Critical response Namrata Joshi, writing for
The Hindu, said "Whichever side of the political divide one may stand, one can't dismiss Dhar's canniness and craft and Vicky Kaushal as the Army officer was brilliant." Amman Khurana of
Times Now News, giving 4 stars out of 5, said "
Uri: The Surgical Strike is a rather mature film. It somehow knows that it is catering to the viewer that is tired of watching the men in uniform who thump their chests to show their love and passion for the country." He further said: "The stunning cinematography and the VFX work ensure that
Uri: The Surgical Strike does not pass off as a comic-book account of the operation." He concludes: "
Uri: The Surgical Strike is a good one-time watch. If not for anything else, watch it for Vicky Kaushal, who brings the right amount of intensity to his role and drives the film from start to finish."
Rajeev Masand of
News 18 gave the film 3 out of 5 stars and said "Vicky Kaushal is in especially good form as the protagonist, looking every bit the army man. He brings both the bulked-up physicality and the sort of steely determination that the part requires."
Bollywood Hungama rated the move 3.5 out of 5 stars and said "On the whole,
URI: THE SURGICAL STRIKE has a thrilling and a gripping narrative which instills patriotism without getting jingoistic."
Anupama Chopra of Film Companion said, "The film alternates between fact and fiction, between gritty re-creations of combat and
Top Gun-style, slow-motion shots of soldiers getting out of helicopters. For the first half, Aditya manages this tight-rope walk efficiently, aided by the strong work of DOP Mitesh Mirchandani. The story-telling has the scale and the narrative beats are predictable but satisfying", but found the plot simplistic in places. Raja Sen of
Hindustan Times gave 2 out of 5 stars and said, "
Uri is a very good looking film — though the cinematographer appears to have been told to highlight the lens-flare in every single shot of nighttime combat — and while the action is totally brilliant."
Sukanya Verma writing for
Rediff.com rated the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and said "Revenge over personal loss is hardly patriotism. It's just run-of-the-mill revenge. Despite slick visuals and solid acting,
Uri fails to make this distinction." Shilpa Jamkhandikar of
Reuters said "But forget about nuance – the dark side of war and the human cost of it are barely dealt with."
Saibal Chatterjee of
NDTV rated the film 2 out of 5 stars and said "The war actioner is both bland and patchy." Nandini Ramnath of
Scroll.in said "Impressively gritty action sequences bookend moments of sycophancy towards the government." Rahul Desai of Film Companion said "
Uri becomes a cautionary tale of how even an original filmmaking voice can mean little if confined to a time of strategic jingoism."
Shubhra Gupta of
The Indian Express rated the movie 2 out of 5 stars and said "Action, emotion, drama, it’s all there, beat for beat: more
Border than
Zero Dark Thirty." Tanul Thakur of
The Wire said "But a film of this sort needs exceptional writing to transcend its rigid boundaries. So we ultimately find out, to no one’s surprise, that the subplot involving the family was just a ruse." Suparna Sharma of the
Deccan Chronicle said "I was riveted and impressed with much of
Uri’s human drama and action, despite balking at its craven desire to toady up to the government." Renuka Vyavahare of
The Times of India rated the film 4 out of 5 stars and said "
Uri: The Surgical Strike is a fitting tribute to the Indian Army conceptually but cinematically, it’s not a film without flaws." Devesh Sharma of
Filmfare gave 3 out of 5 stars and said "The problem is with the screenplay. Instead of watching a patriotic film, you get the feeling you're watching a revenge drama." Manjusha Radhakrishnan of
Gulf News gave 3.5 out of 5 stars and said "The film is a blatant homage to the bravery displayed by the Indian army and it makes no attempts to hide its allegiance. The opponents in this film are skimmed through swiftly and remain faceless villains." Shilajit Mitra of
Cinema Express rated it 2 out of 5 stars and said "
Uri: The Surgical Strike plays out in the precarious sub-genre of the 'well-made' propaganda." Ajit Duara of
Open said "The film is made well, with high production values and realistic battle scenes, but the theatrical release of such an action film has a limited shelf life." Mayur Sanap of
The Asian Age said "Lauding heroism in war movies is an easy sell to mass audiences but
URI stays clear of jingoistic grandstanding or flag-waving patriotism." Priya Hazra of
The Statesman gave 3.5 out of 5 stars and said "The film is based on a real incident and thus not much unfolds to surprise the viewers. However, what lacked in the story was in-depth research which left the second half weaker." Stutee Ghosh of
The Quint rated the film 3 out of 5 stars and said "Despite all the things working for it, ‘
Uri: The Surgical Strike’ could have been a far better film."
Deepa Gahlot said "It is a worthy tribute to the armed forces. The claim of a New India it pushes forward is debatable."
Box office In its opening weekend, the film earned 35.73 crore domestically. In the first week, the film collected 70.94 crore from India. It grossed 300 crore from India and from overseas, taking the worldwide gross collection to . The film crossed the mark in gross collection on 8th day of its release. It took 15 days to gross and in its fourth week of release, it grossed . It took seven weeks to gross worldwide.
Uri: The Surgical Strike emerged as the
4th highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2019. Based on box office collections, the film became the tenth highest-grossing film by 5 March 2019 produced in
Bollywood until that date. ==Awards and nominations==