Khoobsurat

About the film

Khoobsurat (transl. Beautiful) is a 2014 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy-drama film. The film is directed by Shashanka Ghosh and produced by Rhea Kapoor, Anil Kapoor and Siddharth Roy Kapur. It stars Sonam Kapoor, Fawad Khan, Kirron Kher, Ratna Pathak, and Aamir Raza Hussain. The film is loosely based on the 1980 film of the same name.

Plot

Mrinalini "Milli" Chakravarty is a physiotherapist who works for the Kolkata Knight Riders. Her loud Punjabi mother Manju hopes that she will find a suitable and charming man to marry. Her services are called upon by a royal family in Rajasthan where King Shekhar Singh Rathore is paralyzed from the waist down. She is told that 40 doctors have already left a demanding job.

Milli travels to the royal palace and meets the discipline-oriented queen, Nirmala Devi Rathore, who is not amused by Milli's enthusiasm and clumsiness. Milli finds that her casual way of living clashes with the strict discipline of the royal household. She meets the prince, Vikram Singh Rathore, whose distant personality makes him similar to his parents. Milli befriends Divya Rathore, the youngest child princess of the family, and encourages her passion for cinema against the family's wishes that she study business management.

Shekhar avoids the exercises Milli prescribes and she turns to Vikram for help. He gives Milli the same answer that Nirmala gave her - if she can't stand the heat, she might as well get out of the kitchen. Milli becomes frustrated and tells them that they should be helping Shekhar, accusing them of being stubborn, rigid and self-centered.

Music

The music of Khoobsurat was composed by Sneha Khanwalkar, Badshah and Amaal Mallik. The lyrics were written by a range of artists including, Ikram Rajasthani, Badshah, Kumaar, Sunil Choudhary, Amitabh Verma and Sneha Khanwalkar. The first song, "Engine Ki Seeti", was released on 7 August 2014, and samples Rajasthani folk song "Anjun Ki Seeti" which Ikram Rajasthani specifically re-wrote for the film. A promotional song titled "Abhi Toh Party Shuru Hui Hai", composed by Punjabi rapper Badshah was released on 22 August 2014. The film's soundtrack was officially released on 1 September 2014.

The producers felt that the film lacked a soulful love song and upon the request of Rhea Kapoor, music composer Amaal Mallik wrote the song "Naina", which is sung by his brother Armaan Malik and Sona Mohapatra.

Box office

Khoobsurat opened to a slow start at the box office, with occupancies ranging from 15 to 20 percent at multiplexes and single screens across India. The film earned about ₹27.4 million (US$290,000) on its opening day, it is one of the lowest openings of Sonam Kapoor. Due to positive word of mouth, Khoobsurat showed 30% growth at the box office, earning ₹37.4 million (US$390,000) on the second day of release and ₹50.5 million (US$530,000) on the third. The film netted a total of ₹115 million (US$1.2 million) during the first three days of release, with Box Office India describing the weekend collections as "low", but with "good" trending. The film remained steady throughout the rest of the week, netting ₹191 million (US$2.0 million) in India alone. Remaining steady on its eighth day of release, the film collected ₹15.3 million (US$160,000), and a further ₹24.4 million (US$260,000) on its ninth day, being declared as a "hit" by various media outlets.

Khoobsurat performed fairly well overseas. As of 21 September 2014, Khoobsurat earned ₹110 million (US$1.2 million) in Pakistan, ₹30.6 million (US$320,000) in the United States and Canada, ₹36.9 million (US$390,000) in the UK, ₹69.3 million (US$730,000) in the United Arab Emirates, ₹3.5 million (US$37,000) in Australia, ₹0.90 million (US$9,400) in New Zealand and ₹4.70 million (US$49,000) in Malaysia. In the first two days of release, it had netted a total of ₹250 million (US$2.6 million) in the overseas markets.

Critical reception

Khoobsurat garnered mixed to positive reviews from critics but received widespread critical acclaim overseas.

Koel Puri of India Today gave the film 4/5, saying "[the film] is no path breaker but for the fact that I just can't fault it, I still have a smile plastered on my face and I'll probably go see it again... tomorrow". Subhash K. Jha also gave a 4/5 and said, "Hrishida won't recognise this as his Khubsoorat. But he won't disapprove of what has been done to his work". Rachit Gupta of Filmfare gave the film a 4/5 and said that, "director Shashank Ghosh is no Hrishikesh Mukherjee" though manages "to make a perfect Disney movie. It makes you laugh. It makes you go 'aww' and that goes a long way in a young romance". Saibaal Chatterjee of NDTV also gave a positive review, giving the film a 3.5/5 and saying, "in the end, Khoobsurat is a pretty good show. It is both funny and flashy, but its many flourishes are delivered in measures that religiously avoid excess".

Srijana Mitra Das of Times of India gave the film 3.5/5 and said, "This delightfully roguish romance tickles everything fun-loving inside you ... that's what makes it so khoobsurat." Rajeev Masand of CNN IBN gave a rating of 3/5 and wrote, "Khoobsurat is for those seeking comfort in the familiar, it's a pretty satisfying watch." Sarita A. Tanwar of DNA India gave the film 3/5 and said it "is sure to connect with the hearts of girls of all ages". Sonia Chopra of Sify also gave the film a 3/5, and said "this film has little of the gentle nuance of the Hrishikesh Mukherjee-directed original, but it's still pretty good fun. This Bollywood-Disney fairytale combo is worth a shot". Raja Sen, of Rediff gave the film 3/5, and compared it to candy, saying "wrapped in bright plastic and frequently too sweet for your own good, they act as sunny, unsurprising treats that lead to sticky, syrupy smiles". Andy Webster of the New York Times also wrote positively, saying "Bollywood films have appropriated Hollywood genres and imagery for years, but Mr. Ghosh, using a pleasing pastel palette, deftly achieves a particularly Disney-like polish. And he avoids making-of-a-royal pitfalls: Ms. Kapoor's character never abandons her humor for refinement. Twice, Mili says that she was raised to speak up for herself. Not a bad characteristic for a future Rajput princess".

Key details