed fighter squadrons and surface missile squadrons at the LoC.
With all doors closed, it is impossible to enter the country. The chief tells Rocky they must formulate a new strategy after the disappointing news.
As he exits the cabin, Rocky finds an eagerly anxious Patty (Shamsher Pathania) in the lobby. He asks him for permission to speak, which is denied by the senior officer.
However, Pathania blocks his way and wishes to know their plan to bring back Taj. But Rocky says it is an internal matter of their team of which Patty is no longer a part.
The latter gets emotional and replies saying he is still a part of the force.
Jaisingh sternly says it is just a matter of days before he’d cease to be a member of the Air Force too, hinting at his decision of quitting.
He leaves the scene after asking Patty whether he was ever a Fighter because Fighter don’t quit.
Pakistan’s army general meets with Akhtar and lashes out at him for provoking India by killing Bashir and holding Sartaj captive.
He fears India’s expected retaliatory action but Azhar tells him it is what he wants.
The terrorist says he already knows about India’s plans, thanks to his Zarina Begum.
At the Air Force station, Patty helplessly looks at his former team, which is preparing for the mission.
Mini notices him and soon all the members come to him.
She promises Patty to bring back Taj while Sukhi jokes by saying they will also slap him on Patty’s behalf.
The seemingly light-hearted conversation is interrupted by a messenger who informs that Mini is called to the main gate of their establishment.
Following arrival, Mini is shell-shocked to see her parents standing at the entrance. She gives her mother an emotional hug and they both shed tears of joy and longing.
Her mother jokes that an officer of her stature should not cry like a child. Mini’s eyes then focus on her father, who maintains a straight face while retelling his earlier wish of hoping for a boy child.
He recalls his father’s words who always used to say that ‘a son is a property while a girl is a liability,’ which is why he always thought of Mini as a responsibility.
She wanted to fly but he tried to pull her wings. Even then, she flew so high that her father now had to lift his head to see her daughter.
Her indomitable spirit beat his father’s regressive thinking. And he has no qualms in apologizing.
In fact, he is proud to say that his daughter is a Squadron Leader.
When the emotions calm down a bit, Mini’s father quips a joke about Pathania, calling him a nice boy.
However, Mini is taken aback by the mention of Patty. As she leaves, her father calls her name from behind and offers his daughter a salute, making up for a dramatically stimulating moment.
Mini thanks Patty after going back but their intimate reunion is interrupted by the call of duty, for she must attend a team briefing.
In the briefing, Rocky narrates the mission plan to the air rangers.
What is the Plan to Extract Sartaj?
Garud commandos will jump from 30,000 feet. From there, they will move toward the main target area, where Taj is held captive.
The Air Force team will have twenty minutes to destroy the base camp, guarded by hundreds of militants, and extract Taj.
Azhar Akhtar will also be there and even a minor flaw in their coordination will land their mission in trouble.
On D-day, India knowingly uses a passenger Airplane to enter Pakistan airspace and hideously drop off Garud commandos.
Since Pak is a no-fly zone, their Radar Base gets alerted as soon as they notice the plane. They put missiles on standby for launch before engaging with the jet in question.
In the first line of communication, they ask the pilot to identify himself. He sneakily lets the commandos jump before answering and replies only when the drop-off is complete.
Once done, the pilot mimics a Russian accent to indicate that it’s a Russia-bound flight from Delhi.
He even mentions the Flight number as part of the plan and asks if he is talking to the Dubai control room, putting the blame on the plane’s faulty compass.
The man at the Pak Radar Base tells him that he is in Pakistan’s airspace.
He further checks for the specific flight and, upon successful verification, advises the pilot to make an emergency landing at Jammu for further guidance.
The pilot agrees to return back. As soon as he does, two fighter jets appear from the plane’s proximity, ringing alarm bells for men at the Pak Radar Base.
It is too late for them to do anything as the rangers destroy an airbase on the way. The Garud commandos quickly get into action and target the base camp.
Mini and Sukhi are ordered to take off to evacuate the commandos in thirty minutes.
The sudden intrusion by Indian soldiers during the daytime leaves Mazhar Akhtar aghast. A deafening realization takes over his senses.
He cannot believe that Zarina has actually betrayed him by providing false information.
Back at the Indian Air Force station, it is revealed that Zarina was a double agent and his real name was Yafid Saleem.
Akhtar quickly gets into the act and starts retaliatory firing at the commandos. However, Indian soldiers soon surround the entire establishment with IEDs and bring it to ashes before rescuing Sartaj.
Mazhar somehow manages to save himself from getting split into pieces. Minal brings her chopper to receive Taj.
She informs the higher-ups about his well-being, which brings relief to the faces of Patty, Rocky, and everyone else at the Air Force station.
Smiles soon turn into tension as Sukhi’s chopper is attacked by Mazhar. He, along with several commandos, gets injured as a result.
The control room tries to get in touch with Sukhi but he doesn’t reply through the walkie. Patty also makes an attempt but to no avail.
Rocky orders Nauty to head toward Sukhi’s chopper and report immediately.
However, before he could make the move, he was hit by a missile fired through the fighter plane of Red Nose.
Rocky then directs Mini to turn back and look for Sukhi and Nauty while Unni is tasked with looking out for enemy fighters.
More men enter the base camp to assist Mazhar. Together, they put the Indian commandos on the backfoot.
Not just that, they also launch fire at Mini’s chopper. Therefore, she moves away but drops some commandos for backup.
Sandy is ordered to cover for Mini. Rocky tells Sandy that they are launching the Reserve Sukhoi.
Just as the chief gives the go-ahead to the reserve fighters, everybody comes to know that someone is already there in the Sukhoi.
He is none other than Patty. The chief gets angry and tells him to get out of the cockpit since he doesn’t have permission to be there.
However, Patty takes full responsibility for his actions. When the chief says this would lead to his court-martial, Pathania replies saying that he is ready to face the same upon coming back.
At this moment, the most important thing for him is to be there on the battlefield with his team. He is ready to get off if the chief can admit he is not the best man to be out there.
When rules come in the way, Rocky convinces the boss to authorize Patty’s request. He takes responsibility and also assigns himself to be his ‘wizzo.’
The chief gives in to his emotional appeal and allows Patty to fly. Rocky sits at the back of the aircraft and the duo takes flight for victory.
Commandos inform the control unit that they are outnumbered by enemies. Hence, the chief sends reinforcements.
Sandy and Unni get hit by a missile while Patty goes after the rivals. However, Red Nose suddenly appears from behind and starts locking their aircraft.
Pathania uses his agile skills to nullify his attempt. Rocky helps him as his wizzo, but it all comes down to Patty’s dexterity.
He forces Red Nose to use all his ammunition until he is left with none. After a long battle, he makes a smart move by deliberately making his jet clash with Red Nose’s.
Just before the two planes burn into ashes, Patty and Rocky use their parachutes to get away. This marks the end of Red Nose in the film.
At the campsite, Mazhar Akhtar gets hold of Sukhi and beats the hell out of him while narrating how he brutally killed Bashir.
But Patty comes at the right time to save Sukhi. He takes on Akhtar in a fistfight that soon turns into an intense battle.
On the other hand, Rocky latches on to weapons to assist others. Mazhar tries to get away in a vehicle but Patty’s quick legs deter him from doing so.
He also jumps inside the jeep and manages to get to the driver’s seat. Pathania ties Akhtar’s legs to the car before flying it off a cliff straight into a shed.
Meanwhile, Minal brings her chopper around. Patty times his jump to perfection and latches on to the copter.
Mazhar tries to pull him back but fails to do so. Sartaj offers a hand to his friend and ensures he gets inside the chopper safely.
The whole team returns to the Air Force station, where they receive a roaring welcome with claps and smiles.
Sanchi is finally relieved to see Taj alive, meaning the fulfillment of Patty’s promise.
Moreover, Rocky apologizes to Pathania for blaming him for his sister’s death. In the final frame of Fighter, Shamsher Pathania and Minal Rathore share a romantic kiss, draped in tender love.
Now, some questions…
Who Was Zarina Begum in Fighter Movie? Did He Betray India?
Zarina Begum was introduced in the movie as India’s secret agent in the valley. Dressed as a Muslim woman in a burqa, Zarina was actually a man called Yafid Saleem.
At a point in the film, Mazhar Akhtar calls Zarina a top ISI agent when he gives him the detailed plan of the Indian Air Force.
However, in reality, Yafid Saleem aka Zarina Begum was a double agent who worked for India. This means that originally Saleem was Pakistan’s agent but over time, he sided with India.
Therefore, he gave the wrong information to Akhtar that India would attack in the night, leaving him red-faced and unprepared as the attack was actually planned to be executed during the daytime.
Is there a Post Credit Scene in Fighter?
No, there is no post-credit scene in the film.
Did Mazhar Akhtar Die in Fighter?
Yes, Mazhar Akhtar, the dreaded Jaish operative, and the villain of Fighter, supposedly dies at the end of the movie.
We are not shown his dead body since his vehicle blasts upon hitting a shed, but it is assumed that Akhtar must have died.
Is Red Nose Real?
No, Red Nose is not the real-life name of any Fighter Pilot in Pakistan. It is a fictional creation.
Will There Be Fighter Part 2?
No, there are no signs yet of a sequel of Fighter. However, undoubtedly, there is potential.
New villains and fresh missions can make Hrithik and Deepika part of an interesting franchise, revolving around aerial action.
How Did Patty’s Fiancé Die in Fighter?
Patty’s fiancé was Naina Jaisingh, the younger sister of Rakesh Jaisingh (Rocky). She was also a fighter pilot and she died during a mission when an enemy missile hit her aircraft.
Rocky blamed Patty for her demise because he was supposed to provide cover for Naina’s chopper. Instead, she asked him to fire a missile.
As a result, she accidentally came in the line of an enemy missile.
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