Critical response Article 15 received critical acclaim. On
review aggregator website
Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of .
Anna M. M. Vetticad of
Firstpost concurred with Sengupta and Sharma, gave four and a half stars out of five and found 'Sinha's unfaltering direction' was backed by Ewan Mulligan's 'unsparing cinematography' and a 'strong cast'. Concluding, she wrote, "Watching this film is an overwhelming emotional experience," and she opined,
Article 15 is the best that Indian cinema can be in these troubled times if it chooses to hold a mirror up to our society..."
Raja Sen writing for
Hindustan Times rated the film with four and a half star out of five and opined that the film is a tribute to
Alan Parker the director of 1988 film
Mississippi Burning. He praised Solanki and Sinha for honest writing, haunting shots by Mulligan and performances of ensemble. Ending his writing, he said, "
Article 15 is not a film in search of easy answers. Instead, it is a reminder that we already know the questions but don't ask them enough. 'Not cool, sir'." Vijayalakshmi Narayanan of
Radio City gave the film four and a half stars out of five, and said "Coming to the cast, Ayushmann leads from the front and one cannot be thankful enough. The actor proves his mettle yet again when it comes to backing good scripts. He makes the right noise even in his moments of melancholy." Sreeparna Sengupta of
The Times of India gave the film four stars out of five, praising the performance of
Ayushmann Khurrana,
Manoj Pahwa,
Kumud Mishra and
Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, and background music and cinematography of Ewan Mulligan as well. She felt that Sinha had given another dimension to the narrative by surfacing the artful shades through the characters and setting. She opines, "Anubhav Sinha's
Article 15 is designed like a crime thriller. What works for the film is that it's thought-provoking, hard-hitting while unflinchingly bringing to light burning social issues." Concluding, she wrote that the film is not a 'light watch', rather it is 'definitely relevant', 'compelling' and will start a debate. Devesh Sharma reviewing for
Filmfare rates the film with four stars out of five. He praised the screenplay, dialogues, and cinematography of the film apart from the performance of Khurrana and the supporting cast. He recommends watching the film for its 'riveting performances' and its 'underlying message', and opines that the film presents the candid truth about contemporary society. Quoting
Jack Nicholson's character from
A Few Good Men – "You can't handle the truth," he hopes that the audience goes out to watch the film and 'learns to handle the truth...' Priyanka Sinha Jha of
News18, praising Khurrana and ensemble of Kumud Sharma, Manoj Pahwa,
Sayani Gupta, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, and
M Nassar for their performances, rates the film with four stars out of five. Agreeing with Vetticad, she writes, "
Article 15 is remarkable in that it does not pontificate. It merely holds up the mirror to a society still entangled in age-old caste politics that absolutely overrides the modern ideals of liberty and equality." Concluding, she opines that Sinha has a knack for combining elements of popular film-making with realistic story-telling to give masterful films. Writing for the
NDTV Saibal Chatterjee, termed it a 'radical' film, tackling social issues. He praised Sinha and Gaurav Solanki for the screenplay and cast for effective performances. He concludes the review as, "[The film] remains true to the demands of the plot without losing control over its principal purpose – administering a bitter pill with just a hint of a sugar coating. It works wonderfully well.
Article 15 is a not to be missed film." Harish Wankhede in the Indian Express review praised the film for its nuanced depiction of Dalit characters but also criticised the film for not showcasing the Dalit person as a protagonist. Mayur Sanap of
Deccan Chronicle rated it four stars out of five and found it a 'gripping social thriller'. He commended the performances and script, and concludes, "With Anubhav Sinha's straightforward and unflashy directorial style, the film proves to be an effective drama. It may be devoid of spectacle, but it is still full of zeal and warrants a must-watch." Manjusha Radhakrishnan of
Gulf News gave four stars out of five, and felt that the film was not easy to watch, however everyone should give it a chance. She opined, "
Article 15 sobers you up instantly, but it also makes you think about Indian's complicated social segregation based on the accident of birth." Lakshana N Palat of
India Today rated it with three and a half stars out of five, praised the performances of the cast and felt that the film's 'overly optimistic ending' was not in tune. According to him, despite rough around the edges and flawed in storytelling, it is worth watching. Agreeing with Sengupta, he opines, "It's a start. It cannot change society, but it at least can initiate a conversation and debate that examines the horrors that lurk in this very society, invisible to our privileged eyes."
Bollywood Hungama rated the film three and a half stars out of five and praised Mulligan for cinematography, Nikhil Kovale for production design, Sinha and Solanki for story and screenplay. He commended performances of ensemble and direction of Sinha and felt that the look of the film was 'quite rich' and 'haunting', and that worked. He summed up the review as, "On the whole,
ARTICLE 15 is a hard-hitting film that raises some important issues related to caste, that is plaguing the country." Kunal Guha of
Mumbai Mirror rated the film with three stars out of five and felt that it reminded of hateful atrocities, and wrote, "The film, however, gets a bit tiring in parts when the message seems to be incessantly hammered down." However, he praised the performances of the ensemble. Other critics, including Rahul Ramchandani of
The Milli Gazette and Pardeep Attri of
HuffPost India, noted the film's portrayal of an upper-caste Brahmin policeman as a "saviour" to the Dalit. Dominique of
Firstpost criticised the director for focusing less on Dalit characters and more on Brahmin (upper-caste) ones just to make them "shine more brightly". An academic Shyaonti Talwar noted that the film shied away from complexities of the caste system and rather oversimplified the issue by repeating the "Brahmin-saviour' complex" done by other critically acclaimed Indian films and making a Brahmin protagonist of an "Aryan lineage" the hero.
Box office Article 15 had the opening day collection of 5.02 crore and opening weekend worldwide gross of 30.75 crore. In its opening week, the film grossed 47.62 crore worldwide. With a gross of 77.62 crore from India and 13.78 crore from overseas, , the film has grossed 91.70 crore worldwide. == Remake ==