Kaante
| Kaante | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Sanjay Gupta |
| Produced by |
Pritish Nandy Communications Film Club Limited Larry Mortoff Sanjay Sippy |
| Written by | Sanjay Gupta |
| Starring |
Mahesh Manjrekar Lucky Ali Kumar Gaurav Sunil Shetty Sanjay Dutt Amitabh Bachchan Malaika Arora Namrata Singh Gujral Rati Agnihotri Isha Koppikar |
| Music by |
Anand Raj Anand Vishal-Shekhar Lucky Ali |
| Cinematography | Kurt Brabbee |
| Edited by | Bunty Nagi |
| Distributed by | White Feather Films |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 154 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹720 million (US$10.6 million)[1] |
| Box office | ₹920 million (US$13.5 million)[2] |
Kaante (Hindi: कांटे, English: Thorns) is a 2002 Indian Bollywood action film directed by Sanjay Gupta and starring Mahesh Manjrekar in his debut role with Lucky Ali, Kumar Gaurav, Sunil Shetty, Sanjay Dutt, Amitabh Bachchan, Namrata Singh Gujral, Rati Agnihotri, Malaika Arora and Isha Koppikar in the lead roles. The film's central plot is based on Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992) and also borrows plot points from The Usual Suspects (1995) and Heat (1995). However, Tarantino has been quoted as saying that Kaante is his favourite among the many rip-offs of his film. Kaante was the most expensive Indian film ever produced at its time of release and became the second highest grossing hindi film of the year but was only given a semi hit verdict due to its high production costs.[3]
Plot
On or about 12 May 2000, a truck gets stolen in Los Angeles, and the police bring in six men of South Asian origin for questioning. They are: Yashvardhan Rampal, known as 'Major' educated intelligent, unemployed, with an ailing wife who longs to return to India; Non-English speaking Jay Rehan, otherwise known as 'Ajju', a foul-mouthed, trigger-happy gangster; A out-of-work former nightclub bouncer, Marc Issak, whose girlfriend, Lisa, is a bar dancer, and who is known to get into fights due to his uncontrollable temper; A drug dealer, Raj Yadav, otherwise known as Bali, foul-mouthed, womanizer, stutterer, and alcoholic; Bali's sidekick, Maqbool Haider, otherwise known as Mac; White-collared Anand Mathur, alias Andy, recently separated from his wife, Renu, and longing to get back together with his son, who he cannot get custody of due to financial problems. The six confer in a cell, cite woes that even though the Italians have their Mafia, the Colombians have their Cartels, but the East Indian criminal community is yet to forge a Bhai-type organization, resulting in their getting pulled in as the usual suspects every time there is a crime involving a colored person. They plot to get back at the cops by robbing the American Services Bank, perhaps the only bank which has a majority of its clientele employed by the city police. They plan and carry out this caper quite successfully, but when they exit the bank, they find themselves surrounded by the police. After a shoot-out, They do manage to escape and meet in a secret hideout, to not only share the loot, but also try and find out who betrayed them. Ajju abducts police interrogator, Detective MacQuarrie, and it is through him they learn that their informer is one of them – and they must find out his identity, kill him, then divide the loot amongst them and disperse. The only problem is the informer is not willing to come forward – and the gangsters end up suspecting each other and their respective motives.
Cast
- Amitabh Bachchan as Yashvardhan Rampal 'Major' (Mr White/Larry Dimmick played by Harvey Keitel)
- Sanjay Dutt as Jay Rehan 'Ajju' (Joseph "Joe" Cabot played by Lawrence Tierney)
- Suniel Shetty as Marc Issak ("Nice Guy Eddie" Cabot played by Chris Penn)
- Mahesh Manjrekar as Raj Yadav 'Baali' (Mr Blonde/Victor "Vic" Vega played by Michael Madsen)
- Lucky Ali as Maqbool Haider 'Mak' (Mr Orange/Detective Freddy Newandyke played by Tim Roth)
- Kumar Gaurav as Anand Mathur 'Andy' (Mr Pink played by Steve Buscemi)
- Malaika Arora as Lisa
- Ranjit Choudhary as McQuarrie's Partner
- Sanjay Sippy as Mr. Adler
- Rati Agnihotri as Major's Wife
- Aslam Khan as Pathan
- Gulshan Grover as Cyrus
- Jeff Davis as Det. McQuarrie
- Eesha Koppikhar in a Special Appearance in song, "Ishq Samundar"
- Rohit Roy in a Special Appearance in song, "Ishq Samundar"
Production
The film was to star Sanjay Dutt, Sunil Shetty, Mahesh Manjrekar, Kumar Gaurav, Shilpa Shetty and Lisa Ray initially.[4] Akshaye Khanna opted out of the project subsequently and was replaced by Lucky Ali,[5] while Malaika Arora stepped in Lisa Ray's shoes[6] and Namrata Singh Gujral was cast opposite Kumar Gaurav in lieu of Shilpa Shetty.[7]
The character of Renu Mathur (played by Namrata Singh Gujral) was the only role cast in Hollywood from the entire principal cast. All other principals including Amitabh Bachchan were flown in from Mumbai for the Hollywood shoot.[8]
The film was the first Bollywood film to be completely shot in Los Angeles.[9] The film's production team used Hollywood technicians.[9] The filming was completed in 31 days.[1] Rohit Roy (from Shootout at Lokhandwala and a popular television actor) makes an appearance in the song "Ishq Samandar".[10]
Soundtrack
The music is composed by Lucky Ali, Anand Raj Anand and Vishal-Shekhar. Lyrics are penned by Dev Kohli, Lucky Ali and Vishal Dadlani.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Music | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Baby Baby" | Anand Raj Anand | Sunidhi Chauhan | |
| 2. | "Chhod Na Re" | Vishal-Shekhar | Udit Narayan, Sanjay Dutt, Sudesh Bhosle, Mahesh Manjrekar | |
| 3. | "Dil Kya Kare" | Anand Raj Anand | Kumar Sanu & Kavita Krishnamurthy | |
| 4. | "Ishq Samundar" | Anand Raj Anand | Sunidhi Chauhan, Anand Raj Anand | |
| 5. | "Maahi Ve" | Anand Raj Anand | Sukhwinder Singh, Richa Sharma | |
| 6. | "Maut" | Lucky Ali | Lucky Ali | |
| 7. | "Rama Re" | Anand Raj Anand | Sanjay Dutt, Shaan, Zubeen Garg, Anand Raj Anand, Sudesh Bhosle | |
| 8. | "Socha Nahin Tha" | Anand Raj Anand | Shaan, Zubeen Garg | |
| 9. | "Yaar Maangiyasi" | Anand Raj Anand | Sonu Nigam |
References
- 1 2 "Kaante director is critical after Expressway mishap". Express India. 28 December 2002. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ↑ "Box Office 2002". Boxofficeindia.com. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ↑ Bardwaj, Rangan. "Lights, Camera, Conversation – Wrought from Steal". The Hindu. Retrieved 2011-08-03.
- ↑ "Who is the surprise package of Kaante?". Rediff. 27 July 2002. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ↑ Subhash K Jha (3 April 2002). "A time to kill". Rediff. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ↑ "Malaika in Kaante". Rediff. 8 October 2001. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ↑ Arti R (18 December 2002). "'Indian cinema is getting global'". Rediff. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ↑ Kehr, Dave (20 December 2002). "Kaante (2002): Film Review". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- 1 2 "Kaante: A special". Rediff. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ↑ "Kaante: Complete Cast and Crew details". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
External links
- Kaante at the Internet Movie Database
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Locations: (1) City of Los Angeles San Pedro Municipal Building, 638 S Beacon St #552, Los Angeles, CA 90731
(2) Rosslyn Loft (Terrace) 451 S Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90013
(3) Al Larson Boat Shop 1046 S Seaside Ave, San Pedro, CA 90731.