''Do Dooni Chaar'' () is a 2010 Indian
Hindi
Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
comedy-drama film produced by
Arindam Chaudhuri
Arindam Chaudhuri is an Indian national best known for his involvement with the now-defunct Indian Institute of Planning and Management, an unaccredited institute that was previously headquartered in New Delhi and had 18 branches across India ...
(Planman Motion Pictures), written and directed by debutant director
Habib Faisal
Habib Faisal is an Indian writer, lyricist, director and producer who works in the Hindi cinema.
Career
He made his directorial debut, ''Do Dooni Chaar'', for which he won Filmfare Award for Best Dialogue. He co-wrote Siddharth Anand's ''Sal ...
, and starring
Rishi Kapoor
Rishi Raj Kapoor (4 September 1952 — 30 April 2020) was an Indian actor, film director and producer who worked in Hindi films. He was the recipient of several accolades, including four Filmfare Awards and a National Film Award.
Born into t ...
,
Neetu Singh
Neetu Kapoor (born Harneet Kaur), is an Indian actress who is known for appearing in Hindi films throughout the late 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s. In 2012, Singh was inducted into the Walk of the Stars, an entertainment hall of fame at Bandra ...
,
Aditi Vasudev and Archit Krishna in lead roles. The film is about a middle-class school teacher who tries to keep his wife and children happy in inflationary times and dreams of buying a car.
The movie also marks the return of the Kapoor pair as a lead couple on the silver screen. Although the duo had not acted in a film in over 30 years, they had previously acted in numerous hits during the 1970s. The directorial debut film was also the first live-action Hindi film to be distributed by
Disney World Cinema.
It went on to win the
National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi at the
58th National Film Awards
The 58th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema for the year 2010.
The selection process started by ...
.
Plot
The Duggals are a middle-class Punjabi family living in a one-bedroom apartment in
Lajpat Nagar
Lajpat Nagar is a residential and commercial neighborhood in the South East Delhi district of Delhi. It was named in honor of Lala Lajpat Rai and is today most known for the Lajpat Nagar Central Market. This area is not to be confused with the ...
, Delhi. The middle-aged patriarch, Santosh Duggal, is a modest high-school mathematics teacher; his wife Kusum is a stay-at-home housewife who quit her job at Santosh's insistence. They have two teenage children: a tomboyish college-going daughter, Payal, who narrates the film, and a high-schooler son, Sandeep, a.k.a. Deepu or Sandy. They lead a hand-to-mouth existence, penny-pinching at every opportunity. Santosh commutes using a dilapidated old scooter, nicknamed "Duggal Express", from his home to the school and to a coaching centre, where he gains a supplementary income. Despite his best efforts to give his children a quality education, he always falls short of their expectations, who wish for a comfortable life despite their situation.
One evening Santosh receives a phone call from his sister Urmi, who informs him that her youngest ''nanad'' (sister-in-law) is getting married at their home in
Meerut
Meerut (, IAST: ''Meraṭh'') is a city in Meerut district of the western part of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city lies northeast of the national capital New Delhi, within the National Capital Region and west of the state capital ...
that weekend. This throws the children's plans of buying gadgets out the window, as their meagre budget is now further strained with the burden of travelling to Meerut and buying gifts for the groom's family. The following night, Urmi turns up at the Duggals', and entreats the family to arrive at the wedding by car at any cost; if they show up on the scooter, she will have to face taunts from her family. Santosh immediately says that this is impossible, since he does not have the finances to borrow a car, let alone to buy one. However, Kusum promises a distraught Urmi that they will go to the wedding in a car, no matter what the expense.
After a fellow teacher at school proposes renting a car to Meerut, but at too high a price, Santosh turns to his jovial neighbour Farooqui, who offers the Duggals his old
Maruti Esteem
The Suzuki Cultus is a supermini car produced by the Japanese manufacturer Suzuki from 1983 to 2016. The nameplate is currently used as a rebadged second-generation Suzuki Celerio in Pakistan since 2017. It was first presented at the 25th Tok ...
. Payal drives the family to Meerut without incident. The wedding is a success, and Urmi's family is pleased to see the Duggals. However, upon returning home, Payal reverses the car into a wall, damaging its rear bumper and tail-light. Farooqui is unperturbed by the damage expenses, but his wife Salma loses her temper and challenges the Duggals to buy a car. Despite himself, Santosh takes up the challenge, and vows to buy a new car within fifteen days.
Farooqui sympathises with Santosh and advises him to buy only a new car and not a second-hand car. Santosh visits a car dealership and is offered a
Maruti Alto with an attractive offer, but he has to buy the car within five days to avail of the offer. Payal is displeased with the choice of car, as she wanted something more modern like her boyfriend's
i10. She refuses to accompany her family for the Alto's test drive. Eventually she applies for a job at a call centre. Meanwhile, Deepu, who had been betting money on cricket matches, is shell-shocked when the betting ring is exposed and arrested; he destroys his phone, to his girlfriend's consternation. That night, an exuberant Payal tells Santosh about her new job's offer letter, but he is unhappy with his daughter sacrificing her education for some extra money. In a fit of rage, Payal tears up her offer letter, but then the family learns of the betting ring through a TV news report. Payal and Kusum are enraged, but Santosh is calm. He takes Deepu to distribute the betting money among street children.
Having been refused a loan by both a school-teacher and the coaching centre's owner, Santosh is at his wits' end to pay the car's down payment. In desperation, he buys a thousand packets of 555 Brand detergent, in the hope that he gets to win a car through a lucky coupon found in one of the packets. The family spends considerable time ripping open cartons, cutting through packets and fishing out coupons, but the grand prize eludes them. Then Santosh chances upon an answer-paper of one of his students', wherein the student requests him to award him at least passing marks; in return, for each mark awarded, Santosh will get one thousand rupees. Santosh and Kusum had seen the paper earlier but had brushed it aside; now Kusum wonders whether they are doing the right thing, but Santosh reassures her that, in a fast-paced, burgeoning Delhi where his students get high starting salaries, an aging teacher deserves at least a matchbox-sized car. Santosh and Payal proceed to a
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hambur ...
restaurant, where the student's father has arranged to meet them along with him, his grandfather and his uncle. Meanwhile, Deepu is convinced, through another sting operation report on TV, that his father has fallen for a scam, and sets out alone for the restaurant.
The men sit across Santosh and Payal. The grandfather asks him to show how many marks were awarded. Santosh is astounded to discover that the boy is his student Aryan. Just as Santosh is about to show the answer-sheet, Zafar Iqbal, an ex-student of his, arrives on the scene with his wife and small daughter, and thanks him for making him a successful person in life and a principled "good boy". Zafar tells Santosh that he and several other ex-students live in New York and recount memories of Duggal Sir. After he leaves, Santosh, clearly moved, refuses to take the money, telling Aryan that they will both have failed if he were to undeservedly pass him: Aryan for thinking that money can buy anything, and Santosh for being remembered for dishonesty. He is about to leave, when a furious Payal, on learning that Aryan had spray-painted lewd messages on Santosh's scooter, starts an uproarious fight between the Duggals (including Deepu, who has joined the scene) and Aryan's relatives. Both parties, splattered with sauce, flee the restaurant, with Aryan's SUV in hot pursuit of the "Duggal Express" as the latter speeds through the roads of Delhi.
The Duggals have only just reached home when their pursuers arrive at their street, asking for their address and creating a ruckus. Farooqui informs a nervous Santosh about their presence. The Duggals come down and start apologising to them; Deepu had even been convinced that they were running a sting operation. However, their fears are unfounded: the grandfather introduces himself as Popley, the proprietor of Popley Sweets, and offers the Duggals twelve months' advance tuition fees to supplement their glaringly inadequate teaching income, which they reluctantly accept. He requests Santosh to teach Aryan to be a morally good boy, unlike his two wastrel sons. Payal and Deepu are now more proud than ever that their father is a teacher. The film ends with the Duggals enjoying their new Maruti Alto; as Payal teaches Santosh to drive it, they lament that they are now stuck in traffic jams, whereas they would have simply squeezed through them with their scooter. Of course, it is a small price for them to pay.
Cast
*
Rishi Kapoor
Rishi Raj Kapoor (4 September 1952 — 30 April 2020) was an Indian actor, film director and producer who worked in Hindi films. He was the recipient of several accolades, including four Filmfare Awards and a National Film Award.
Born into t ...
as Santosh Duggal
*
Neetu Singh
Neetu Kapoor (born Harneet Kaur), is an Indian actress who is known for appearing in Hindi films throughout the late 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s. In 2012, Singh was inducted into the Walk of the Stars, an entertainment hall of fame at Bandra ...
as Kusum Duggal
*
Aditi Vasudev as Payal Duggal, also the narrator of the movie
*Archit Krishna as Sandeep 'Sandy/Deepu' Duggal
*
Rajesh Vivek
Rajesh Vivek Upadhyay (31 January 1949 – 14 January 2016) was an Indian actor. He is best known to Hindi film audiences for his role as the astrologer Guran in '' Lagaan'' (2001) and as the postmaster Nivaran in '' Swades'' (2004). He had ...
as Anchor
*
Akhilendra Mishra
Akhilendra Mishra is an Indian film and television character actor best known for his role as ''Kroor Singh'' in the 1990s Doordarshan fantasy television series '' Chandrakanta''. His other notable works include the character of ''Mirchi'' Se ...
as Farooqui
*
Supriya Shukla as Urmi (Fuppu)
*
Natasha Rastogi as Salma Farooqui
*
Mohit Chadda
Mohit is an Indian actor who appears in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil films. His first Telugu film '' Aithe'' won the National Film Award for the Best Telugu Feature Film. The next year, he starred in the thriller film '' Aithe Enti'' (2004). He w ...
as Rahul
*Viccky Baidyanath as Policeman
*Manju Bahuguna as Teacher at school
Production
Development
Even at the script development stage, Rishi Kapoor had been in the mind of the makers, for the female lead opposite Rishi Kapoor, initially
Juhi Chawla
Juhi Chawla (born 13 November 1967) is an Indian actress, film producer and entrepreneur. She established herself as one of the leading actresses of Hindi cinema from the late 1980s through the early 2000s. Recognised for her comic timing and v ...
was approached, she, however, refused the role.
Although Neetu-Rishi pair had made a brief appearance in the Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone starrer 2009 film ''
Love Aaj Kal'', ''Do Dooni Chaar'' was their first film as a lead pair, after a gap of 30 years as Neetu Singh had retired from film after her marriage to Rishi Kapoor in 1980. Later in an interview Neetu, revealed she had no intentions of signing on the film and agreed to listen to the script at the insistence of her husband, who has already been signed on. Upon hearing the script from the director Habib, she started imaging herself as "Kusum Duggal" and immediately agreed to the part.
Theme
The film deals with the issue of underpaid teachers, and their issue with their self-worth in the face of growing inflation and demands of their family. The middle-class school teacher who works overtime to support his income and to send his children to good schools ends up in a moral dilemma when it comes to fulfilling the needs of his ever unsatisfied teenage children. As per producer, Arindam Chaudhuri, "The common question the teacher asks when he looks at his student, who is just 25 and owns a car, is why at 55 he is still riding a scooter?"
In the end, it is not just the teacher who redeems himself by not succumbing to taking bribes, but also his children who begin to see him in the true light and importance of being a teacher and an honest citizen.
[
]
Filming
Film was shot on locations across Delhi, in places like Kirori Mal College
Kirori Mal College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi. Established in 1954, it is located in the North Campus of the university in New Delhi, India. It offers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in the sciences, humanitie ...
, Vinobapuri, Shalimar Bagh (Delhi)
North West Delhi is an administrative district of the National Capital Territory of Delhi in India.
Geography
North West Delhi is bounded by the Yamuna River on the northeast, and by the districts of North Delhi to the east and southeast, West De ...
, Khan Market
Khan Market, is a shopping district and retail market in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1951 by the newly constituted Republic of India's Rehabilitation Ministry to give economic opportunities to refugees of the Partition of India, es ...
, Chittaranjan Park
Chittaranjan Park (also known as C.R. Park) is an affluent and upscale neighborhood in South East Delhi and home to a large Bengali community. It was established on a rocky terrain in the early 1960s under the name EPDP Colony (East Pakistan Di ...
, Mayur Vihar Phase - 3 and Noida
Noida, short for New Okhla Industrial Development Authority, is a planned city located in Gautam Buddha Nagar district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Noida is a satellite city of Delhi and is a part of the National Capital Region (NCR) o ...
. The wedding sequence in the film set in Meerut, was shot in a Chhattarpur farmhouse and later in Nizamuddin area, in early 2009. Coaching class shot in DICT Institute, Mayur vihar phase 3.
Release
In August 2010, the film became the first live action Hindi feature film to be produced by Disney India
The Walt Disney Company India Private Limited, known simply as Disney India, is the Indian subsidiary of the Indo Pacific region of the American media and entertainment conglomerate The Walt Disney Company and headquartered in Mumbai, Maharasht ...
and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, formerly known as Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, Inc. until 2007, is an American film distribution studio within the Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. It ha ...
. The movie premiered at a suburban theatre in Mumbai on 6 October, attended by the cast and Bollywood stars, followed by a nationwide release on 8 October 2010. The film had its North American premiere as the opening night film of the 2011 New York Indian Film Festival on 4 May 2011.
Home media
The film will be released on Disney DVD, Movie Download, and On Demand on 26 July 2011. The release will be produced in DVD widescreen and include a Hindi
Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
language track plus English subtitles.
Reception
Critical reception
Anupama Chopra
Anupama Chopra () is an Indian author, journalist, film critic and director of the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival. She is also the founder and editor of the digital platform Film Companion, which offers a curated look at cinema. She has written sev ...
of ''NDTV
New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. The company is considered to be a legacy brand that pioneered independent news broadcasting in India, and is credited for launching t ...
'' called it, "a film with grace" and commended the film for its "inherent niceness and decency". Pratim D. Gupta of ''The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...
'' gave two thumbs up to the film calling it "an irresistible trip to the movies" that "makes you feel good about yourself". Mayank Shekhar of ''Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia.
It was founded by Sunder Singh Ly ...
'' giving 4/5 stars said, "Full on paisa vasool! Dig into the Duggals" while Sudhish Kamath of ''The Hindu
''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...
'' called it "One of the most important films of our times. A celebration of the great Indian middle class. A landmark in indian film making!" Rajeev Masand
Rajeev Masand is an Indian film critic and journalist. He has worked for Noida based English language news channel CNN-Indian Broadcasting Network (CNN-IBN). He usually reviews Bollywood films and major Hollywood films released in India in his ...
of ''CNN-IBN
CNN-News18 (originally CNN-IBN) is an Indian English-language news television channel founded by Raghav Bahl based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is currently co-owned by Network18 Group and Warner Bros. Discovery. CNN provides internat ...
'' also liked the movie saying "Do Dooni... is simple but lovable." Similarly veteran critic Taran Adarsh
Taran Adarsh (born 13 June 1965) is an Indian film critic and trade analyst. He is best known for giving trade figures and box office updates on social media.
Career
Taran Adarsh started his journalism career at the age of 15 with ''Trade Gui ...
of ''Bollywood Hungama
Bollywood Hungama (lit. "Bollywood Madness" in Hindi), previously known as IndiaFM (or IndiaFM.com), is a Bollywood entertainment website, owned by Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, which acquired the website in 2000.
The website provide ...
'' called it a "A little gem that should not be missed!" Vinayak Chakravorty of Mail Today gave it three stars, writing: "Debutant Habib Faisal's direction works for the way he underplays routine ironies of life." DNA also praised the film, saying, "Though the film carries underlying messages of honesty and respect for the noble profession of teaching, it does not sound preachy or demand sympathy for the protagonist family." Times Of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest se ...
rated it 3 out of 5 and claimed it Sweet, simplistic and sensitive.
Box office
The film collected in its theatrical run.
Soundtrack
# "Do Dooni Chaar" – Shankar Mahadevan
Shankar Mahadevan (born 3 March 1967) is an Indian singer and composer who is part of the Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy trio that writes music for Indian films.
Personal life and early career
Shankar Mahadevan was born in Chembur, Mumbai into a Tam ...
, Vishal Dadlani
Vishal Dadlani (born 28 June 1973) is an Indian singer, songwriter and music composer. He is one half of the duo Vishal–Shekhar, Front Man and vocalist of one of India's leading rock bands called Pentagram.
As a singer he has sung various ...
# "Baaja Bajya" – Sunidhi Chauhan, Meet Bros Anjan Ankit
# "Ek Haath De" – Meet Bros Anjan Ankit
# "Maange Ki Ghodi" – Rakesh Pandit, Krishna
# "Do Dooni Chaar" Jam – Shankar Mahadevan, Vishal Dadlani
# "Do Dooni Chaar" Club Mix – Shankar Mahadevan, Vishal Dadlani, Meet Bros Anjjan
Meet Bros is an Indian musical duo from Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. The duo consists of brothers Manmeet Singh and Harmeet Singh. They were formerly known as Meet Bros Anjjan with longtime collaborator Anjjan Bhattacharya.
Initially starting out ...
, Ankit
Awards
;58th National Film Awards
The 58th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema for the year 2010.
The selection process started by ...
* Best Hindi Feature film – ''Do Dooni Chaar''
; 2011 Star Screen Awards
* Best Art Direction – Mukund Gupta
;2011 Filmfare Awards
The 56th Filmfare Awards were held on 29 January 2011 at the Yash Raj Studios in Mumbai, honouring the best in film for the year 2010. The nominations were announced on 13 January. The date of the function was unusual because generally the awar ...
* Best Actor (Critics) – Rishi Kapoor
Rishi Raj Kapoor (4 September 1952 — 30 April 2020) was an Indian actor, film director and producer who worked in Hindi films. He was the recipient of several accolades, including four Filmfare Awards and a National Film Award.
Born into t ...
* Best Dialogue – Habib Faisal
* Best Costume Design – Varsha and Shilpa
* Best Production Design – Mukund Gupta
References
http://www.vicckybaidyanath.info/about/ o Duni Char
External links
*
*
{{National Film Award Best Feature Film Hindi
2010 films
2010s Hindi-language films
Films shot in Delhi
Films set in Delhi
2010s road comedy-drama films
Indian road comedy-drama films
Films about educators
Best Hindi Feature Film National Film Award winners
Disney India films
2010 directorial debut films
2010 comedy-drama films