Omkara (film)

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Omkara

Movie poster for Omkara
Directed by Vishal Bharadwaj
Produced by Kumar Mangat
Ketan Maroo
Neelam Pathak
Written by Vishal Bharadwaj
Robin Bhatt
Abhishek Chaubhey
Starring Ajay Devgan
Vivek Oberoi
Saif Ali Khan
Kareena Kapoor
Konkona Sen Sharma
Bipasha Basu
Naseeruddin Shah
Music by Vishal Bharadwaj
Cinematography Tassaduq Hussain
Editing by Meghna Manchanda
Distributed by Big Screen Entertainer
Release date(s) July 28, 2006
Country India
Language Hindi
IMDb profile

Omkara, Hindi: ओमकारा, Urdu: امکارا , an interpretation of the classic Othello is a Hindi film directed by Vishal Bharadwaj and starring Ajay Devgan, Saif Ali Khan, Bipasha Basu, Vivek Oberoi, Kareena Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah and Konkona Sen Sharma in lead roles. The score and soundtrack of the film has been composed by Vishal Bharadwaj himself with lyrics by Gulzar. The film is Vishal Bharadwaj's interpretation of William Shakespeare's play, Othello. Shooting for the film began in March and has been completed. A 10 minute preview of the film was showcased during Cannes Film Festival in Cannes. The film was released on July 28, 2006

Contents

[edit] Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Omkara or Omi (Ajay Devgan) is initially the 'General' or enforcer of a political party, leading a group which includes the crafty Langda Tyagi (Saif Ali Khan) and the dynamic Kesu (Vivek Oberoi) amongst his chief cohorts. The story begins when Omi appoints Kesu and not Langda as his successor once he enters politics himself. Langda's pride is slighted and raging with envy, he hatches a plot to falsely implicate Omi's beautiful lover Dolly Mishra (Kareena Kapoor), in a love affair with Omi's “favorite lieutenant”, Kesu. With the unwitting aid of Indu (Konkona Sen Sharma), Langda's wife, and the willing help of Raju, a fellow grouch, Langda's plan takes shape and results in horrific tragedy. Using petty insinuations and lies, Langda keeps poisoning Omi's mind till one day it snaps and Omi goes about tearing up his own safe and secure world. By the time he realizes what he has done and the backlash of his actions it is too late.

Spoilers end here.

[edit] Characters

  • Omkara "Omi" Shukla - Omkara is a combination of greatness and weakness. A principled man of action, he does not see life in midtones. He sees life either as good or evil. Therein lies Omi's tragic flaw.
  • Ishwar "Langda" Tyagi - The principal catalyst in the story, Langda manipulates chaos into an orderly world and coldly invigilates its utter destruction. Tragically, the one person who truly loves him is the one who will have to settle the scores.
  • Dolly Mishra - Dolly's love and trust for Omi remains rock steady till the end. Smitten by him, she believes that the idyllic life of her dreams will begin soon.
  • Keshav "Kesu Firangi" Upadhyay - Kesu is a natural charmer. He likes his woman as much as he loves his guns. In spite of his first skin, he manages to fall in love with Billo, an orchestra party singer. Fearless and loyal to the bone, Kesu's only chink is his impatience and he pays for it in blood.
  • Bhaisaab - An influential cog in the Brahmin politics of the region, Bhaisaab is a sophisticated man, which can be misleading at times, given the ruthless nature of his profession. Omi treats him more like a father figure than just a political mentor.
  • Billo - Billo's wiles and charms has seen the sternest men melt with her desire. Kesu is besotted with her but she just keep him hanging on. A capricious soul, she is easily sucked into Langda's master scheme.
  • Indu - Life with an unscrupulous gangster was always going to be tricky but Indu bore it all with stern determination. Fiercely devoted to Langda, she becomes an unwitting aid in her husband's nefarious scheme. When the truth dawns, she takes up the cudgel and decides to stem the rot.

[edit] Shooting Location

Omkara *** was shot over a period of 4 months across various locales, including Lonavala, Lucknow University, Allahabad, Bodh Gaya, Mahabaleshwar, Wai and Mumbai. Bulk of the shooting for the film took place in Wai Maharashtra. Even though most of the shooting took place in Maharashtra, sets were erected with precise details to create an authentic Uttar Pradesh village.

[edit] Cast

Still from the film featuring (l-r) Saif Ali Khan and Ajay Devgan
Still from the film featuring (l-r) Saif Ali Khan and Ajay Devgan
Actor Character in the movie Character in the play
Ajay Devgan Omkara 'Omi' Shukla Othello
Saif Ali Khan Ishwar 'Langda' Tyagi Iago
Vivek Oberoi Keshav 'Kesu' Firangi Cassio
Kareena Kapoor Dolly Mishra Desdemona
Konkona Sen Sharma Indu Emilia
Bipasha Basu Billo Chamanbahar Bianca
Naseeruddin Shah Bhaisaab Duke of Venice

[edit] Crew

[edit] Music

The film has eight songs composed by Vishal Bharadwaj:

  • Namak - Rekha Bharadwaj & Rakesh Pandit
  • Laakad - Rekha Bharadwaj

[edit] Trivia

  • This is Vishal Bharadwaj's third interpretation of a literary classic after Maqbool which was based on William Shakespeare's Macbeth and Chatri Chor which was based on Ruskin Bond's The Blue Umbrella.
  • An audience poll was held to decide the title of the film which will either be Omkara, Issak or O Saathi Re. Omkara was the winner. However, all three of the possible titles are songs on the soundtrack of Omkara (Issak being another name for the song Namak).
  • All characters in Omkara share the same alphabet or sound in their first name as in the original Shakespeare classic.
  • Going along with the last point, Saif Ali Khan's character's name is actually Ishwar "Langda" Tyagi. He is referred to as Langda by everyone due to the way he walks.
  • Saif Ali Khan literally shaved his head to get in the character of Langda Tyagi.
  • A book on the making of Omkara has been released by producer Kumar Mangat and presenters Shemaroo Films.
  • It is one of the few mainstream Indian movies to contain uncensored abuse.[1]
  • There was a shot where Saif Ali Khan is in the shadows, looking at a mirror. Vishal Bharadwaj suggested that it would be very artistic and beautiful if Saif did it naked. The actor answered, "I am prepared to do that as long as you direct me naked." That was the end of the topic.
  • Saif Ali Khan bagged the Best Actor In A Negative Role in every award ceremony that he was nominated in.
  • Omkara was the only Indian entry in the Cairo International Film Festival. [2]
  • Omkara dominated the 52nd FairOne Filmfare Awards, by bagging a total of nine awards. [3]
  • Director Vishal Bharadwaj and actors Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan were the only ones to be nominated in their respective categories at every award ceremony whereas Bipasha Basu and Vivek Oberoi didn't receive a single nomination. Actors Ajay Devgan and Konkona Sen Sharma received 3 and 6 nominations respectively.

[edit] Quotes

All the dialogues in the film are delivered in a strong UP dialect of Hindi, with many memorable quotes. They were also considered very bold because of their open use of swear words.[citation needed]

The movie opens to Langda (Saif Ali Khan) saying the following line.

Bewakoof aur chutiya mein dhaage barabar farak hota hai. Dhage ke henge bewakoof aur hunge, chutiya. Dhaga khench lo to kaun hai bewakoof kaun hai chutiya, carore rupiye ka prashan hai bhaiya. Zara dhenkhe to sahie dulhe raja ko. Ainkhen! Tu to bewakoof hain na...?

Translated to

A thin line (or thread) separates the fool from the chutiya(idiot). On one end of the line lies the fool and on the other, the idiot. Upon snapping the line it's a million dollar question as to who's the fool and who's the idiot, my friend. Let's see the face of the pretty bridegroom now. Well, I'll be damned. Surely you are the fool, right?

[edit] Response

[edit] Box office

Omkara had a poor opening at the box office in India. The dark theme and strong language kept away family audiences. It was however a grand success abroad. The film quickly entered the UK's Top Ten. [4] and also did very well in Australia and the United States. [5] The soundtrack, with its original tunes, was a great hit. The song Beedi is considered to be the biggest hit among all the item songs in 2006.

[edit] Reviews

Though the film was not a huge success in India, it was critically acclaimed universally. Rediff.com writes: "Vishal Bhardwaj's film is a superlative-exhausting work of passion and tribute, skill and style...Spellbinding stuff". The film was praised for it's taut script, brilliantly executed drama sequences and it's lead performances. Kareena Kapoor's performance was considered to be the finest of her films. However, Saif Ali Khan drew the most praise for his villainous role as Langda Tyagi. [6]

[edit] Awards & Nominations

The awards it won are highlighted in bold.

[edit] Filmfare Awards

[edit] Star Screen Awards

[edit] Zee Cine Awards

[edit] International Indian Film Academy Awards

(Results still pending)

[edit] Stardust Awards

[edit] Sports World Awards

  • Best Film - Shemaroo & Kumar Mangat
  • Best Director - Vishal Bharadwaj
  • Best Actress - Kareena Kapoor
  • Best Supporting Actress - Konkona Sen Sharma
  • Best Actor In A Villanous Role - Saif Ali Khan
  • Jodi of the Year - Ajay Devgan & Kareena Kapoor
  • Best Lyrics - Gulzar (Beedi)
  • Best Music - Vishal Bharadwaj
  • Best Playback Singer (Male) - Sukhwinder Singh (Omkara)
  • Best Playback Singer (Female) - Sunidhi Chauhan (Beedi)
  • Best Playback Singer (Female) - Shreya Goshal (O Saathi Re)
  • Best Choreographer - Ganesh Acharya (Beedi)

[edit] Global Indian Film Awards

  • Best Film - Shemaroo & Kumar Mangat
  • Best Director - Vishal Bharadwaj
  • Best Actor - Ajay Devgan
  • Best Actress - Kareena Kapoor
  • Best Actor in A Villainous Role - Saif Ali Khan
  • Best Music - Vishal Bharadwaj
  • Best Lyrics - Gulzar (Omkara)
  • Best Lyrics - Gulzar (O Saathi Re)
  • Best Playback Singer (Male) - Sukhwinder Singh (Omkara)
  • Best Playback Singer (Female) - Sunidhi Chauhan (Beedi)
  • Best Playback Singer (Female) - Shreya Goshal (O Saathi Re)
  • Best Choreographer - Ganesh Acharya (Beedi)
  • Best Cinematography - Tassaduq Hussain

[edit] Other Awards

  • Cairo International Film Festival: Best Artistic Contribution in Cinema of a Director - Vishal Bharadwaj
  • Kara Film Festival: Best Actor - Saif Ali Khan
  • Kara Film Festival: Best Music Director - Vishal Bharadwaj
  • Kara Film Festival: Best Adapted Screenplay - Vishal Bharadwaj & Robin Bhatt

[edit] External links

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