| Saawariya | |
|---|---|
Movie poster for Saawariya |
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| Directed by | Sanjay Leela Bhansali |
| Produced by | Sanjay Leela Bhansali |
| Written by | Prakash Kapadia Vibhu Puri |
| Based on | White Nights by Fyodor Dostoyevski |
| Starring | Ranbir Kapoor Sonam Kapoor Salman Khan Rani Mukerji Zohra Sehgal |
| Music by | Monty Sharma |
| Cinematography | Ravi K. Chandran |
| Editing by | Sanjay Leela Bhansali |
| Studio | Filmcity Filmistan Mehboob Studio R. K. Studio |
| Distributed by | SLB Films |
| Release date(s) | 9 November 2007 |
| Running time | 140 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi/Urdu/English |
| Budget | INR 40 crore US$ 10.18 Million |
Saawariya (Hindi: :सावरिया, Urdu: ساوریا, translation: My Love) is a 2007 Hindi film based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's short story "White Nights".
Co-produced by Sony Pictures Entertainment and released on 9 November 2007, it is the first Bollywood movie to receive a North American release by a Hollywood studio,[1] shortly preceding Walt Disney Pictures' animated feature Roadside Romeo (2008), and Warner Bros.' Chandni Chowk to China.[1] Additionally, it is one of the first Bollywood films to be released on Blu-ray Disc.[2]
The film marks the debut of both Ranbir Kapoor (son of actors Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh) and Sonam Kapoor (daughter of Anil Kapoor).[3] It also stars Rani Mukerji and Salman Khan in cameos and Zohra Sehgal in a supporting role.
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The story first introduces Gulabji (Rani Mukherji), a prostitute who frequents RK Bar (the town's most luxurious club) who is the story's narrator. The bar's lead singer, Ranbir Raj (Ranbir Kapoor), is a free bird with no tension at all. Despite knowing what Gulabji does, Raj still treats her in friendly manner. When he tells Gulabji that he needs somewhere to stay, she tells him that there is only one woman who'll give him a place to stay and that is Lilian (Zohra Sehgal)--but she only lets those who she likes stay. Raj decides to meet her the next morning.
Raj meets Lilian and they have a very emotional chat, during which Lillian reveals she has a son who left many years ago and never returned. Finally, she agrees to let Raj stay with her because he reminds her of her son. Raj goes out for a walk in the night and meets a mysterious girl dressed in black and holding an umbrella. He tries to talk to her, but she runs away and Raj starts to follow her. Getting the wrong impression, the girl shouts at Raj and tells him to go away. Raj tells her that he will go away but asks what she will do if a man with bad intentions starts to follow her. Then, as predicted by Raj, a drunken man begins to follow her and Raj saves the girl from him. Raj insists her to allow him to take her home. The girl agrees. Raj discovers that her name is Sakina (Sonam Kapoor), and that night Raj falls in love with her.
After thinking about her all night, Raj decides to tell Sakina he loves her. When he calls to her the next night — after resigning from his job so he can see her — Sakina ignores him and refuses to speak to him. Raj gets angry with her but the pair reconcile. He takes her to his favorite place, on the top of town clock building. Before he can tell that he loves her, Sakina reveals that she is in love with someone else. She says that his name is Imaan (Salman Khan) and explains to Raj how she fell in love with him when he boarded at her house. Imaan left the house but promised to return on Eid for Sakina. He has still not returned for her though Sakina waits for him faithfully.
Although Raj now knows that Sakina doesn’t love him, he is ready to help her anyhow. He comes to believe that there is no Imaan. He asks Gulabji for advice and she advises him to tell Sakina how he feels. Soon, he decides to propose to Sakina on the night of Eid. He takes Sakina to RK Bar and sings his favorite song for her. Sakina remembers that it’s time to meet Imaan at the bridge and runs away. Following her, Raj tells her that there is no Imaan; she hurts Raj, telling him to let her go. Raj goes to Gulabji, saying he wants to be with her for the night (referring to her profession), insulting her. Deeply hurt, Gulabji throws Raj out of the brothel onto the street, where he is beaten up by a few men.
He returns to the place where Sakina is waiting, where Imaan has still not arrived. Now Sakina is also sure that there is no chance of Imaan coming back so she decides to be with Raj as she now knows how much he loves her. Raj tries to make Sakina happy and succeeds; they enjoy the snow that has begun to fall. When they are returning home, they pass the bridge where they met and see Imaan waiting for Sakina. Torn between the two, Sakina hesitates as she steps toward Imaan; Raj tells her to go with Imaan. He retreats into a side street and walks off, thinking of the sweet memories of Sakina.
Bhansali initially wanted Rani Mukerji and Salman Khan's extended guest appearance to be hidden from the public[4] but later made public that they would be seen in supporting roles.[5]
The first official teaser of the film was accessed by New York Times on 25 August 2007.[6] The first screening was held 28 October 2007, though only for those associated with the film.[7]
After the release of the film, it became embroiled in controversy. There were charges that the plot was lifted from the Tamil movie Iyarkai, without the permission of the film's National Award winning director S. P. Jananathan.[8] But, the story of Iyarkai itself is loosely based on "White Nights", a Russian short story by Fyodor Dostoevsky, just as Saawariya claims to be.
The soundtrack for the film was released to mixed reviews on 19 September 2007. Indiafm gave the music three out of five stars, stating that, "The title song would be remembered for months to come, if not years, the others do not really go that extra distance"[9]
| Saawariya | ||||
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| Studio album by Monty Sharma | ||||
| Released |
19 September 2007 (India)
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| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 47:44 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | Sanjay Leela Bhansali | |||
| Monty Sharma chronology | ||||
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| Song | Singer(s) | Duration | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saawariya | Shail Hada | 02:45 | Picturised on Ranbir Kapoor & Rani Mukerji |
| Jab Se Tere Naina | Shaan | 04:44 | Picturised on Ranbir Kapoor |
| Masha-Allah | Kunal Ganjawala & Shreya Ghoshal | 05:28 | Picturised on Ranbir Kapoor & Sonam Kapoor |
| Thode Badmaash | Shreya Ghoshal | 03:19 | Picturised on Ranbir Kapoor & Sonam Kapoor Composer: Sanjay Leela Bhansali |
| Yun Shabnami | Parthiv Gohil | 05:15 | Picturised on Ranbir Kapoor & Sonam Kapoor |
| Daras Bina Nahin Chain | Richa Sharma, Shail Hada & Parthiv Gohil | 04:45 | Present as the background music in the film |
| Sawar Gayi | Shreya Ghoshal | 03:42 | Not in movie |
| Jaan-E-Jaan | Kunal Ganjawala & Shreya Ghoshal | 05:59 | Picturised on Ranbir Kapoor & Sonam Kapoor |
| Pari | Kunal Ganjawala | 05:19 | Picturised on Ranbir Kapoor & Rani Mukerji |
| Chhabeela | Alka Yagnik | 05:23 | Picturised on Rani Mukerji & Ranbir Kapoor |
| Saawariya (Reprise) | Shail Hada | 03:06 | Picturised on Ranbir Kapoor & Sonam Kapoor |
Despite high expectations for the film, Saawariya did not live up to its expectations throughout the Indian audience. On the other hand, Saawariya got mixed reviews in other countries. It maintains a 39% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes[10] and a 44% Mixed or average rating on MetaCritic[11]. Newcomers Ranbir and Sonam's performances were praised, and Ranbir Kapoor won Best Male Debut at the Filmfare Awards.
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