''Manmarziyaan'' (; ), released internationally as ''Husband Material'', is a 2018 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 ...
-language
romantic comedy
Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...
drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
film directed by
Anurag Kashyap and written by
Kanika Dhillon
Kanika Dhillon is an Indian author and screenwriter. As an author, she has released three novels, ''Bombay Duck is a Fish'' (2011), a satire on the Indian film industry, the young adult superhero novel ''Shiva and the Rise of the Shadows'' (201 ...
. Starring
Abhishek Bachchan
Abhishek Bachchan (born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and the grandson of poet Harivansh Rai Bach ...
,
Vicky Kaushal
Vicky Kaushal (; born 16 May 1988) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi films. Kaushal is the recipient of numerous accolades including a National Film Award and two Filmfare Awards, and has appeared in '' Forbes India'' Celebrit ...
and
Taapsee Pannu
Taapsee Pannu (born 1 August 1987) is an Indian actress who works primarily in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil films. She is the recipient of three Filmfare Awards.
After a brief modelling career, Pannu ventured into acting with the Telugu film ' ...
in lead roles. The film is jointly produced by
Phantom Films
Phantom Films was an Indian film production and distribution company established by Anurag Kashyap, director Vikramaditya Motwane, producer Madhu Mantena and the former head of UTV Spotboy, Vikas Bahl. It was founded in 2011 by all four of ...
and
Aanand L. Rai's
Colour Yellow Productions.
''Manmarziyaan'' began filming in February 2018.
It is a love story set in
Amritsar,
Punjab, India
Punjab (; ) is a state in northern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the north and northeast, Haryana to the south and southeast, and ...
.
[ Principal photography wrapped up in April 2018. It premiered at the ]2018 Toronto International Film Festival
The 43rd annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from September 6 to 16, 2018. In June 2018, the TIFF organizers announced a program to ensure that at least 20 percent of all film critics and journalists given press accreditation to ...
and was released in India on 14 September 2018 to positive reviews from critics.
Plot
Rumi (Taapsee Pannu
Taapsee Pannu (born 1 August 1987) is an Indian actress who works primarily in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil films. She is the recipient of three Filmfare Awards.
After a brief modelling career, Pannu ventured into acting with the Telugu film ' ...
), a young woman, is in love with Vicky (Vicky Kaushal
Vicky Kaushal (; born 16 May 1988) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi films. Kaushal is the recipient of numerous accolades including a National Film Award and two Filmfare Awards, and has appeared in '' Forbes India'' Celebrit ...
), a part-time DJ. One day they are caught by Rumi’s family and pressure builds for them to get married. Rumi promises her family that Vicky will come with his parents to ask for her hand in marriage and if he doesn't show up, she will marry whomever her family chooses. However, nervous and immature, Vicky repeatedly gets cold feet.
Eventually, she gives up on him and agrees to an arranged marriage with a mature and responsible banker, Robbie (Abhishek Bachchan
Abhishek Bachchan (born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and the grandson of poet Harivansh Rai Bach ...
). Rumi accepts the proposal but the night before the wedding, refuses to marry, believing Vicky has changed. However, he backs out again.
Robbie and Rumi get married the next day. She gradually starts getting comfortable with Robbie.
One day, Vicky shows up to tell Robbie about him and Rumi, she tells Robbie that she wants to stay married to him. He still reminds her that she has a choice.
She ends up sleeping with Vicky the next day. Robbie, suspiciously, follows Rumi and ends up seeing her with Vicky. Robbie, realising that Rumi has cheated on him, gets heartbroken. When confronted, Robbie confesses that he loves Rumi but she and Vicky deserve each other. The next day, Robbie files for an annulment.
Rumi realizes that she is in love with Robbie and Vicky was never the "husband material" she was looking for. Initially reluctant, Vicky leaves Rumi.
Rumi meets Robbie in court. They sign the papers. On the way, Rumi answers the questions Robbie had asked her. Ultimately, Robbie forgives her and they reconcile.
Cast
*Vicky Kaushal
Vicky Kaushal (; born 16 May 1988) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi films. Kaushal is the recipient of numerous accolades including a National Film Award and two Filmfare Awards, and has appeared in '' Forbes India'' Celebrit ...
as Vicky Sandhu
*Taapsee Pannu
Taapsee Pannu (born 1 August 1987) is an Indian actress who works primarily in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil films. She is the recipient of three Filmfare Awards.
After a brief modelling career, Pannu ventured into acting with the Telugu film ' ...
as Rumi Bagga
*Abhishek Bachchan
Abhishek Bachchan (born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and the grandson of poet Harivansh Rai Bach ...
as Robbie Bhatia
*Ashnoor Kaur
Ashnoor Kaur (born 3 May 2004) is an Indian actress. She is best known for her acting in several television serials including '' Jhansi Ki Rani'', '' Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai'' and ''Patiala Babes''. In 2018, she made her Bollywood debut with ...
as Kiran
*Vishavpreet kaur as Rumi's chachi
*Saurabh Sachdeva as Kakaji
*Vikram Kochhar as Robbie's brother
*Arun Bali
Arun Bali (23 December 1942 – 7 October 2022) was an Indian actor who has worked in numerous films and television series. He played the part of King Porus in the 1991 period drama ''Chanakya'', Kunwar Singh in the Doordarshan soap opera '' ...
as Rumi's Grandfather
*Neelu Kohli
Neelu Kohli (also Nilu Kohli ) is an Indian film and television actress. She has done many roles in many Indian television series, like Sangam, Mere Angne Mein, Maddam Sir and Choti Sarrdaarni. She is also worked in Hindi films such as Hous ...
as Robbie's Mother
*Swairaj Sandhu as Robbie's Father
* Sukhmani Sadana as Lovely Singh
*Rajinder Singh as Lawyer Bhalla
*Jasmine Bajwa as Keerat
*Rupinderjit Singh as Babloo
*Akshay Arora as Rumi's Chacha
*Gaurav Amlani
{{Unreferenced, date=March 2019
Gaurav is an Indian and Nepalese male name. The name literally means honor', 'pride' or 'respect'.
Notable people named Gaurav
*Gaurav S Bajaj (born 1990), Indian television actor
* Gaurav Bhatt, Indian Music Direct ...
as Raja
*Toranj Kayvon as Raja's Girlfriend
Production
The project was originally to be directed by Sameer Sharma, who had shot some portions of the film, but producer Aanand L. Rai was not happy with the rough cut and stopped the shooting. He then approached Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari (born 15 October 1979) is an Indian filmmaker and writer. After working in advertising for several years, she made her debut by directing the 2016 comedy drama ''Nil Battey Sannata''. The film garnered critical acclaim and ...
to direct it, but she could not do it because of her "prior commitments". In November 2016, it was announced that Anurag Kashyap will now be directing ''Manmarziyaan'' written by Kanika Dhillon. Initially, it was reported by the media that Dulquer Salmaan
Dulquer Salmaan (born 28 July 1986) is an Indian actor, playback singer and film producer who predominantly works in Malayalam and Tamil films, in addition to Telugu and Hindi films. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in business manageme ...
, Ayushmann Khurrana and Bhumi Pednekar
Bhumi Pednekar (born 18 July 1989) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films. After working as an assistant casting director at Yash Raj Films for six years, she made her film debut as an overweight bride in the company's romantic come ...
were cast in the film, but they dropped out of the film. Abhishek Bachchan
Abhishek Bachchan (born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and the grandson of poet Harivansh Rai Bach ...
was then brought in as a replacement for Dulquer Salmaan.[ The movie marked Bachchan's return to acting after a 2-year hiatus. The film was shot in Punjab, while some portions in Delhi and Kashmir.
]
Box office
''Manmarziyaan'' was well received at the box office. It collected 4 crore on opening day. The film saw a further jump of 5.70 crore in collections on Sunday. The worldwide gross of the movie was 40.39 crore.
Reception
''Manmarziyaan'' received positive reviews from critics, with particular praise for its contemporary take on a love story and the overall strong performances from its cast. Additionally, it also received high praise for seamlessly weaving its soundtrack into the story. As a love-triangle with a running length of 155 minutes, the subject matter was a venture into conventional Bollywood territory for director Anurag Kashyap.
Critic Anupama Chopra noted "director Anurag Kashyap, Hindi cinema's high-priest of darkness, turns his ferocious gaze on relationships. Obviously then, this is not the routine Bollywood meet-cute. Director Kashyap and writer Kanika Dhillon have created a fully realized world that is fueled by Amit Trivedi’s pulsating soundtrack" ''Times Of India'''s critic Rachit Gupta said "The maturity with which Anurag Kashyap’s ''Manmarziyaan'' talks about love and relationships is refreshing. The seemingly conventional story of a love triangle, gets original with its treatment and portrayal of love. With characters constantly oscillating between confusion and complex emotions, ''Manmarziyaan'' presents a new and updated look at romance and relationships."
Raja Sen, writing for ''Hindustan Times'', critiqued the film saying "There is authenticity to the texture, but this film could have held more. It is ultimately a disappointment not because of its craft, but because of predictability, self-indulgent pace and its irritating attempt to be both a light crowd-pleaser with a cutesy ending as well as an impassioned, volatile romance." ''Filmfare'' critic Debesh Sharma adds "Shot well by Sylvester Fonseca and edited well by Aarti Bajaj, the film scores on technical fronts as well."
The movie received a limited international release with the title "Husband Material" including a premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...
in September 2018.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack of the film was composed by Amit Trivedi
Amit Trivedi (born 8 April 1979) is an Indian music director, singer and a lyricist who works primarily in Hindi films. After working as a theatre and jingle composer and composing for non-film albums, he debuted as a film composer in the 200 ...
while the lyrics were written by Shellee
Shailender Singh Sodhi , commonly known as Shellee, is an Indian poet, film lyricist and writer. He commonly works in Bollywood. He was born in Chandigarh, India.
Early life
His father Himmat Singh Sodhi, is a poet and a writer.
Shellee wro ...
except where noted.
The first song, "F for Fyaar", was released on 10 August 2018. The second song, "Daryaa", was released on 11 August 2018. The third song "Grey Walaa Shade" was released on 12 August 2018. The fourth song, "Dhyaanchand", was released on 13 August 2018. The fifth song, "Chonch Ladhiyaan", was released on 14 August 2018. The sixth song, "Hallaa", was released on 15 August 2018. The seventh song, "Sacchi Mohabbat", was released on 16 August 2018. The eighth song, "Jaisi Teri Marzi", was released on 17 August 2018. The ninth song, "Bijlee Giregi", was released on 18 August 2018. The tenth song, "Kundali", was released on 23 August 2018.
Vipin Nair 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 ...
'' gave the soundtrack 4/5 stating that though the "repetitiveness gets in the way on more than one occasion, the composer still manages to deliver a supremely engaging soundtrack, with ample help from Shellee and a bunch of incredible musicians." ''The 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 ...
'' based Debarati Sen, in her review, said the lyricist-composer combo ensures that the album "finds a way to your playlist."
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
*
{{Anurag Kashyap
Films set in Amritsar
2018 romantic drama films
Films directed by Anurag Kashyap
Films scored by Amit Trivedi
2018 films
Indian romantic drama films