The Hero: Love Story of a Spy
The Hero: Love Story of a Spy is a 2003 Indian Hindi-language spy thriller film directed by Anil Sharma and produced by Time Magnetics. It stars Sunny Deol, Preity Zinta and Priyanka Chopra in her Bollywood film debut. Written by Shaktimaan, the film tells the story of an undercover Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) agent who must gather intelligence about cross-border terrorism and stop the terrorist responsible for it and his separation from his fiancé. Sharma had long contemplated making a spy film but felt this was not economically viable for the Indian market because Indian films did not have sufficient budgets. He first planned a film about India's spy network set in the early 2000s but made the 2001 film Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, which became one of the highest-grossing Indian films of all time. Following the record-breaking success of that film, Sharma decided to make The Hero: Love Story of a Spy. The Shah Brothers were engaged to produce the film, which was touted to have a huge budget and scale, unlike previous Bollywood films. Aiming for high production values, a sizeable amount of money was spent on the film. Several large sets were created to give the film a feeling of grandeur, and international stunt experts were hired to coordinate action sequences new to Bollywood. Principal photography was done at Indian locations, including Kullu and Manali, and in locations in Canada and Switzerland. Uttam Singh composed the soundtrack with lyrics written by Anand Bakshi and Javed Akhtar. The film's production cost was very high, with trades suggesting that it was the most expensive Indian film ever made at that point; this was the most talked-about aspect of the film. The Hero: Love Story of a Spy was released on 11 April 2003 to mixed to positive reviews from critics. It grossed over 451 million at the box office against a production and marketing budget of 350 million, becoming the third-highest-grossing film of the year. Chopra won the Stardust Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance. Plot 
Arun Khanna is an army intelligence officer working for the Indian Secret Service agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) who has been sent to the Indo-Pakistan border in Kashmir. Under the identity of Major Ravi Batra, he sets up a spy network to obtain information about Pakistani terrorist activities across the border. In a nearby village, he meets Reshma, an orphan. Reshma joins the network to help Batra, and they fall in love. He reluctantly sends her into Pakistan to work as an undercover maid in Colonel Hidayatulla's house. Hidayatulla is associated with ISI head Isaq Khan and terrorist Maulana Azhar. Reshma begins passing information to Batra. Khan, Azhar, and a group of nuclear scientists meet Hidayatulla's house, where they reveal plans to make a nuclear bomb for a terrorist attack in Kashmir. Reshma is exposed; she escapes and is chased but is saved by Batra and returns to India. Batra proposes marriage. Their engagement ceremony is cut short when terrorists attack. Reshma goes missing after falling into the river, and Batra is presumed dead. Batra realizes Khan and Azhar are responsible for the attack. He fakes his own death and plans to infiltrate their terrorist network. In disguise, he follows Khan and Azhar to Canada and discovers they are planning to create a nuclear bomb. Reshma is found alive on the shore in Lahore, Pakistan, where she is rescued by Salman. She loses the ability to walk after learning about the deaths of Batra and her parents. Salman takes her to Canada for treatment under the care of doctor Shaheen Zakaria, the daughter of Muslim fundamentalist Mr. Zakaria, an associate of Khan. In a shopping mall, Reshma finds a muffler she had knitted for Batra, and realizes he is alive and in Canada. Batra changes his identity to that of a nuclear scientist named Wahid. To infiltrate Zakaria's group, he wins Zakaria's trust and marries Shaheen. Reshma sees Batra as Wahid at his wedding with Shaheen and recognizes him. Batra tells Reshma they cannot be together because he is now married to Shaheen. Reshma is heartbroken and returns to India. Overhearing their conversation, Shaheen learns the truth and is heartbroken. Batra tells Shaheen the truth about her father, but she does not believe the news about her father's terrorist links. Batra tricks the group into revealing the location of the bomb's parts, which have been kept at a high-altitude facility owned by Zakaria. The group reveals the codes to him, and he transmits a signal to the Canadian and Indian governments. Shaheen learns about the group's plan, exposing them. Khan learns about "Wahid's" true identity and attempts to kill him, but Batra survives. Soldiers arrive, forcing the terrorists toward a train station. They hijack a train and take the passengers hostage. Shaheen, on board, tries to disarm Khan, but he kills her. Before dying, she forgives Batra. Batra  kills the other terrorists and Khan. He returns to Kashmir and reunites with Reshma. 