| Dedh Ishqiya | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Abhishek Chaubey |
| Screenplay by |
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| Dialogues by |
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| Story by | Darab Farooqui[1] |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Satyajit Pande (Setu) |
| Edited by | A. Sreekar Prasad |
| Music by | Songs: Vishal Bhardwaj Background Score: Clinton Cerejo |
Production companies | VB Pictures Shemaroo Entertainment |
| Distributed by | Shemaroo Entertainment |
Release date |
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Running time | 148 minutes[2] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹ 370 million[3] |
| Box office | ₹ 408 million[3] |
Dedh Ishqiya (transl. One and a half passionate) is a 2014 Indianslapstickblack comedy film directed byAbhishek Chaubey and starringArshad Warsi,Naseeruddin Shah,Madhuri Dixit,Huma Qureshi andVijay Raaz. Produced byRaman Maroo ofShemaroo Entertainment and byVishal Bharadwaj, it is astandalone sequel toIshqiya (2010).
Dedh Ishqiya was released worldwide on 10 January 2014, and proved to be acommercial failure at the box office.[3][4] It received positive reviews from critics[5] upon release. At the60th Filmfare Awards,Dedh Ishqiya received 5 nominations, includingBest Actress (Dixit) andBest Female Playback Singer (Rekha Bhardwaj for "Hamari Atariya Pe").
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Khaalujaan (Naseeruddin Shah) and his nephew Babban (Arshad Warsi), who are partners in crime, pose as aNawab and his attendant, and manage to run away with a prized necklace from a jewellery shop. During the police chase, they get separated; Babban escapes, Khalujaan is injured, and the necklace seemingly lost. Babban goes to meet his boss Mushtaq Bhai (Salman Shahid), who disbelieves him, accuses him of double-crossing his boss in cahoots with his uncle Khaalujaan, gives him a death sentence, and orders him to dig his own grave. Babban duly begins to dig a grave under supervision, but manages to escape, with the promise that he will bring back both the necklace and Khaalujaan.
Months later, Babban comes across Khalujaan, who is posing as a Nawab and attending a poetry contest. It is amushaira (gathering of poets) organised by Begum Para (Madhuri Dixit), the widowed Begum ofNajibabad, supposedly in compliance with the wishes of her deceased husband. The winner of the poetry contest will not only win the widowed Begum as his bride, but also become the Nawab ofNajibabad.
Babban confronts Khalujaan on the opening night of the contest, and tries to get him to return with him. However, Babban himself delays departure after falling in love at first sight with Muniya (Huma Qureshi), Begum Para's beautiful maid and constant companion. Meanwhile, Khalujaan has his task cut out for him -- he needs to fool the gathering into accepting him as an aristocrat, win the poetry contest if possible, and seduce the Begum. One of the other contestants is a local politician and gangster named Jaan Mohammed (Vijay Raaz), who is holding the poet Nawab Italwi (Manoj Pahwa) in captivity, forcing him to write poetry for Jaan to recite at the contest. The contest proceeds; while Khalujaan has his heart set on Begum Para herself, Babban is smitten with Muniya. Khalujaan tries to impress the Begum by gifting her the prized necklace which he had stolen earlier, but on the final day, Begum declares Jaan Mohammed to be the victor. She declares that she will marry Jaan Mohammad and that he will become the new Nawab ofNajibabad
Since the necklace has clearly failed to move the Begum, Khaalujaan decides to see if a gun will serve the purpose better. However, even as he approaches the Begum brandishing his chosen instrument of persuasion, he finds the dowager being hustled away at gunpoint by a masked man. Khalujaan chases them and blocks their way only to discover that the masked man is none other than his nephew Babban. It turns out that the Begum had plotted her own kidnapping in order to extort money from the nawab-elect (Jaan Mohammad). More twists are then revealed: the Begum was nothing but a dancing-girl (tawaif) who had seduced a middle-aged nawab and married him, only to find that the nawab was actually a pauper who supported his lavish way of life by selling his inherited properties and jewels. He also neglected his wife, who (it is very strongly suggested) developed a relationship of intimacy with a sympathetic maid-servant, Muniya.
By the time the nawab died of good living, he had become completely bankrupt and even his palace had been mortgaged to the money-lenders. After his death, the penniless Begum had been helped financially and courted actively by Jaan Mohammad, who was besotted with her. He also wanted the title and status of being the "Nawab ofNajibabad." If a mere dancing-girl could marry an aging nawab and swan around being feted and fawned over as Begum of Majidabad, then Jaan Mohammad, of a similar social background, could likewise climb into the same status by marrying the same girl, now a dowager. The Begum was appalled by this idea. Jaan Mohammad is a man of low birth and uncultured mannerisms, a former street-thug turned politician, with an entourage of sycophantic hoodlums. The idea of marrying such a man was repellent to the Begum, who was anyway in love with her maid-servant. Yet, Jaan Mohammad's debt and his persistence leave the Begum with no choice but to announce a competition for her suitors, as a tactic to delay responding to Jaan's advances.
Thus, themushiara was conceived as an elaborate hoax: the late Nawab had never wanted his widow to marry someone else, much less that the winner should be recognized as "Nawab of Majidabad." It was the Begum's own idea, the purpose being to snare a rich man and marry him. The Begum did not want to marry Jaan Mohammad, but she wanted his money, therefore she was staging a kidnapping in order to receive a ransom from Jaan Mohammad. She has employed Babban to act as her kidnapper and extort a hefty ransom from Jaan Mohammad, who was expected to pay up because otherwise he would never fulfill his dream of becoming a Nawab.
Babban duly phones Jaan Mohammed (who is by now aware of the Begum's cunning plan) to bring a ransom of Rs. 100 million (100 million rupees, about $2 million in 2014) in cash to the railway station. All four of them (Begum, maid, and the uncle-nephew duo) reach the railway station to collect the money, but find that they are surrounded by Jaan Mohammad's goons. To their good fortune, Nawab Italwi arrives with a police force and cross-firing ensues. Begum and Muniya escape from the situation, leaving Babban and Khalujaan behind to be arrested.
Two months later, the uncle-nephew duo get bail and, as they leave the jail, they are given a letter from Begum and Muniya. It is a cheeky letter of thanks and goodbye from the women, informing the men that they have sold the priceless necklace and used the proceeds to buy a house and settle down in a faraway town whose name they withhold. Uncle and nephew are now exactly at the same situation where they were at the start of all these shenanigans—the movie ends with the duo once again surrounded by Mushtaq Bhai and his gang.
At a private party held in Mumbai,Shemaroo Entertainment andVishal Bhardwaj, who had previously producedIshqiya (2010), announced the sequel with the same cast and crew.[6]It was later announced thatVidya Balan, the heroine ofIshquiya, would not feature in the sequel. In April 2012,Madhuri Dixit signed on to play the role of Begum Para, the grey character at the center of the film; it was Dixit's first role after moving back to India from the US in November 2011.[7] The two male leadsNaseeruddin Shah andArshad Warsi were retained from the original.[8] The role of supporting actress first was offered toAsin Thottumkal but, she refused to work in a supporting role, and she said in one interview that she thought that the role is not very attractive and therefore she rejected it.Kangana Ranaut then signedDedh Ishqiya[9] and said she was going to start shooting soon.[10] However, in December 2012 she was dropped, supposedly due to persistent date issues. She was replaced byHuma Qureshi.[11] Arshad Warsi stated that he was paired with Huma and Madhuri was paired opposite Naseeruddin Shah.[12]
The shooting was initially scheduled to start in September 2012, but was shifted to November, and was further postponed even at that time, due to issues related to Kangana Ranaut's desire for an expansion of her role.[13] Shooting finally began on 27 February 2013, after she was replaced withHuma Qureshi.[14]Mahmudabad palace nearBarabanki was spruced up for the shoot.[15] The "First Look" of the film was released on 25 October 2013 and the trailer was released on 8 November 2013.
Madhuri Dixit performed amujra to the songApne Karar Mein.[16] The dance was choreographed by PanditBirju Maharaj.[17]
The music of the film was composed byVishal Bhardwaj, and the lyrics of all the songs have been written byGulzar. The song "Hamari Atariya" was originally sung byBegum Akhtar in the 1950s, and a new version was recorded with the voice ofRekha Bharadwaj. It was released first as a single on 3 December 2013. The second single "Dil Ka Mizaaj Ishqiya" sung byRahat Fateh Ali Khan was released on 13 December 2013 and the third single track "Horn OK Please" which sung byHoney Singh,Sukhwinder Singh andAnushka Manchanda was released on 24 December 2013.
The full audio album was unveiled byShemaroo Entertainment Audios on 19 December 2013.
Anupama Chopra, theHindustan Times movie critic said, "Dedh Ishqiya is worth watching just for Abhishek Chaubey's ambition. He is not constrained by the demands of the box office."[18] Giving it 5 out of 5 stars,Rediff India's movie critic Raja Sen calledDedh Ishqiya a genuinely smart film.[19]
Taran Adarsh fromBollywood Hungama also gave positive review,Ishqiya was sharp, spicy and volatile, with impulsive characters and a storyline taking a somersault every few minutes.Dedh Ishqiya is no different. It transports you to a diverse world, but like the first part, this one focuses on love and deceit as well. Also, it's far more complex this time around and the truth hits you like a ton of bricks![20]
Deepanjana Pal fromFirstpost praised director Chaubey the most, saying: "Chaubey is two films old and compared to Ishqiya, Dedh Ishqiya is far more elaborate, complicated and ambitious. Like a skipping stone, the film touches upon a variety of genres – action, comedy, romance, social critique – and Chaubey handles them deftly".[21]
In anotherFirstpost review, Mihir Fadnavis said:Dedh Ishqiya is smarter, funnier, richer and way more gorgeous than its predecessor. If you're a fan of clever lines with terrific actors, great writing, masterful direction and Urdu poetry,Dedh Ishqiya hits your sweet spot. If you don't really give a damn about any of this and just want a fun time at the movies,Dedh Ishqiya is perhaps the most hilarious thriller Bollywood has produced.[22]
There was a few negative reviews as well. Martin D'Souza from Glamsham Editorial gave the film a negative review and a score of 2/5, stating that the film opens on the wrong foot and moves at a very languid pace.[23]
Made on a budget of around₹ 370 million including promotions and marketings, Dedh Ishqiya managed to recovered₹ 408 million from the box office. It was considered commercially successful.[24][25]
Dedh Ishqiya opened with average occupancy, even though it was released on less than 1200 screens.[26][27] It collected₹30 million (US$350,000) (30 million) on its opening day.[28] The film grossed around₹115 million (US$1.3 million) (115 million) during its first weekend.[29]Dedh Ishqiya collected around₹17.5 million (US$200,000) nett on first Monday taking its four-day total to₹133 million (US$1.6 million).[30] Overseas collection ofDedh Ishqiya was around $525,000 in first weekend.[31]
In the second week,Dedh Ishqiya had a dull performance, earning just₹40.0 million (US$470,000) in the weekend and₹65 million (US$760,000) between Monday and Wednesday in the domestic box office.[32] Its performance overseas was even more dismal, bringing in₹15 million (US$180,000) (15 million) over the week, making for a worldwide grand total of₹316 million (US$3.7 million) (316 million) in two weeks. This effectively ended the theatrical run of the film, because in the third week,Dedh Ishqiya lost almost all its screens toJai Ho.
| Award | Date of ceremony[a] | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BIG Star Entertainment Awards | 18 December 2014 | Most Entertaining Thriller Film | Abhishek Chaubey,Raman Maroo andVishal Bhardwaj | Nominated | [33] |
| Most Entertaining Actor in a Thriller Film – Male | Arshad Warsi | Nominated | |||
| Most Entertaining Actor in a Comedy Film – Male | Nominated | ||||
| Most Entertaining Actor in a Thriller Film – Female | Huma Qureshi | Nominated | |||
| Madhuri Dixit | Nominated | ||||
| Filmfare Awards | 31 January 2015 | Best Actress | Nominated | [34] | |
| Best Female Playback Singer | Rekha Bhardwaj (for "Hamari Atariya Pe") | Nominated | |||
| Best Dialogue | Vishal Bhardwaj | Nominated | |||
| Best Production Design | Subrata Chakraborty and Amit Ray | Nominated | |||
| Best Costume Design | Payal Saluja | Nominated | |||
| International Indian Film Academy Awards | 5–7 June 2015 | Best Supporting Actress | Huma Qureshi | Nominated | [35] |
| Producers Guild Film Awards | 11 January 2015 | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Nominated | [36] [37] | |
| Best Cinematography | Satyajit Pande (SETU) | Won | |||
| Best Art Direction | Subrata Chakraborty and Amit Ray | Won | |||
| Best Costume Design | Payal Saluja | Won | |||
| Best Choreography | Birju Maharaj (for "Jagave Saari Raina") | Nominated | |||
| Screen Awards | 14 January 2015 | Best Ensemble Cast | Dedh Ishqiya | Nominated | [38] [39] |
| Best Actor in a Negative Role – Male | Vijay Raaz | Nominated | |||
| Best Actor in a Negative Role – Female | Huma Qureshi | Won | |||
| Madhuri Dixit | Nominated | ||||
| Best Female Playback Singer | Rekha Bhardwaj (for "Hamari Atariya Pe") | Nominated | |||
| Stardust Awards | 14 December 2014 | Best Actor in a Drama | Naseeruddin Shah | Nominated | [40] [41] |
| Best Actress in a Drama | Madhuri Dixit | Nominated | |||
| Breakthrough Performance – Female | Huma Qureshi | Won |