| Jackie | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster |
|
| Directed by | Duniya Soori |
| Produced by | Parvathamma Rajkumar (Kannada) Nadella Sujatha (Telugu)[1] |
| Written by | Duniya Soori |
| Starring |
|
| Music by | V. Harikrishna |
| Cinematography | Satya Hegde |
| Editing by | Deepu S Kumar |
| Studio | Poornima Enterprises |
| Release date(s) | 14 October 2010 (Kannada) 6 May 2011 (Telugu)[2] |
| Running time | 126 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Kannada Telugu Malayalam |
| Budget | 7 crores |
| Box office | 30 crores (first month)[3] |
Jackie (Kannada: ಜಾಕಿ, Telugu: జాకి) is a 2010 Indian multilingual film[4] directed by Soori and features Kannada actor Puneet Rajkumar and Bhavana Menon in the lead roles.[5] It was released in Kannada on 14 October, 2010 to a critical acclaim[6] and was adjudged the Best Film of 2010 at the South Filmfare Awards.[7] Telugu version was released on 6 May, 2011[2] while Malayalam version release date is yet to be announced.[8][9]
The film is noted for its technical prowess, witty dialogs and lyrics, combined with an art that has become a trademark of Soori's rustic feel cinema.[10] Music was composed by V. Harikrishna with Yograj Bhat as the lyricist for all the songs in Kannada. The album, which celebrated its platinum disc, is also available as a 5.1 audio DVD disc.[11] After successful screening in Australia, United Kingdom and Germany, Jackie was released in the USA and Singapore in Feb 2011.[12]
Contents |
Janakirama alias Jackie (Puneet Rajakumar) is an 8th standard drop-out living with his mother Jayamma who operates a flour mill in a village. Jackie is a guy who dreams of making it big; but not by hard work. He is an expert card player and thinks he can repay all his debts with earnings from it. He does every job and hopes he would one day make it big as a realtor. He is talkative and uses the opportunities around him to eke out a living. In the locality where he lives, a priest's daughter Yashodha (Harshika Poonacha), is in love with a photo studio owner who is actually a conduit for a human trafficker and asks Jackie to help her get married. Jackie initially tries to help but when the priest questions him, he decides to cop out of the issue respecting the aged father's feelings.
Losing all hope, Yashodha elopes with her lover, along with a blind girl. The priest is under the impression that Jackie is the mediator in this case. So it becomes responsibility of Jackie to trace Yashodha and the blind girl. Meanwhile, Jackie is followed by police as he has sheltered a friend who has fled from the prison and a cop gets killed during the escapade. In the dense forest, he averts a ritual of human sacrifice where Lakshmi (Bhavana Menon) is the intended victim. The trouble shoots up for Jackie again as even the wrong-doers are chasing him now. As he lands up in Bengaluru, he finds out that the blind girl who went with Yashodha is dead. He gets a clue of Prasanna alias Jooli when he becomes friendly to constable Bheemanna (Rangayana Raghu) which leads to suspicious activities of a gang transporting girls to abroad in oil tankers, headed by Mithai Rama (Ravi Kale). Jackie is on the hunt for the dangerous team and as the police from other part also follow Jackie, it is where the cinema finds a happy-ending climax.
With a budget of 7 crores, the production of the film started on 3 March at Kantheerava Studio and took place for 95 days in Bengaluru, Mysore, Italy and Namibia.[13] The film is the home production of Dr. Rajkumar’s family under the banner of Poornima Enterprises. Jackie is Puneet’s 15th film and his first with Duniya Soori. The movie saw the debut of Malayalam actress Bhavana in Kannada language films.[14]
Director Soori, who is known for maintaining his script and characters a secret, had earlier revealed that the film is about how life takes a turn for Jackie and the way he faces the challenges and added that the film will be different from Puneet’s earlier films. Soori, however, was initially "scared" to be directing a Puneet Rajkumar flick just because of the enormous expectations from the audience.[15] SnorriCam has been used extensively in the film's song and stunt sequences giving it a point-of-view feel.
Remake rights was purchased by NS Rajkumar, who is dubbing the Kannada film to Telugu and Malayalam languages for a 2011 release.[16]
Director Soori, Kannada lyricist Yograj Bhat and music director V. Harikrishna appear on-screen during the title track of the film.[17]
Jackie, which has been the most fancied project for Kannada film fans and film distributors in 2010, received a grand opening which is unprecedented in the annals of Kannada film industry after it was purchased by distributors at astronomical prices many days before the film's release.[18] Jackie was released on 14 October, 2010 in over 130 theaters all over Karnataka apart from 3 in Tamil Nadu and a multiplex in Hyderabad. The film, which was initially slated for a late September release, was later postponed to October owing to pending work on digital grading.[19][20] Releasing in more than 150 theaters in Karnataka, and over 50 worldwide, it opened up to record earnings in the history of Kannada cinema, only to be surpassed by Upendra's more recent blockbuster movie Super.[21]
Jackie is being released overseas by Bevin Exports in the countries of Australia, UK, Singapore, Germany, US, Dubai and New Zealand among others.[22] The same firm had earlier released other Kannada blockbusters like Mungaaru Male and Aramane worldwide. The global distribution will be on a 50:50 sharing between Poornima Enterprises and Bevin Exports.[23]
It was screened in Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth on Nov 7 where it was well-received by the audience which also consisted of non-Kannadigas. Similar reception was reported in Germany where screening took place in mid-December.[24] In the UK, it was screened in the months of Nov and Dec in association with Gandhadagudi Movies Team.[25] The film was part of the Indian Melbourne Film Festival on Dec 29.[26] In USA, Jackie was released in a phase-wise manner from 2nd week of Jan 2011. In its first phase, screening was held in San Francisco and Bay Area.[27] In the next phase, the movie was screened in Los Angeles, New Jersey, Dallas and Houston. In Singapore, it was screened on Mar 6, 2011.[28]
The Telugu version of Jackie is produced by Nadella Sujatha through Suraj Films studio and was released in the state of Andhra Pradesh on 6 May, 2011.[2]
Jackie was well received by critics. It was given 4/5 rating by Times of India with a consensus that "the brilliant narration keeps one hooked to the seat from the beginning to the end. The story is not only entertaining but quick-paced too, with expressive and punchy dialogues."[29] The technical team consisting of award-winning cinematographer Sathya Hegde, art director Shashidhar Adapa, stuntmen Ravi Verma and Different Danny, spearheaded by Soori, won accolades from fans and critics alike,[30] as did the performance of Puneet Rajkumar playing the protagonist Jackie "who has outdone himself playing the character that's rustic and local, yet charming and suave" - according to DNA India review.[31]
It completed 50 days at more than 65 centers,[32] and celebrated 100 days screening by distributing free meals to orphans an entire day.[33] Considered as a blockbuster of 2010, the film grossed over 30 crores in 25 days of its release[34] which is unprecedented in the annals of Kannada cinema. The film's release significantly affected the box-office collection of non-Kannada films that were released at around the same time.[35][36]
Reacting to the movie's international success, Raghavendra Rajkumar, who is the total in-charge of the movie, posted on his facebook wall that the film was "rocking abroad, in all major countries" and opined that it should pave way for Kannada movie industry's market expansion to foreign frontiers.[37]
| Jackie | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by V. Harikrishna | |
| Released | August 2010 |
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack |
| Label | Anand Audio |
Jackie Kannada soundtrack was released in the month of August, 2010. In a first of its kind, audio was simultaneously released over Bluetooth by a Bengaluru-based company called TELiBrahma.[40][41] TELiBrahma developed an exclusive mobile application for the film and distributed it across about 100 of its proprietary technology called BluFi locations in Bengaluru. Considered a success, this campaign resulted in nearly 55,000 downloads in 16 days.[42]
Overall, the commercial reception of the album was successful with 20,000 audio CDs being sold on the first day.[43] The music album was released again on a 5.1 Audio DVD during platinum disc celebration on Dec 27, 2010.[44]
| Track # | Song | Singer(s) | Lyricist |
| 1 | Shiva Antha Hogutidde | Tippu | Yograj Bhat |
| 2 | Eradu Jadeyannu | Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal | Yograj Bhat |
| 3 | Ekka Raja Rani | Kailash Kher | Yograj Bhat |
| 4 | Edavatt Aytu | Puneet Rajkumar, Priya Himesh | Yograj Bhat |
| 5 | Jackie Jackie | Naveen Madhav | Yograj Bhat |
Leaked Song
The soundtrack of the film created quite a stir before the audio release when the song "Ekka Raja Rani" was leaked on Youtube.[45] This song, though unfinished, became quite popular with listeners.[46]
| Track # | Song | Singer | Lyricist |
| 1 | Ekka Raja Rani | Tippu | Yograj Bhat |
Telugu version audio release was held on Feb 26, 2011 at Hotel Daspalla in Hyderabad with Telugu film personalities Allu Arjun and Akkineni Nageswara Rao as chief guests.[47] Bhuvana Chandra, Vennelakanti and Vanamali have composed the Telugu lyrics.[48]
| Track # | Song | Singer(s) | Lyricist |
| 1 | Shivaletti Pothunnanu | Tippu | Bhuvana Chandra |
| 2 | Jadalo Virajajey | Rakhi, Harini | Vennelakanti |
| 3 | Aasu Raju Rani | Murali | Vennelakanti |
| 4 | Kissu Missu | Tippu, Veena Ghantasala | Vennelakanti |
| 5 | Poleramma Jatarlona | Tippu | Vanamali |