Govinda Naam Mera

About the film

Govinda Naam Mera (transl. Govinda Is My Name) is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language comedy thriller film written and directed by Shashank Khaitan and produced by Karan Johar, Apoorva Mehta, and Shashank Khaitan under the banner of Dharma Productions, in association with Viacom18 Studios. The film stars Vicky Kaushal, Bhumi Pednekar, and Kiara Advani. It premiered on 16 December 2022 on Disney+ Hotstar to positive reviews.

Plot

Govind A. "Govinda" Waghmare (Vicky Kaushal) works as a backup dancer for Bollywood films in Mumbai, and wishes to be a dance choreographer someday. He has a bitter relationship with his wife Gauri (Bhumi Pednekar), and wants to divorce her, to be with his girlfriend Suku (Kiara Advani) who is also a dancer. Gauri demands that in order to divorce her, he would first have to pay her ₹2 crores, returning the amount paid to him in dowry at the time of their marriage. Gauri has a boyfriend named Baldev, who is an insurance agent.

Govinda's father, Gopi Vishwakarma, was a famous fight choreographer and his mother, Asha Waghmare, was a backup dancer. They fell in love while working together in films and got married. When Govinda was little, Gopi died in an accident and Charulata and Vishnu Vishwakarma, Gopi's wife and son from his first marriage, claim that they are the rightful owner of the bungalow which Gopi had left for Govinda and Asha in his will. The Vishwakarma family claim that Gopi's marriage with Asha was a sham and was just part of a film shooting. It has led to a long running legal dispute between the two families over ownership of the bungalow. Asha has been pretending to be paralyzed in order to gain sympathy and move the case in their favour.

Govinda thinks of killing Gauri and takes a gun from Inspector Javed, an old friend of Gopi's, but he cannot muster the courage to kill her. Javed demands ₹2 lakhs for the gun but Govinda is unable to pay him and gets threatened by him regularly. Govinda and Suku get an opportunity to choreograph a music video for the rich producer Ajit Dharkar's drug-addicted son Sandeep aka Sandy. The music video is made, but Govinda and Suku have more screen time in it compared to Sandy, which angers Ajit and he demands that they repay him ₹30 lakhs, which was the amount spent in making the song.

Production

It was announced in January 2020 that Karan Johar and Shashank Khaitan were set to come together again after several collaborations for a spy comedy titled Mr. Lele starring Varun Dhawan, Bhumi Pednekar and Janhvi Kapoor. A first look poster was later released featuring Dhawan. However, the project was shelved a few months later due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India. In January 2021, the film was revived with Pednekar rejoining the cast, Vicky Kaushal replacing Dhawan and Kiara Advani replacing Kapoor.

Principal photography of the film begun in Mumbai in March 2021. Filming was halted for several weeks in April when both Kaushal and Pednekar tested positive for COVID-19 in the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic. Shoot resumed in June 2021. A song from the film was shot during the end of August 2021 on board the Roll-on/roll-off to Alibaug. Several scenes featuring Kaushal and Advani were also filmed in Pondicherry.

Soundtrack

The music of the film is composed by Meet Bros, Tanishk Bagchi, B Praak, Sachin–Jigar and Rochak Kohli.

The film score is composed by John Stewart Eduri.

The song "Kyaa Baat Haii 2.0" was recreated from the 2018 track Kya Baat Ay which was sung by Harrdy Sandhu, written by Jaani and composed by B Praak.

Marketing and release

In November 2021, Karan Johar announced the film with the new current title as well as three character posters which introduced Kaushal as Govinda Waghmare, Pednekar as his wife and Advani as his girlfriend. In August 2022, it was announced that the film was heading for a streaming release on Disney+ Hotstar sometime in November 2022, with the film's digital rights being sold for ₹62 crores. The film was premiered on 16 December 2022 on Disney+ Hotstar.

Reception

Archika Khurana of The Times of India rated the film 3.5 stars out of 5 and wrote, "Right from Vicky and Kiara shaking a leg to the track Pappi Jhappi to donning matching outfits, everything reminds you of the madness and quirks of the 90s comedies. Govinda Naam Mera is definite crowd-pleaser that entertains with ample laughter, confusion and comedy". Sonil Dedhia of News 18 rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "Govinda Naam Mera is the kind of low-brow humour you enjoy without pretensions. Kaushal steal the show his energy levels coupled with self-assured act. Advani pairs off very well with Kaushal. She is not just a glamour quotient here but is in super form. Pedenkar has limited screen time but is simply outstanding".

Bollywood Hungama rated the film 3 stars out of 5 and wrote, "Govinda Naam Mera rests on a far-fetched and illogical second half. But thanks to the performances, fast-paced narrative and some unexpected comic and thrilling moments, it turns out to be a watchable film". Taru B Masand of Times Now gave 3 stars out of 5 and wrote, "It is a family entertainer and a perfect pick for a movie night. Despite the slow build-up, the film emerges as a winner with its comic timings, a cameo by Ranbir Kapoor, brilliant climax, and just a perfect cast". Prateek Sur of Outlook rated the film 3 stars out of 5 and wrote, "Govinda Naam Mera saves itself with a killer climax. While some of the twists you figure out along the way, a few of those twists when they come in the climax, you're really left with a feeling of immense satisfaction". Parina Taneja of India TV rated the film 2.5 stars out of 5 and wrote, "Govinda Naam Mera, starring Vicky Kaushal, Kiara Advani and Bhumi Pednekar, is not just about comedy but is loaded with many twists and turns which makes it a quirky thriller".

Key details