Tickets for Udaan being sold at Payal cinema in Jamshedpur on Sunday. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Jamshedpur, July 18: Thrilled to see a realistic portrayal of the steel city on celluloid, Jamshedpur denizens have given a thumbs-up to director Vikramaditya Motwane’s debut movie Udaan.

People have trooped into Payal Cinema, which began screening the movie yesterday, a day after its release, as its prints could not reach the city earlier.

The movie starring Ronit Roy, Ram Kapoor, Rajat Barmecha and Ayan Boradia has earned rave reviews from all quarters. It was screened at the 63rd Cannes Film Festival this year.

It revolves around the relationship between a Jamshedpur-based man and his teenaged son Rohan. The latter returns home after staying for eight years at a boarding school, only to find himself closeted with an authoritarian father and a younger half-brother.

Udaan is Rohan’s journey as he struggles to pursue his dream of becoming a writer.

Besides shots of Shimla, Udaan was also shot in the city in July-August last year in a tight 40-day schedule.

“Awesome. It was nostalgic to see my city on the big screen, the same lanes, streets and places where we hang out everyday. When the film was shot, I didn’t think it would be a hit and reach Cannes Film Festival. The language used by Ronit Ro’s character is how we talk. The film shows a small town tyrannical father, something everybody will relate to,” said Joydeep Dubey, a Tata Steel employee who watched the movie yesterday.

The movie captures on screen popular landmarks of the city such as Jubilee Park, statues of J.N. Tata and J.R.D. Tata, Tata Main Hospital, Tata Steel, the Jamshedpur zoo, Hudco dam, Kaiser bungalows, the Kadma-Sonari Link Road, K.D. Flats, DBMS English School and even the Jusco office. Each of these was greeted by loud cheers inside the theatre.

The movie also included some well-known faces from the city like theatre personalities Gautam Shankar and Siddhartha Sen. Many local boys who were in the supporting cast were glad to see themselves on screen.

“The film has given the city an identity. People in other cities will now come to know about Jamshedpur from a different perspective,” said Gauri Suresh, a faculty member of Jamshedpur Women’s College. The movie crew will be in the city on July 23 for a screening at the Beldih Club.