Cheeni Kum

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Cheeni Kum
Wall800CheeniKum.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by R. Balki
Written byR. Balki
Produced by Sunil Manchanda
Starring Amitabh Bachchan
Tabu
Paresh Rawal
Zohra Sehgal
Swini Khara
Cinematography P. C. Sreeram
Edited by Chandan Arora
Music by Ilaiyaraaja
Production
company
MAD Entertainment Ltd.
Distributed by Eros International
Release dates
  • 21 May 2007 (2007-05-21)(Cannes)
  • 22 May 2007 (2007-05-22)(Leicester Square)
  • 25 May 2007 (2007-05-25)(India)
Running time
140 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Budget₹11 crore [1]
Box officeest.₹32.03 crore [2]

Cheeni Kum (Hindi for Less Sugar) is a 2007 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed by R. Balki and starring Amitabh Bachchan, Tabu, Paresh Rawal, Zohra Sehgal, and Swini Khara.

Contents

Cheeni Kum premiered at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival on 21 May 2007, [3] and premiered at the Leicester Square on 22 May 2007 [4] and it was released theatrically on 25 May 2007. Made on a production budget of ₹11 crore, it grossed a total of ₹32.3 crore at the box office, thus proving to be a commercial success. It received positive reviews from critics upon release, with praise for its direction, story, screenplay, dialogues, soundtrack and performances of the cast.

At the 53rd Filmfare Awards, Cheeni Kum received 1 award – Best Actress (Critics) (Tabu).

Plot

Buddhadev Gupta (Amitabh Bachchan) is the 64-year-old owner and executive chef of Spice 6, London's top Indian restaurant. He lives with his 85-year-old mother (Zohra Sehgal), and his only friend and confidante is his 9-year-old neighbour, 'Sexy' (Swini Khara), who is diagnosed with cancer. Buddha is arrogant and egocentric, often rude to his chefs and sarcastic to those around him. His confidence is crushed when during a dinner service one evening at his restaurant, a hyderabadi zafrani pulao gets sent back for being 'sweet', leading Buddha to humiliate the woman who ordered the dish, arguing that his restaurant is the finest in London. When she sends her pulao to Buddha's restaurant, made arguably better than at Spice 6, Buddha eventually finds the chef who prepared the dish incorrectly and fires him.

Buddha runs into the woman once again after she decides to come back to his restaurant, 34-year-old Nina Verma (Tabu) from India. He tries to apologize but is unable to. They slowly fall in love despite their glaring contrast in age, character, and attitude. They decide to get married, and Buddha goes to Delhi to meet Nina's father, Omprakash Verma (Paresh Rawal), conveniently leaving out the detail that Buddha is older than him. He quickly finds out and is horrified, and he attempts to dissuade his daughter from marrying Buddha by going on a Gandhi-inspired hunger strike until she relents. Buddha and Nina argue over this constantly, being the main hang-up in their relationship, and Buddha leaves their home feeling heartbroken, only to also find out that Sexy has now passed away from cancer. In the meantime, Omprakash has begrudgingly agreed to Buddha and Nina's relationship, at which an overjoyed Nina comes to find Buddha at the Qutub Minar, where she finds out about Sexy as well. She consoles Buddha while he grieves his best friend and gently lets him know that her father has changed his mind.

The final scene shows Buddha and Nina having brought Buddha's mother and Nina's father to Spice 6, and Buddha bonding with Omprakash over a cricket match playing near them.

Cast

Soundtrack

Cheeni Kum
Soundtrack album by
Ilaiyaraaja
Released2 May 2007
Recorded2006–2007
Genre Feature film soundtrack
Label Eros Music
Producer Ilayaraja

The score and soundtrack were composed by Ilaiyaraaja. The songs had their tunes re-used from the composer's earlier songs in other languages, while the arrangements were fresh.

Track NoSongSingerNotes
1"Cheeni Kum"(Female) Shreya Ghoshal based on "Mandram Vantha Thendralukku" from Mouna Ragam
2"Baatein Hawa"(Duet) Amitabh Bachchan, Shreya Ghoshal based on "Kuzhal Ootham" from Mella Thirandhathu Kadhavu
3"Jaane Do Na" Shreya Ghoshal based on "Jotheyali" from Geetha
4"Sooni Sooni"(Male) Vijay Prakash
5"Baatein Hawa"(Solo) Shreya Ghoshal

Reception

Critical reception

Martin D'Souza of Glamsham gave the movie 4/5 stars, concluding that "There's a dash of sweetness (Tabu), the right amount of spice (Amitabh Bachchan), a proper dose of lime (Paresh Rawal), the perfect quantity of salt (Swini Khara) and a spoonful of tadka (Zohra Sehgal). A clean entertainer which can be watched by the entire family." [5] Raja Sen of Rediff gave the movie 3.5/5 stars, stating that "This isn't a groundbreaking film, but it didn't set out to be. It's a maturely written film with great characters, tremendous performances and some fantastic moments. It could have been perfect, but the lesser said about that end the better. Watch it. A brilliant sequence involving the chef, a chemist, chhatris and chachas is absolute movie magic, and in itself well worth the price of admission. Bravo." [6] Naresh Kumar Deoshi of Apun Ka Choice gave the movie 3/5 stars, saying that "The movie, featuring Amitabh Bachchan in yet another brilliant performance, not just entertains you with its sarcastic humor, it also touches your heart with its emotional moments. Do not miss this sugar-free spread." [7] Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama gave the movie 3/5 stars, concluding that "On the whole, CHEENI KUM is absorbing in parts. A lackluster first half gets a boost with a much energetic second half and that elevates the film to the watchable level. At the box-office, CHEENI KUM is targeted at the multiplexes mainly. Clever promos and feel-good vibes should ensure a positive run at the multiplexes." [8] On the contrary, Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN gave the movie 2/5 stars, stating that "So I'll go with two out of five for R. Balki's Cheeni Kum, it's an average entertainer at best. If you're a die-hard Bachchan fan, do give it a shot because he doesn't disappoint. How you wish the film didn't either!" [9]

Box office

Cheeni Kum was a hit at the box office, grossing ₹237.5 million (US$2.8 million), despite taking a poor opening. The movie collected ₹169.7 million (US$2.0 million) net in its lifetime. [10]

Accolades

Award [lower-alpha 1] Date of ceremony [lower-alpha 2] CategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
Filmfare Awards 16 February 2008 Best Actress (Critics) Tabu Won [11]
International Indian Film Academy Awards 6 – 8 June 2008 Best Actress Nominated [12]
Best Supporting Actress Zohra Sehgal Nominated
Best Story R. Balki Nominated
Producers Guild Film Awards 30 March 2008 Best Film Cheeni KumNominated [13]
Best Actor Amitabh Bachchan Nominated
Best Actress TabuNominated
Best StoryR. BalkiNominated
Best DialogueNominated
Screen Awards 10 January 2008 Most Promising Debut DirectorNominated [14]
[15]
Best Actor Amitabh BachchanNominated
Best Actor (Critics) Won
Best Actress TabuNominated
Best Actress (Critics) Won
Stardust Awards 25 January 2008Hottest Young Film MakerR. BalkiNominated [16]
Actor of the Year – Male Amitabh BachchanNominated
Actor of the Year – Female TabuNominated
Best Supporting Actress Zohra Sehgal Nominated
Breakthrough Performance – Female Swini Khara Nominated
Zee Cine Awards 26 April 2008 Most Promising Debut Director R. BalkiNominated [17]
Best Actor – Male Amitabh BachchanNominated
Best Actor – Female TabuNominated
Most Promising Debut Child ArtistSwini KharaNominated

Notes

  1. ↑ Awards, festivals and organizations are in alphabetical order.
  2. ↑ Date is linked to the article about the awards held that year, wherever possible.

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References

  1. ↑ "Cut the fluff, just love me". LiveMint . 19 May 2007. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  2. ↑ "Cheeni Kum Box Office". Bollywood Hungama . 25 May 2007. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  3. ↑ "Cheeni Kum to premiere at Cannes 2007". BBC . Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  4. ↑ "Spotted: Amitabh at a premiere in London". Rediff.com . 25 May 2007. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  5. ↑ D'Souza, Martin. "Cheeni Kum Movie Review". glamsham. Archived from the original on 15 May 2008. Retrieved 25 January 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ↑ Raja Sen. "BigB-ittersweet Symphony". Rediff.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg
  7. ↑ Naresh Kumar Deoshi. "CHEENI KUM MOVIE REVIEW: Sugar-free Sarcasm". Apun Ka Choice. Archived from the original on 21 July 2012.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
  8. ↑ Taran Adarsh. "Cheeni Kum Hindi Movie Critic Review by Taran Adarsh – Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama . Archived from the original on 6 January 2014.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
  9. ↑ Rajeev Masand. "Masand's verdict: Cheeni Kum". CNN-IBN. Archived from the original on 7 November 2012.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
  10. ↑ "Box Office 2007". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013.
  11. ↑ "Winners of 53rd Annual Filmfare Awards". Bollywood Hungama. Bollywood Hungama News Network. 23 February 2008. Archived from the original on 22 November 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  12. ↑ "Nominations for the IIFA Awards 2008". Bollywood Hungama. Bollywood Hungama News Network. 16 April 2008. Archived from the original on 8 March 2010. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  13. ↑ Bollywood Hungama News Network (14 March 2008). "Nominations for 3rd Apsara Film & Television Producers Guild Awards". Bollywood Hungama . Archived from the original on 21 September 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  14. ↑ "Nominees for 14th Annual Screen Awards". Bollywood Hungama. IndiaFM News Bureau. 2 January 2008. Archived from the original on 29 April 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  15. ↑ "Winners of 14th Annual Star Screen Awards". Bollywood Hungama. Bollywood Hungama News Network. 11 January 2008. Archived from the original on 23 October 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  16. ↑ "Nominations for Max Stardust Awards 2008". Bollywood Hungama. Bollywood Hungama News Network. 25 December 2007. Archived from the original on 23 October 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  17. ↑ "Nominations for the Zee Cine Awards 2008". Bollywood Hungama. Bollywood Hungama News Network. 1 April 2008. Archived from the original on 23 March 2010. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
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