Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna

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Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna

Movie poster for Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
Directed by Karan Johar
Produced by Dharma Productions
Written by Karan Johar
Starring Amitabh Bachchan,
Shahrukh Khan
Rani Mukerji,
Preity Zinta,
Abhishek Bachchan,
Kirron Kher
Music by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Cinematography Anil Mehta
Editing by Sanjay Sankla
Distributed by Dharma Productions
Release date(s) August 11, 2006
Running time 193 Min.
Language Hindi / English
Budget $ 18 million Rs 70 Crore
IMDb profile

Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (Devanagari: कभी अलविदा न कहना, Nastaliq: کبھی الوداع نہ کہنا, English: (Never Say Good Bye) is a 2006 Bollywood film directed by Karan Johar and produced under the Dharma Productions banner. Released on August 11, 2006 in India and North America, it stars Amitabh Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, Preity Zinta, Abhishek Bachchan and Kirron Kher in pivotal roles.

Set and mostly filmed in New York City, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna is a romantic drama film which explores themes of adultery and extramarital affairs. Although more of a moderate success in India which its earnings waning at the box office after the first week of release,[1] the film was a success internationally and in the United States it became the highest grossing Indian film of all time, beating Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham's five year old record. In the United States it grossed over $1.3 million and $1.4 million in the United Kingdom on its opening weekend and was screened in over 1,200 cinemas worldwide.[2]

The film was nominated for numerous awards and actor Abhishek Bachchan won the Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award and GIFA Best Supporting Actor Award amongst others with Rani Mukerji winning the IIFA Best Actress Award for their performances in the film.

The film was shown at the Tokyo International Film Festival. The script of the film which received recognition by a number of critics, was invited to be included in the library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences or more commonly known as the Oscars.[3]

Contents

[edit] Plot

Dev Saran (Shahrukh Khan), a successful soccer player, is unhappily married to Rhea (Preity Zinta), a hard-working woman who has a high-flying job with a fashion magazine. They have a son named Arjun. Reserved schoolteacher Maya (Rani Mukerji) is about to marry her childhood friend Rishi Talwar (Abhishek Bachchan). Samarjit a.k.a "Sexy Sam" (Amitabh Bachchan) is Rishi's dad, and Kamaljit (Kirron Kher) plays the peppy mom to Dev.

Preity Zinta and Shahrukh Khan (l-r) as Rhea and Dev
Preity Zinta and Shahrukh Khan (l-r) as Rhea and Dev

Dev happens to meet Maya right before her wedding, and despite being strangers, they connect instantly. The connection between the two remains a glowing spark that re-ignites when they meet four years later.

During those four years, Dev, who had signed a contract for $5 million to play professional football, has been hit by a car, an accident that leaves him crippled and ends his football career. Rhea takes it upon herself to look after the family, leaving Dev embittered. So when Maya meets Dev the next time, he is bitter - his failed career and failing marriage are festering wounds to which his wife Rhea's professional success acts as rubbing salt. In the Talwar home, things are no better - Maya still does not feel any love for Rishi and feels guilty for her inability to have children.

Rani Mukerji and Abhishek Bachchan (l-r) as Maya and Rishi
Rani Mukerji and Abhishek Bachchan (l-r) as Maya and Rishi

Dev and Maya realize that their situations are similar and decide to help each other repair their breaking marriages. Things do not work quite as expected however, and they become more and more drawn to each other. At the same time, Rishi and Rhea are working to keep their marriages afloat and are willing to see hope in even the smallest, most innocuous signs from their partners. However, their efforts are insignificant in the face of Maya and Dev's intense unhappiness in their marriages and their growing love for each other.

Dev and Maya give in to a dreamy, coffee-drenched romance and realize they have fallen in love. However, when Dev is about to give flowers to Maya, he sees Rhea and gives them to her so she does not see Maya. He saves one rose for Maya. She takes the rose home and Rishi sees it and Maya gives it to him. Rhea and Rishi now think that their partners really love them and are happy. But after an incident at the ballet that makes Dev intensely jealous, they realize they now feel like they are cheating on each other with their own spouses. This realization brings them to a dramatic point of no return and they sleep together. Shortly afterward, they are caught in an embrace outside the train station by Sam and Kamaljeet.

Sam, having lived the good life for a long, long time ultimately has to bear the punishment of all his excesses - he has a fatal heart attack and as he lies on his death bed, he gives Maya some unconventional advice: he tells her to leave his son Rishi since neither of them are happy in their marriage.

The Cast: Shahrukh Khan, Preity Zinta, Abhishek Bachchan and Rani Mukherjee (l-r)
The Cast: Shahrukh Khan, Preity Zinta, Abhishek Bachchan and Rani Mukherjee (l-r)

Things come to a head and Dev and Maya decide to leave each other and return to their partners. But this re-union will not be without honesty, so they come clean and confess their extramarital affair. Rishi and Rhea decide that enough is enough and end their marriages - this does not mean that Maya and Dev come together however. They only speak to each other on the phone, and lie to each other, saying that all is well in their marriages.

Three years later, Rishi goes to meet Maya and invites her to his wedding. There Rhea sees Maya for the first time in three years and realizes that she and Rishi were not together as she thought. The news that Dev is still alone, combined with some prodding from Rishi and Rhea convinces Maya to run after Dev. Dev is about to catch a train to Canada when he sees Maya. He hides from her because he has told Maya earlier that he was happy with Rhea and he thinks that she is happily married to Rishi. However, Maya finds him in his seat a few seconds before his train leaves the station. He uses the emergency brakes to get out to meet her. Realising how alone the two have been, Dev proposes to Maya and she accepts.

[edit] Cast

  • Amitabh Bachchan as Samarjit Singh Talwar a.k.a "Sexy Sam" - - A vivacious man with an appetite for the finer things in life, a womanizer and embarrassment to his son Rishi. Samarjit is portrayed as the stereotypical businessman, a man who built a sizeable empire at the expense of his relationship with his late wife. Although fun-loving and adventurous, he is a true romantic, and uses his wisdom to help his son and daughter-in-law.
  • Shahrukh Khan as Dev Saran - Handicapped, he begins looking at life with a negative mindset and finds himself unable to enjoy the smallest pleasures given by life. With a feeling of loneliness and disappointment all around him, Dev lashes out at any given opportunity including his wife. But Maya's entry in his life brings along a calming effect.
  • Rani Mukerji as Maya Talwar - Maya's inability to have children and her guilt over this strains her relationship with her husband. Doubting the very essence of the relationship they share, the love they feel for each other and the life they want to live from here on, Maya finds herself on the crossroads when she meets Dev.
  • Preity Zinta as Rhea Saran - Rhea is smart, successful and caring. She may not be the usual housewife that is generally accepted for a woman belonging to her social circle but that is hardly a worrying thought for her as she believes that everything counts in an individual's life, with love and luxuries holding equal importance.
  • Abhishek Bachchan as Rishi Talwar - Rishi too loves Maya enormously and it's she and she alone who is of utmost importance to him. But a difficult situation comes his way when he realizes about Maya's handicap. Frustrated and depressed, he has his violent fits that further draw Maya away from him.
  • Kirron Kher as Kamaljeet Saran - A mix of traditional values and a progressive mindset, she may seem unfazed by the situation at her home but puts her foot down when things go to the extreme. She is Dev's mother and Rhea's mother-in-law.
  • Ahsaas Channa as Arjun Saran (Dev and Rhea's son)
  • Arjun Rampal as Jay (Guest Appearance)
  • Saira Mohan as Catherine Cooper (Guest Appearance)
  • Kajol - Special Appearance during song "Rock N Roll Soniye"
  • John Abraham - Special Appearance during song "Where's The Party Tonight?" as the DJ person
  • Karan Johar - Special Appearance (train passenger in last sequence)

[edit] Production

Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna is set in New York City, while many of the scenes are filled nearby in East Hartford and New Haven in Connecticut. The Grand Central Station scenes were actually filmed at Philadelphia's 30th Street Station. It was filmed over a 90 day shooting period in the USA but a few scenes were shot on 4 large sets in Mumbai's studios.[4]

Rani Mukerji and Shahrukh Khan as Maya and Dev with the New York skyscrapers in the background
Rani Mukerji and Shahrukh Khan as Maya and Dev with the New York skyscrapers in the background

Like previous Karan Johar movies (Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham and Kal Ho Na Ho), Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna has a four-word title that starts with 'K'. The screenplay was co-written with Shibani Bathija.

Kajol was initially offered the role of Maya Talwar. When she refused, the role was passed on to Rani Mukerji who was supposed to play Preity Zinta's part. Ritesh Deshmukh originally had a guest appearance in this film, but his scene was cut during the editing process.

The film's score and soundtrack has been composed by the musical trio, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy with lyrics penned by Javed Akhtar.

[edit] Crew

Getting Ready on the Sets of KANK
Getting Ready on the Sets of KANK

[edit] Release

Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, with a multi-star cast, premiered on August 12, 2006 and saw a record opening at many of the cities in India and the film generated Rs 60 crore (Rs 600 million) in the first week itself. However in India interest rapidly waned after the first week, falling alarmingly from the second week .[5] The film's business started to in India, but it was very successful overseas.

The movie emerged to be the biggest worldwide grosser for an Indian film beating Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham's five year old record and opened in at least 1,200 screens worldwide.[6]

The film opened very strongly in the United States and the United Kingdom with first weekend grosses of $1.3 million in the U.S. (from 95 prints) and $1.4 million (£750,000) in the U.K respectively [7] In total Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna collected $3,275,444 USD in United States (as of 25 September 2006)[8] while in UK it netted over $8,000,000. In the US, one factor contributing to its success was the fact it debuted in 64 theatres, unusually high for a Bollywood film in cities with lower Indian populations such as Miami, Tampa, and Raleigh as well.

According to the Internet Movie Database (IMDb), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) originally gave the film an R rating because of language and some sexual content. It was re-rated PG-13 on appeal.

[edit] Reception

Preity Zinta as featured in the film
Preity Zinta as featured in the film

On its release the film received many a number of positive reviews although it generally received mixed reviews. Film critic Taran Adarsh described the subject matter of the film as a delicate one which could have easily gone wrong, and praised the way in which director Karan's boldly constructed the film and cited it has his finest work to date. He approved in particular of the script and the devices the director incorporated to contrast emotions between scenes saying "the screenplay balances the two extremes; light moments and dollops of emotions with amazing ease".[9] The individual cast performances were also praised by Adarsh, who commented on the effectiveness of the casting and the interaction of the actors. Derek Elley of Variety also praised the diversity of emotions displayed by the cast remarking that "scripter Shibani Bathija never lets her characters inhabit a secure emotional place for very long, and impediments to happiness come from their own weaknesses rather than social constraints or plot-generated misunderstandings". Elley noted Amitabh Bacchan's performance as an ageing lothario and praised Preity Zinta as "stepping far beyond her makeup".[10]

Critics such as Rachel Fernandes of Bollywoodmantra.com also praised the soundness of the script and the cinematography of the film and the way in which Anil Mehta took full advantage of the location in New York City and uses the skyscrapers and parks in various points in the film to accommodate the changing emotional balance in the dialogue. She described the music and the choreography in the film as refreshing but criticised the length of the film and believed than much editing was needed to shorten it. Whilst impressed by the general performance of the cast, she criticised certain scenes which she believed were not very convincing to the audience, such as the scene where Shahrukh and Rani meet each other after their initial meeting saying "there's too much of weird drama of the black beast which doesn’t quite fit in"[11]

Raja Sen of rediff.com was particularly critical of the film also expressing dissatisfaction with the length saying "I feel older. A showing of Karan Johar's mammoth 22-reel Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna has left me unbelievably exhausted. I walked out of the hall feeling my cheeks for stubble, wondering if my clothes are suddenly dated and my hair's grey. I've lost a sizeable chunk of my life, and you will too". Unlike other critics he identified flaws in the script and criticized the strength of characters in the film saying "The characters are cardboard, the setting is glitzy, the songs are tiresome, and the story oscillates between high melodrama and slapstick hilarity, going nowhere. Rarely has a weak script relied so completely on pretty people with big names to carry every line through".[12]

In the United States the film received a number of generally positive reviews with critics such as Neil Genzlinger of the New York Times emphasising the larger than life nature of the film saying "It is full of big Bollywood stars and outsized everything: the rainstorms are a little rainier than real life; the wind machines are cranked up an extra notch; the close-ups get closer and linger longer than usual; the coincidences that drive the plot are a little more numerous and unlikely than normal screenwriting allows". He praised the humor in the script and the director's comic timing in certain scenes such as the children's soccer match, the bed store, and at the opera.[13]

[edit] Music

The music of Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna was launched in the United Kingdom on June 12 2006 and was officially released in India on June 16 2006 along with a grand music launch at the IIFA Awards function in Dubai.

Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna cover
Studio album by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Released
June 16, 2006 (India)
Genre Feature film soundtrack
Label
Producer Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy chronology
Dil Jo Bhi Kahey...
(2005)		 Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
(2006)		 Don - The Chase Begins Again
(2006)
Song Singer(s) Duration Picturised on
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna Sonu Nigam & Alka Yagnik 8.03 Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, Preity Zinta & Abhishek Bachchan
Mitwa Shafqat Amanat Ali, Shankar Mahadevan & Caralisa 6.22 Shahrukh Khan & Rani Mukerji
Where's The Party Tonight Shaan, Vasundhara Das, Loy Mendonsa & Shankar Mahadevan 6.18 Abhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta and John Abraham.
Tumhi Dekho Naa Sonu Nigam & Alka Yagnik 5.47 Shahrukh Khan & Rani Mukerji
Mitwa Revisited Shafqat Amanat Ali, Shankar Mahadevan & Caralisa 5.32 Remixed version of Mitwa
Rock N Roll Soniye Shankar Mahadevan, Shaan & Mahalaxmi Iyer 5.41 Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta & Kajol
Farewell Trance Shweta Pandit & Caralisa 5.44 Instrumental with vocals

[edit] Awards

The list below shows the awards and nominations Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna received. The awards won are highlighted in bold:

[edit] Filmfare Awards (2007)

[edit] Global Indian Film Awards (2006)

[edit] IIFA Awards (2007)

[edit] Stardust Awards (2007)

[edit] Star Screen Awards (2007)

[edit] AIFA Awards (2007)

  • Best Music Director - Shankar Eshaan loy
  • Best Director - Karan Johar
  • Best Film - Karan Johar
  • Best Actor - Shahrukh Khan
  • Best Actress - Rani Mukerji
  • Best Supporting Actress - Preity Zinta
  • Best Supporting Actor - Abhishek Bachan
  • Best Female Singer - Alka Yagnik - Tumhi Dekho Naa
  • Best Lyricist - Javed Akhtar - Mitwa
  • Best Choreographer - Farah Khan - Tumhi Dekho Naa

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ boxofficeindia.com. KANK falls after 1st week. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  2. ^ sify.com. KANK opens in 1,200 screens. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  3. ^ indiafm.com. Script of KANK invited to Oscar library. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  4. ^ Official website of Dharma Productions, Retrieved January 31, 2008
  5. ^ boxofficeindia.com. KANK falls after 1st week. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  6. ^ sify.com. KANK opens in 1,200 screens. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  7. ^ boxofficeindia.com. KANK declared a hit in India. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  8. ^ boxofficemojo.com. Box office results in USA. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  9. ^ Indiafm.com. Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, by Taran Arash. Retrieved on August 11, 2006.
  10. ^ Variety. Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, by Derek Elley. Retrieved on August 16, 2006.
  11. ^ Bollywoodmantra.com by Rachel Fernandes, Retrieved January 31, 2008
  12. ^ Rediff.com. KANK is an exhausting film by Raja Sen. Retrieved on August 11, 2006.
  13. ^ New York Times. Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, a Bollywood Divorce Tale by Neil Genzlingler. Retrieved on August 12, 2006.
  14. ^ altfg.com. Rani wins Best Actress at IIFA. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  15. ^ indiafm.com. Abhishek wins Best Supporting at Stardust Awards. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.
  16. ^ starplus.indya.com. Star Screen Award nominations 2007. Retrieved on 10 August 2007.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Films by Karan Johar
Film directed
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai  (1998) • Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham  (2001) • Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006) • My Name is Khan  (2009)
Films produced
Duplicate  (1998) • Kuch Kuch Hota Hai  (1998) • Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham  (2001) • Kal Ho Naa Ho  (2003) • Kaal  (2005) • Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna  (2006) • My Name is Khan  (2009)
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