Shubh Mangal Saavdhan

About the film

Shubh Mangal Saavdhan (transl. Let the Marriage be fruitful) is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed by R. S. Prasanna, written by Hitesh Kewalya, and produced by Krishika Lulla and Aanand L. Rai. Starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Bhumi Pednekar, it is a remake of Prasanna's own Tamil film Kalyana Samayal Saadham (2013). Released on 1 September 2017, the film revolves around Mudit Sharma, who is about to get married, on how he deals with his erectile dysfunction with his fiancé and family.

At the 63rd Filmfare Awards, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan received 5 nominations, including Best Actor (Khurrana), Best Actress (Pednekar) and Best Supporting Actress (Pahwa).

Plot

The story is about Mudit Sharma, a Delhi boy with a marketing job, and Sugandha Joshi, a Gurgaon girl whom Mudit falls in love with. Shy by nature, Mudit tries all possible ways to talk to Sugandha but fails. Finally, he decides to send her an online marriage proposal. When the two finally meet, they feel the sparks and decide to take it to the next level. Sugandha takes her time deciding whether to accept the proposal and later calls it her first major decision for her own life. A formal marriage proposal is exchanged between their families.

When Sugandha's parents are out of town, Mudit and Sugandha try getting intimate and when they finally reach the bed, a visibly uncomfortable Mudit declares that he needs to use the washroom. But when he returns, he gets dressed and makes for the main door. When a concerned Sugandha asks him about this sudden change of plans, he simply hints at his problem with the help of a biscuit and tea, getting Sugandha to realize that he is facing a bout of erectile dysfunction (the condition is referred to only euphemistically in the film itself with metaphors like this one, and as misleading euphemism "performance anxiety", an overlapping but generally distinct condition, by a vet character).

Mudit and Sugandha try different ways to solve the problem but fail, and when Mudit comes face to face with the reality of his impending marriage, he decides to cancel it. They argue. Now deeply in love, Sugandha refuses to cancel the wedding and says she will expect him and his baaraat (wedding procession) at the venue.

Production

The film was extensively shot in Delhi, Rishikesh and Haridwar. Anshul Chauhan was hired to play Bhumi Pednekar's best friend in the film.

Soundtrack

The music of the film is composed by Tanishk Bagchi and Vayu, who also wrote the lyrics for the songs. The first track of the film "Rocket Saiyyan" sung by Ritu Pathak, Brijesh Shandilya and Bagchi was released on 7 August 2017. The second song "Laddoo" sung by Mika Singh and it was released on 21 August 2017. The soundtrack consists of five songs and was released on 25 August 2017.

All songs were written and composed by Tanishk–Vayu.

Reception

Rajeev Masand of News18 praised the performances of the leading pair, Ayushmann Khurana & Bhumi Pednekar, and concluded his review by saying that, "Shubh Mangal Saavdhan rises above its minor problems to deliver plenty laughs. It's one of the year's most enjoyable films" and gave the film . Neil Soans of The Times of India gave the film praising the performances of the actors and the humor of the film but found the climax of the movie to be a letdown. Ananya Bhattacharya of India Today praised the movie saying, "This is easily one of the best films that Bollywood has given us in 2017. Shubh Mangal Saavdhan does not fall flat. It flies" and gave the film . Sweta Kaushal of Hindustan Times gave the film a saying that, "Prasanna presents Shubh Mangal Saavdhan in a rather flat manner and refuses to give space to characters other than the hero and heroine, leaving behind one mess of what could have been a fun-filled entertainer." Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express gave the film saying that, "overall this comedy of middle-class-Dilli-manners-and-mores suffers from a sit-com flatness, and a sagging climax."

Sequel

Following the commercial success of the film, a spiritual successor titled Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan was announced which is based on homosexuality. Ayushmann Khurrana, the lead actor plays a gay man in the film. A teaser was released on 9 May 2019 giving the theme of the film. The film was initially slated to release on 13 March 2020, but the release was pushed up to 21 February 2020.

Key details