Six reasons why you should 'Dishoom' with John, Varun

While many felt their hearts skip a beat when Tom Cruise swung around the steel and glass façade of the Burj Khalifa, what was captured on camera not only saw the Hollywood actor but the rest of country grab global headlines.

With the onset of ‘Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol’, the doors to filmmaking opened up for the UAE, with names such as ‘Fast and Furious’, ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’, ‘Star Trek Beyond’ and now Bollywood’s ‘Dishoom’ shining in the spotlight.

The Indian potboiler, which has been extensively filmed across 26 locations in Abu Dhabi, offers so much more than its two leading men, John Abraham and Varun Dhawan, flexing their muscles for the camera.                

As ‘Dishoom’ releases across UAE cinemas, twofour54 shares exclusive behind-the-scenes footage of the project’s filming journey in Abu Dhabi which took place between January and March this year.

For UAE residents, who will recognise the supercars and bikes that comprise the police fleet of Abu Dhabi’s finest, here are some insider tidbits behind the awe-inspiring action:

Watch out for…

A special high-speed motorcycle chase sequence in the film will see some familiar sights. The producers reveal it was extensively filmed inside Ferrari World. In order to not disrupt the daily activities, all the scenes in Ferrari World were filmed at night.

Is that for real?

The infamous helicopter stunt, which Abraham and Dhawan revisited in Delhi during ‘Dishoom‘s’ promotions is very much real.

The makers reveal no stunt doubles were used during the filming, but rather it was actors Abraham and Dhawan dangling from the two helicopters, reflected against Abu Dhabi’s glamourous landscape.

Did a car just drive off Reem Island?

Yes, it has indeed. A car was driven into the ocean from Reem Island. After the scene was filmed, a diver was sent down to attach a towing device to the vehicle so it could be safely retrieved out of the water.

Wading through the water

The action in the breakwater is definitely much more than Akshay Kumar’s man-bun (the actor has a cameo in the film).

A jet ski sequence was filmed in the main pool area of Yas Waterworld, while the high-speed boat chase, filmed on the Corniche water.

Where is that island?

That stunning vista of an oasis in the middle of the Arabian Sea will in fact be Nurai Island. The action vehicles and equipment trucks that were needed for the scenes were transported to the island by barge.

How many people were employed?

Nearly, 100 crew members flew in from India with director Rohit Dhawan, and were joined by another 60 crew members from the twofour54 campus community (twofour54 Film and TV Services, twofour54 freelancers,  and partner companies).

Working together, twofour54 and ‘Dishoom’ gave five young Arabs the opportunity to intern on set.

All of the film’s top stars filmed scenes in Abu Dhabi:   Abraham, Dhawan, Jacqueline Fernandez, Akshaye Khanna and Akshay Kumar and on some days, as many as eight trailers were needed on location for the stars of the film.

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