Kal Ho Naa Ho
| Kal Ho Naa Ho | |
|---|---|
| File:KalHoNaaHo1.jpg Kal Ho Naa Ho poster | |
| Directed by | Nikhil Advani |
| Written by | Niranjan Iyengar Karan Johar |
| Produced by | Karan Johar Yash Johar |
| Starring | Jaya Bachchan Shahrukh Khan Saif Ali Khan Preity Zinta |
| Cinematography | Anil Mehta |
| Edited by | Sanjay Sankla |
| Music by | Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy |
| Distributed by | Dharma Productions Yash Raj Films |
Release date | 28 November 2003 |
Running time | 184 mins |
| Country | India |
| Languages | Hindi English |
Kal Ho Naa Ho (Template:Lang-hi, Template:Lang-ur, literally Tomorrow May Not Be) is a 2003 Hindi film set in New York City. It stars Jaya Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Preity Zinta, and Saif Ali Khan. The film was directed by first-timer Nikhil Advani; it was produced and co-written by Karan Johar, better known as the director of the hit films Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998) and Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham (2001). The movie is also noted for its soundtrack, which was a huge commercial and critical success and earned the composers Shankar Ehsaan Loy National Film Award for Best Music Direction.
Unlike with many other Hindi productions, the film's makers also complied with international copyright laws and obtained the license to use Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman" for an extended musical sequence taking place in the streets in New York.[1] The film eventually grossed over Rs 600 million worldwide. It became the second top-grossing movie in India and the top-grossing Bollywood film in the overseas market that year.[2][3]
The film was screened at the Valenciennes, Era New Horizons, Marrakech International and Helsinki Film Festival.
Plot
Naina Catherine Kapoor (Preity Zinta) is an angry young woman, for more than one reason. Her father committed suicide when she needed him the most, leaving her mother Jennifer (Jaya Bachchan) to raise their two young children all alone. The restaurant Jennifer operates is faltering. Furthermore, Naina's paternal grandmother, Lajjo (Sushma Seth), blames Jennifer for the suicide and refuses to accept Gia (Jhanak Shukla), a six-year-old girl whom Jennifer adopted, as her granddaughter, blaming her for bringing bad luck to the family. Naina has to put up with the daily fights that take place in the house as a result. The bright spots in her life are the toiling and tolerant Jennifer and Naina's bumbling MBA classmate Rohit (Saif Ali Khan)
Aman Mathur (Shahrukh Khan) arrives in Naina's neighbourhood and soon changes everything. Noticing the sadness of his new neighbours, he intervenes. His well-meaning interference in their activities, his revival of their financial condition, and his general optimism soon change their lives for the better. Although Naina is initially reluctant to enjoy Aman's presence as others do and is irritated by his extroverted, overly-enthusiastic attitude, she grows to like him and eventually falls in love with him.
Meanwhile, her friend Rohit has been in love with her. On Aman's encouragement, he calls Naina for lunch but before he can confess to her, she reveals her love for Aman. Rohit informs Aman about this and leaves shortly for his parents' home. Naina goes to Aman's house where, to stop her from confessing her feelings to him, Aman tells her that he is married to a woman named Priya (Sonali Bendre) who actually is his doctor.
Aman, it is revealed, is dying of a severe condition that is progressively weakening his heart. Knowing that his lifespan is limited, he goes through life facilitating friendships and courtship, and urging people to enjoy themselves in the present moment since "tomorrow might never come". His excursions into such altruism eventually lead him to sacrifice his love for Naina and instead play matchmaker between her and Rohit. After a few weeks of courtship, Naina starts to like Rohit as more than just a friend and accepts his proposal of marriage.
The tension within Naina's family also stops when Aman, after accidentally intercepting a personal letter addressed to Jennifer, reveals that Gia is Naina's half-sister through their father's extramarital affair. Jennifer's selfless acceptance of her husband's infidelity is what led to his suicide. Lajjo finally accepts Gia, and the now-united family wholeheartedly prepare for Rohit and Naina's wedding.
As the film progresses, Aman's health deteriorates. At the engagement party of Rohit and Naina, an episode of intense excitement nearly kills him. Naina, in a chance encounter, meets Priya, Aman's supposed wife, and learns that she is actually his doctor. She then realises that Aman had lied about his being married to hide his true condition, and possibly, the fact that he may love her in return. She goes to see Aman, and although he defiantly refuses to admit his true feelings, she finally understands that he loves her as well. Aman convinces her to get married to Rohit anyway, because he will not be alive for much longer. Naina agrees, and shortly after Rohit and Naina marry. Aman eventually dies of his weakness, with Rohit, Naina, and family by his side.
Many years later, we see an older Naina relating the story of Aman's selfless love to a grown Gia, her own daughter, and Rohit.
Cast
| Actor/Actress | Role |
|---|---|
| Shahrukh Khan | Aman Mathur |
| Saif Ali Khan | Rohit Patel |
| Preity Zinta | Naina Catherine Kapur |
| Jaya Bachchan | Jennifer Kapur |
| Sushma Seth | Lajjo Kapur |
| Reema Lagoo | Aman's mother |
| Lillete Dubey | Jaswinder Kapoor aka "Jazz" Kapoor |
| Delnaaz Paul | Jasprit Kapoor aka "Sweetu" Kapoor |
| Athit Naik | Shiv Kapur |
| Jhanak Shukla | Gia Kapur |
| Dara Singh | Chaada Uncle |
| Shoma Anand | Kammo Kapur |
| Kamini Khanna | Vimmo Kapur |
| Sonali Bendre | Priya, Aman's doctor (Special Appearance) |
| Ketki Dave | Rohit's Mother |
| Satish Shah | Rohit's Father |
| Sulabha Arya | Kanta Bhen |
| Simone Singh | Camilla |
| Rajpal Yadav | Guru |
| Anaita Shroff Adajania | Gita |
| Sanjay Kapoor | Priya's husband (Guest Appearance) |
| Kajol | Guest Appearance for the song Maahi Ve |
| Rani Mukerji | Guest Appearance for the song Maahi Ve |
| Uday Chopra | Day Sixth announcer (Guest Appearance) |
Crew
- Director: Nikhil Advani
- Producer: Yash Johar and Karan Johar
- Writer: Karan Johar
- Dialogues: Niranjan Iyengar
- Music Director: Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani and Loy Mendonsa
- Lyrics: Javed Akhtar
- Editing: Sanjay Sankla
- Choreography: Farah Khan
- Cinematography: Anil Mehta
- Costume design: Manish Malhotra
Production
Pre-production of the film began in 2003. Kareena Kapoor was initially the first choice for Naina, but due to money issues she refused the role.[4] Preity Zinta was the immediate next choice,[5] and according to the director of the film, Nikhil Advani, "Somewhere at the back of my mind she [Zinta] was always Naina Catherine Kapur. She understands that lifestyle. She didn't have to do anything."[5]
Shooting began in 2003 in New York City. A major portion of the movie was also shot in Toronto due to production costs in New York City.[6]
Reception
Kal Ho Naa Ho was the second Bollywood film to attain wide release in Germany in early 2005 (the first was Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham). The Hindi title was translated as Lebe und denke nicht an morgen ("Live, and do not think about tomorrow") but the film was generally publicized under the English title Indian Love Story.[7] Since the film's release, Bollywood movies have become increasingly popular in Germany, and other Indian films have also been shown on prime time television and have sold well on DVD.[8]
The movie was released in Poland in May 2006 as Gdyby jutra nie bylo (If Tomorrow Never Comes),[9] and in France in 2005 as New-York Masala.[7]
Soundtrack
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
The soundtrack of the film was released on 27 September 2003 in various formats. The official launch took place on 29 September at Mumbai's Taj Lands End's banquet hall, Salcette.[10] The music is conducted by award-winning trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, with lyrics authored by Javed Akhtar. The rights to Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman" were bought for use as the title of one of the songs and part of an otherwise original song.[1]
The music went on to do well at the charts, and became one of the most successful music albums of the year.[11] The title track, Kal Ho Naa Ho, was particularly notable; it won the Zee Cine Award Best Track of the Year, and won Sonu Nigam the Best Playback Singer Male at the Filmfare and at the National Film Award ceremonies, respectively. Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy won their first Filmfare Best Music Director Award for this soundtrack, as well as the National Film Award for Best Music Direction.
| Song | Singer(s) | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Kal Ho Naa Ho | Sonu Nigam | 05:23 |
| Kuch To Hua Hai | Shaan, Alka Yagnik | 05:22 |
| It's The Time To Disco | Vasundhara Das, KK, Shaan, Loy Mendonsa | 05:35 |
| Maahi Ve | Udit Narayan, Sonu Nigam, Sadhana Sargam, Shankar Mahadevan, Sujata Bhattacharya ( Madhushree ) | 06:09 |
| Pretty Woman | Shankar Mahadevan, Ravi "Rags" Khote | 05:55 |
| Kal Ho Naa Ho - Sad | Alka Yagnik, Richa Sharma, & Sonu Nigam | 05:38 |
| Heartbeat | Instrumental | 04:28 |
Awards
Kal Ho Naa Ho received many awards and nominations. The awards it won are highlighted in bold:
See also
References
- ^ a b Hirani Nautiyal, Kanak (14 January 2004). "Beat it with borrowed tunes". The Times of India. Retrieved 2008-04-20.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Box Office 2003". BoxOfficeIndia.Com. Retrieved 2008-04-26.
- ^ "Overseas Earnings (Figures in Ind Rs)". BoxOfficeIndia.Com. Retrieved 2008-04-26.
- ^ "SRK, Preity, Saif's love song". Rediff.com. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
- ^ a b Verma, Sukanya (26 November 2003). "KHNH bigger than KMG? I hope!". Rediff.com. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
- ^ Bhandari, Aparita (2004-01-06). "Bollywood extends its reach". Toronto Star. pp. CO7.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ a b "Release dates for Kal Ho Naa Ho". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-07-27.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Jaffer, Mehru (February 2006). "Adding some spice: Bollywood is proving to be a big hit in Europe". Hardnews. Retrieved 2008-07-27.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Gdyby jutra nie było on filmweb.pl
- ^ Verma, Sukanya (30 September 2003). "The Karan Johar show!". Rediff.com. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
- ^ "Music Hits 2000-2009 (Figures in Units)". BoxOffice India.Com. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
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