De Dana Dan

About the film

De Dana Dan (Back to Back) is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language comedy film directed by Priyadarshan. It is a partial adaptation of the Hollywood film Screwed; some scenes were taken from the 2004 film Vettam, directed by Priyadarshan himself. The film has an ensemble cast consisting of Akshay Kumar, Sunil Shetty, Katrina Kaif, Paresh Rawal, Sameera Reddy and Neha Dhupia. Released on 27 November 2009, it was moderately successful at the box office.

Plot

Nitin Bankar is a servant and driver for Kuljeet Kaur. Kuljeet owns malls, restaurants, and other real estate in Singapore. Nitin dislikes Kuljeet's dog, Moolchand Ji, who gets him in trouble. His friend, Ram Mishra, works for a courier service after moving to Singapore to work in Chinese films. Anjali Kakkar is in love with Nitin, and Manpreet Oberoi is in love with Ram. Both girlfriends are wealthy and accustomed to the good life.

Inspector Wilson Parera is investigating Harbans Chadda for cheque kiting. Harbans wants to marry off his son, Nonny, so he can obtain a dowry and pay his debts. He agrees to Nonny's marriage to Anjali after her father, Himanshu, who hates Nitin, brings up the subject. At a restaurant, Harbans misses meeting Anjali because Wilson is there; Himanshu meets Pammi Chadda, Harbans' younger second wife. Anjali tells Nonny that she is pregnant with her lover's child to get out of the wedding since she loves Nitin.

At a casino, Harbans meets Brij Mohan Oberoi, who introduces Indian ambassador Paramjeet Singh Lamba to everyone there. After learning about Oberoi's wealth, Harbans arranges Nonny's marriage to Manpreet. Himanshu, who was not informed, arranges Anjali's marriage to someone else. Moosa Heerapoorwala decides to marry Anu Chopra, a dancer at the casino. After his brother-in-law finds out, he hires Mafia don Maamu to kill Moosa. Maamu sends Kaala Krishna Murali, his best assassin, to do the job. To hide from his wife, Moosa books a hotel room as Subair.

Production

De Dana Dan reunited Akshay Kumar, Sunil Shetty and Paresh Rawal with Priyadarshan, who directed them in the first Hera Pheri film. It was the first time the trio acted together after Phir Hera Pheri in 2006, although Rawal and Shetty appeared in Priyadarshan's Hulchul and Chup Chup Ke. Akshay and Rawal also appeared in Priyadarshan's Bhagam Bhag and Garam Masala. Asin Thottumkal was approached for a role in the film initially.

Nitin Bankar and Ram Mishra, played by Akshay Kumar and Sunil Shetty respectively, are names of long-lasting spot-boys; Nitin Bankar is Akshay's spot-boy, and Ram Mishra is that of Sunil's.

Filming began on 1 December 2008 at Mehboob Studio in Mumbai. The entire movie was filmed in Singapore, primarily at the Pan Pacific Hotel, except for the climax. The climax was shot in Film City, Goregaon, Mumbai, where a replica of the Pan Pacific Hotel from Singapore was created. The flood scene was completed in 15 days. At last, the film took 80 days to complete.

Release

The film was released on 27 November 2009 globally.

De Dana Dan was released on DVD, with a running time of 167 minutes.

Reception

De Dana Dan earned ₹220 million in its opening weekend in India, the tenth-biggest opening weekend of all time when it was released. The film earned ₹341.9 million at the end of its first week, and over ₹650 million by the end of its run in India.

It debuted in ninth place in the UK, earning £308,029 (about ₹23.4 million) on 48 screens in its opening weekend; the per-screen average was £6,417. The film debuted in 20th place in the US, earning $772,377 (about ₹35.7 million) on 69 screens in its opening weekend; the per-screen average was $11,194. It debuted in 12th place in Australia, earning $96,597 (about ₹4,096,000) on 14 screens in its opening weekend; the per-screen average was $6,900. The film earned £560,943 at the end of its UK run, and $944,979 at the end of its US run; at the end of its Australian run, it collected $200,000.

The film received mixed reviews from critics, who praised its performances, humor, cinematography, climax visuals and score but criticised its screenplay, narration and pace.

Soundtrack

"Paisa Paisa" ("Tu, paisa paisa karti hai, tu paise pe kyun marti hai") is the film's theme song. It was produced by Pritam, composed and sung by RDB, and performed by Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif and Suniel Shetty and Sameera Reddy.

The song was conceived to illustrate that money was the driving force of the film's plot. It incorporated comedic lyrics with sound effects and a "slight R&B touch", making it upbeat, danceable, and memorable. Sung by Punjabi singer Manak-e, it was composed for De Dana Dan by RDB; the rest of its music was composed by Pritam. The music is based on "Yeah", Usher's hit song. Originally sung by Manak-e in Punjabi several years earlier on his album, Akshay Kumar asked for the song to be re-composed and re-released with Hindi and Punjabi lyrics by RDB. "Paisa Paisa" was chosen as the film's theme song because it was light and upbeat.

The Times of India reported in late November 2009 that the song (released before De Dana Dan) was gaining attention and "rocking the charts". Before the film's release, it was considered one of its "fast catching numbers" and a version was used in the Jharkhand election campaign. According to Glamsham, "'Paisa Paisa" from De Dana Dan is a chartbuster and is igniting the music charts." In December 2009, Daily News & Analysis reported that "Paisa Paisa" was favoured to be popular during party season. It was later reported that although De Dana Dan did not do as well as expected at the box office, "Paisa Paisa" helped locate a lost, mentally-challenged child when police were informed that the child continually hummed the song.

Key details