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Star Cast: Pankaj Tripathi, Geeta Agarwal Sharma, Mahi Rai, Pawan Malhotra, Sulakhyana Baruah, Oscar the Dog, Bruno the Dog
Director: Amit Rai
What’s Good: It’s a love story of dog and man.
What’s Bad: The film could perhaps have been 10 minutes shorter, but that’s a minor nitpick.
Loo Break: As the format is that of a thriller, avoidable!
Watch or Not?: We are animal lovers, and animals love us too, so yes.
Language: Hindi
Available On: Theatrical release
Runtime: 150 Minutes
User Rating:
The story runs on two tracks. After a brief but moving vignette in Mumbai of the funeral of a police dog, Senapati, and his unknown sacrifices, we move to Bihar and Assam. In Assam, Apu (Maahi Rai)’s dog, Momo (played by Oscar the Dog), goes missing even as the two are playing one morning. The local SHO, Yusuf (Vijay Vidyadhar Mishra), reassures the kid, who is very computer-savvy, that he will find him. But with a heavy heart, he explains to Apu’s equally distraught mother (Geeta Agarwal Sharma), that dogs are being smuggled by a tribe for consumption and chances are bleak. Apu’s teacher, Krishna (Sulakhyana Baruah), also misses him, and together they decide to investigate in a very ‘today’ digital way, reminding me of how the character of Pritam did incredibly well with his gadgets (phone and laptop there, phone and iPad here) in the recent Pritam and Pedro.
In Bihar, a poor young man, Prince (Nikhil Kumar), suddenly goes missing. His faithful dog, Oscar (played by dog Bruno), senses something amiss and follows his scent. Prince’s friends rally around his bereaved parents and sisters and entreat their Masterji (Pankaj Tripathi) for help. They approach the local ‘daroga’ (inspector) played by Rajesh Kumar. What everyone does not know that there is a kidney racket going on in the city and the daroga and his men are in cahoots with the gang as they also receive their share so that they can look the other way.
The two stories run in parallel and never intersect, and tensions build up even as Apu goes to impossible odds to save Momo, while Oscar leaves no ‘smell’ unturned to locate Prince and, when the crux comes, issues an incredible summons to his fellow creatures as a back-up!
Ohh My Dog Movie Review: Script Analysis
Co-producer and director Amit Rai has himself penned the watertight script and the very grounded filmmaker-writer still enlists Jia Saxena as script supervisor. Racy, thrilling, and yet emotionally riveting, the film never descends into the melodramatic or loopy but maintains pace even as it shows how deep the love is for human beings by dogs—and vice-versa. Apu’s mindset is clear—he just wants his dog back, alive and safe. Oscar’s intent is equally ‘dogged’—to reunite an unharmed Prince with the people he loves and with Oscar himself!
By Indian movie standards, wholesome animal movies have come in very rarely. And in sheer emotional wallop and entertainment quotient, this is the first script I recollect after Haathi Mere Saathi, all of 55 years ago. That film became a mega-buster, aided by a nascent superstar and chartbuster music, but this movie, with the right marketing and promotion, has the potential to reach similar levels of resonance at the box office, especially in the post-Dhamaal 4 famine.
Ohh My Dog Movie Review: Star Performance
Rai favourite Pawan Malhotra, comes in late as the mercurial but honest cop but is proficient as usual. Pankaj Tripathi has a staid role with nothing much to do, while Geeta Agarwal Sharma is superb as Apu’s mother, who constantly prays for Momo’s safety. As the blackguard cops, Vinay Vidyadhar Mishra and Rajesh Kumar emerge truly hateworthy. Sulakhyana Baruah is a welcome import from Assam and is a thoroughly likable teacher. The (human) supporting cast is very competent, and the two canines—the impeccably trained Bruno (as Oscar) and Oscar (as Momo)—are naturally effective.
Maahi Rai, Amit Rai’s son, makes a confident debut as Apu. He is ardentness personified, is also cute whenever necessary and steals the show in the car chase sequences featuring a stalwart like Pawan Malhotra. And our hearts go to him when he desperately hollers for his dog, especially in the initial search, and when he sheds silent tears of grief, uncertain whether his hopes will be contradicted with ghastly reality.
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Ohh My Dog Movie Review: Direction, Music
The social messages are inbuilt and never overt. But that makes Amit Rai’s film even more impactful. His outstanding debut, Road to Sangam (2010) was followed by the offbeat I-Pad (2015) and the very successful OMG2 (2022). Needless to say, he has repeatedly a dexterous ability to change his directorial spots like a chameleon and yet pack a punch with each film, managing to deliver subtle social messages with equal enterprise. Ohh My Dog is a movie you take home.
This time, he even involves his son and the family dog and also proves that in this world of CGI and VFX, he can do a solid job with real animals.
The background score by Mangesh Dhakde is outstanding. Fresh and different, it enlivens many a sweet scene and is very innovative in the exciting parts. Aman Pant’s music is good and Suno na, sung by Sneha Ram Shankar and written by Akhil Tiwari, is the kind of melody and verse that you will find very rarely in today’s discordant era.
Ohh My Dog Movie Review: The Last Word
In the 1970s, a producer named Premji made two successive brilliant socials named Dushmun and Dost, antonymous titles. Both were blockbusters. This time, Amit Rai spins his last title OMG 2 (Oh My God 2) into Ohh My Dog and comes up trumps again! Don’t miss this animal fare aimed at children of all ages.
Four stars!
Ohh My Dog Trailer
Ohh My Do releases on 07th August, 2026.
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