Lahore. India-A tour of Pakistan. One helicopter shot after another. The crowd goes crazy. The chant: Dhoni, Dhoni, Dhoni...

It was a déjà vu of January 2004 in September 2016 as the motley crowd of students, homemakers and professionals in Jamshedpur went into raptures on Friday when Sushant Singh Raput as Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit the pitch (on screen) for a match that later ensured a berth for the small town lad in Team India.

Director Neeraj Pandey's M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story engaged the audience - young and old - with an extensive tale of struggle, madness and victory. The houseful first day shows at multiplex Eylex and standalone cinema Payal spoke volumes for the potential of the biopic to become a box office biggie by weekend.

"It was like watching live cricket. We screamed ' Dhoni, Dhoni, Dhoni' every time Sushant padded up and walked into the field. The historic six that sealed India's World Cup win in 2011 gave me goosebumps all over again," said Agrico girl Ritika Patnaik, a BCom student of Jamshedpur Women's College who watched the first day first show at Eylex with her friends.

Mango homemaker Richa Srivastava made it a point to watch the film with her extended family of seven because her son Raaghav, a Class IV student of Loyola School, is an ardent MSD fan. Ask the nine-year-old what was his favourite bit in the over-three-hour-long movie, pat comes his reply: "The final scene - the super-duper six that brought home the World Cup."

Baridih boy Nihal Singh, an Under-19 cricketer himself, said the The Untold Story was an emotional roller-coaster with the hard message that there is no shortcut to success.

"An ace goalkeeper on the school team, whose dodging-the-ball skills were spotted and honed into successful wicket-keeping by a games coach; an orthodox father who refuses to believe cricket can make a career; ups and downs in love life; and so on and so forth - it touches a chord," said Nihal who has played a cameo in the film, some scenes of which were also shot at Keenan Stadium. "The film is special because I am a part of it and so is Jamshedpur," he added.

Mango boy Avinash Mishra, a Class XI student of Karim City College, said he was so inspired that he painted 'MSD' in India colours on his neck.

Officials of Eylex and Payal Cinema said most of the shows on the first day went houseful and they were expecting an overwhelming response this weekend.

"We had pre-bookings yesterday (Thursday) and today (Friday) people queued up since morning. The movie has become a hit already because it inspires small town girls and boys to dream big," said C.L. Sharma, manager of Payal.

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