Love Hostel

Love Hostel
Official release poster
Directed by	Shanker Raman
Written by	Shanker Raman Mehak Jamal Yogi Singha
Screenplay by	Shanker Raman
Produced by	Gauri Khan Manish Mundra Gaurav Verma
Starring	Vikrant Massey Sanya Malhotra Bobby Deol
Cinematography	Vivek Shah
Edited by	Nitin Baid Shan Mohammed
Music by	Score: Clinton Cerejo Songs: Jeet Gannguli Clinton Cerejo Bianca Gomes
Production companies	Red Chillies Entertainment Drishyam Films
Distributed by	ZEE5
Release date	25 February 2022 (2022-02-25)
Running time	100 minutes
Country	India
Language	Hindi

Love Hostel is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language romantic thriller film written and directed by Shanker Raman and produced by Red Chillies Entertainment and Drishyam Films. It stars Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra and Bobby Deol. ^{[1] [2]} The film was released directly on ZEE5 on 25 February 2022. ^[3]

Plot

Completely in love, Ahmed Shaukeen (Vikrant Massey) and Jyoti Dilawar (Sanya Malhotra) have chosen to spend the rest of their lives together. Aware that their families will not approve as they each come from a different religion, the couple decides to elope and wed in secret. This decision puts them in danger as they are now being hunted by Viraj Singh Dagar (Bobby Deol), a ruthless ex-convict hitman who will not stop until he has found and "corrected" them. ^[4]

Cast

• Vikrant Massey as Ahmed Shaukeen
• Sanya Malhotra as Jyoti Dilawar
• Bobby Deol as Viraj Singh Dagar
• Raj Arjun as DCP Sushil Rathi ^[5]
• Yudhvir Ahlawat as Rakesh Dilawar
• Simran Rawal as Babli Dilawar
• Aditi Vasudev as Nidhi Dahiya
• Yogesh Tiwari as Randhir Dilawar (Jyoti's Father)
• Kumkum Jain as Savita Dilawar (Jyoti's Mother)
• Sonal Jha as Sujata Rathi (DCP's wife)
• Swaroopa Ghosh as MLA Kamala Dilawar
• Akshay Oberoi as Diler
• Vishal O Sharma as advocate ^[6]

Production

Plans to create Love Hostel were first announced in October 2020. ^[7] Shanker Raman wrote the script for Love Hostel, with the plans that he would also serve as the film's director. While writing the script and developing the movie he focused on "questions of the heart and the mind" and also focused on questioning "what our society has become but also the paths we take to solve our problems". ^[8] The film also focuses on honor killings. ^[9] Vikrant Massey and Sanya Malhotra were brought in to portray two of the film's central characters and principal photography began on 23 February 2021 in Punjab's Patiala district. ^{[10] [11]} Gauri Khan, Gaurav Verma, and Manish Mundra served as producers and the film was created as a joint production between Red Chillies Entertainment and Drishyam Films. ^[7]

Bobby Deol was also confirmed as performing in the film. ^[12] He was initially reluctant to come on to the production. Raman and his crew rewrote the script in hopes of appealing to the actor, who agreed to join the cast upon reading this second draft. ^[13] The director has stated that these changes "elevated the emotional quotient of the film". ^[14] In an article dated prior to the film's release Deol described his character as " a very interesting character that has quite a twisted journey" and that the character's actions were caused by something that "happened one day that changed him completely. So now whatever he does, he does it in his righteous way." ^[15] The film's script called for his character to chew tobacco, which required Deol to chew on a piece of cotton for scenes where Dagar is chewing and speaking. ^[4]

Filming was temporarily halted due to local farmers protesting the 2020 Indian agriculture acts. ^[12] The farmers stated that they were unhappy that Deol's family did not voice their support for the protest. Several other protestors had similarly disrupted a shoot on another film the previous month. Filming was stopped one additional time by the protestors before it was able to commence. ^[16] Filming wrapped up on 31 July 2021. ^{[17] [18]} Sanya Malhotra commented that making the film was emotional and tough for all of them due to film's themes and plot, further remarking that she had trouble sleeping during filming. ^[19]

Release

Love Hostel premiered on ZEE5 on 25 February 2022. ^[20] The Indian Express wrote favorably about the trailer, stating that the movie "promises to be a compelling romantic drama with a gruesome crime angle." ^[21] GQ India called the trailer one of the "best trailers of 2022 (so far)". ^[22]

Soundtrack

Love Hostel
Soundtrack album by Jeet Gannguli, Clinton Cerejo and Bianca Gomes
Released	28 February 2022 [23]
Recorded	2021
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Length	13:10
Language	Hindi
Label	Zee Music Company
Official audio
Love Hostel - Full Album on YouTube

The music of the film is composed by Jeet Gannguli, Clinton Cerejo and Bianca Gomes with lyrics written by Manoj Yadav and Siddhant Kaushal. ^[23]

Track listing

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Singer(s)	Length
1.	"Chali Aa"	Manoj Yadav	Jeet Gannguli	Raj Burman	3:14
2.	"Bas Mein Nahi"	Siddhant Kaushal	Clinton Cerejo, Bianca Gomes	Clinton Cerejo	2:35
3.	"Dagar's Theme"	Instrumental	Clinton Cerejo	Instrumental	2:35
4.	"Bas Mein Nahi" (Reprise)	Siddhant Kaushal	Clinton Cerejo, Bianca Gomes	Bianca Gomes	3:03
5.	"Dirty Dagar"	Instrumental	Clinton Cerejo	Instrumental	1:43
Total length:					13:10

Reception

Stutee Ghosh of The Quint gave the film a rating of 4.5/5 and wrote "Vikrant and Sanya's outstanding performances are complimented admirably by Bobby Deol. What a triumph for Shankar Raman who keeps getting better". ^[24] Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave the film a rating of 4/5 and wrote "We haven't seen anything as fearless and powerful as Love Hostel in a long, long time". ^[25] Shantanu Ray Chaudhuri of The Free Press Journal gave the film a rating of 4/5 and wrote "Bobby Deol a standout – this is a frighteningly dystopian look at a land that's no country for young lovers". ^[26] Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "As compared to Shanker Raman's 'Gurgaon', 'Love Hostel' has more immediacy in its execution, which makes its nonstop violence more impactful". ^[27] Sukanya Verma of Rediff gave the film a rating of 3.5/5 and wrote "It's a lawless, ruthless, endless minefield where uncertainty and bigotry go hand in hand and patriarchy is a foregone conclusion". ^[28]

Anna MM Vetticad of Firstpost gave the film a rating of 3/5 and wrote "Love Hostel's pluses and minuses is put in the shade though by its complete lack of prevarication in its representation of India's ongoing war against love". ^[29] Rachana Dubey of The Times of India gave the film a rating of 2.5/5 and wrote "Sanya, Vikrant and Bobby put out honest performances.Dubey stated that while the direction was good, writer could have been better". ^[30] Hindustan Times critic Devarsi Ghosh also echoed the same, calling it "well-directed but badly written thriller." ^[31] Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute compared the film with NH10 (2015) and Sairat (2016) and stated, "Love Hostel oscillates between sparks of good writing and a lack of imagination in developing the plot." ^[32] Terming it an "unlikely thriller about honour killing," Nandini Ramnath of Scroll.in and wondered "Whether Love Hostel works as an expose of the culture of honour killing is always up for debate." ^[33]

References

1. "Vikrant Massey and Sanya Malhotra to star in Gurgaon director Shanker Raman's next". Bollywood Hungama. 29 October 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
2. "Love Hostel': Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra and Bobby Deol to star in SRK production". The Hindu. 29 October 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
3. "Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra and Bobby Deol starrer Love Hostel to premiere on ZEE5 on February 25, 2022". Bollywood Hungama . 4 February 2022. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
4. "Bobby Deol says he comes from 'traditional and conservative family', relationships were 'taboo' when he was young". Hindustan Times. 17 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
5. "Raj Arjun on playing a cop in 'Love Hostel'". The Times of India . 19 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
6. "Vishal Om Prakash: Now, the struggle is for better roles and that's happening!". Hindustan Times. 28 March 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
7. "'Love Hostel': Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra and Bobby Deol to star in SRK production". The Hindu. PTI. 29 October 2020. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 14 February 2022.
8. "Sanya Malhotra, Vikrant Massey, Bobby Deol wrap up Love Hostel". The Indian Express. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
9. "Love Hostel trailer: Sanya Malhotra, Vikrant Massey have a 'killer' Bobby Deol on their tail in film on honour killings". Hindustan Times. 14 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
10. "Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra start shooting for crime-thriller Love Hostel". India TV News. 23 February 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
11. "Sanya Malhotra, Vikrant Massey start 'Love Hostel' shooting". The Times of India. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
12. "Sanya Malhotra, Vikrant Massey start 'Love Hostel' shooting - Times of India". The Times of India. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
13. "Love Hostel First Poster: Director reveals how Bobby Deol, Sanya Malhotra and Vikrant Massey were roped in". PINKVILLA. 9 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
14. "'Love Hostel' director talks about casting process of Bobby Deol, Sanya Malhotra and Vikrant Massey". 5 Dariya News. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
15. "Bobby Deol on playing a dark character in upcoming film Love Hostel: Its an interesting character with a twist". PINKVILLA. 14 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
16. "Shooting of Bobby Deol-starrer 'Love Hostel' disrupted in Punjab's Patiala due to farmers protests". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
17. "Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra, Bobby Deol Starrer Love Hostel Wrap Up Shoot". News 18. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
18. "Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra and Bobby Deol wrap up Love Hostel shoot". India Today. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
19. "Sanya Malhotra reveals she couldn't sleep, broke down on Love Hostel sets: 'Was constantly in touch with my therapist'". Hindustan Times. 16 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
20. "Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra's 'Love Hostel' set for February 25 release". The Hindu. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
21. "Love Hostel trailer: Sanya Malhotra and Vikrant Massey play star-crossed lovers in the Shah Rukh Khan presentation". The Indian Express. 15 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
22. "Love Hostel to Rudra: The Edge of Darkness, 6 of the best trailers of 2022 (so far)". GQ India. 15 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
23. "Love Hostel – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Jiosaavn. 21 February 2022.
24. "Review: Layered Storyline & Outstanding Performances Make 'Love Hostel' a Winner". The Quint . 25 February 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
25. "Love Hostel Review: Bobby Deol Renders An Emotionless Killer To Perfection In Courageous Film". NDTV . Retrieved 31 March 2022.
26. "Love Hostel review: Bobby Deol, Vikrant Massey and Sanya Malhotra give outstanding performances in this brilliant film". The Free Press Journal . Retrieved 31 March 2022.
27. "Love Hostel movie review: Vikrant Massey, Sanya Malhotra shine in brutal, brilliant film" . The Indian Express. 26 February 2022.
28. "Love Hostel Review". Rediff . Retrieved 31 March 2022.
29. "Love Hostel movie review: A chilling representation of India's war against love". Firstpost . 25 February 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
30. "LOVE HOSTEL REVIEW : A GRIM PICTURE OF INTER-FAITH LOVE". The Times of India. 25 February 2022.
31. "Love Hostel movie review: Vikrant Massey is impressive in a well-directed but badly written thriller". Hindustan Times. 25 February 2022.
32. "Love Hostel review: Thriller on interfaith couple is a brave attempt that falters". The News Minute. 25 February 2022.
33. Ramnath, Nandini (25 February 2022). "'Love Hostel' review: An unlikely thriller about honour killing". Scroll.in.

External links

• Love Hostel at IMDb
• Love Hostel at ZEE5
• Love Hostel at Bollywood Hungama