Kaminey

About the film

Kaminey (transl. Scoundrels) is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language crime action film written and directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and produced by Ronnie Screwvala under UTV Motion Pictures, featuring Shahid Kapoor in a dual role, alongside Priyanka Chopra and Amole Gupte in the lead roles. Set against the backdrop of the Mumbai underworld, Kaminey follows a rivalry between a pair of twins, one with a lisp and the other with a stutter, over the course of a single day.

Bhardwaj bought the original script of Kaminey for US$4,000 from Kenyan writer Cajetan Boy—whom he had mentored at a scriptwriting workshop in Uganda, later collaborating with screenwriters Sabrina Dhawan, Abhishek Chaubey and Supratik Sen to modify it. Kaminey was released on 14 August 2009 and became a box-office success worldwide, grossing over ₹710 million (US$7.4 million) against a production and marketing budget of ₹350 million (US$3.7 million). The film's soundtrack album, composed by Bhardwaj, also became a commercial success, with the song "Dhan Te Nan" topping the charts on various platforms.

Kaminey received widespread critical acclaim, with several critics and media publications placing it at number one on their listings of "Best film of the year". Since its release, the film has attained cult status. It received several awards and nominations at ceremonies across India. At the 55th Filmfare Awards, it received ten nominations, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actor; it won the award for Best Special Effects. At the 57th National Film Awards, Kaminey won two awards — Best Audiography for Subash Sahoo and Special Jury Award for its editing by A. Sreekar Prasad.

Cast and crew

Kaminey was directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, and released in 2009.

The film features Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Shahid Kapoor in its principal cast.

Key details