Kambakkht Ishq
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySabbir Khan
Written byKiran Kotrial
Anvita Dutt Guptan
Ishita Mohitra
Sabbir Khan
Screenplay bySabbir Khan (adapted screenplay)
T. S. B. K. Moulee (original screenplay)
Story byCrazy Mohan
Based onPammal K. Sambandam by Crazy Mohan
Produced bySajid Nadiadwala
StarringAkshay Kumar
Kareena Kapoor
Aftab Shivdasani
Amrita Arora
Javed Jaffrey
Kirron Kher
CinematographyVikas Sivaraman
Edited byNitin Rokade
Music bySongs:
Anu Malik
Bonus Track and Background Score:
Salim–Sulaiman
Guest Composers:
RDB
Production
company
Distributed byEros International
Release date
  • 3 July 2009 (2009-07-03) (India)
Running time
135 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Budget₹ 310 million[2]
Box office₹ 840 million

Kambakkht Ishq (transl. Damned love[3]) is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed by Sabbir Khan and produced by Sajid Nadiadwala. The film is based on the 2002 Tamil film Pammal K. Sambandam [4][5] which in turn was based on the 1999 film The Bachelor.[6] It features Akshay Kumar and Kareena Kapoor in pivotal roles along with Aftab Shivdasani, Amrita Arora, Jaaved Jaafrey and Kirron Kher in supporting roles. Sylvester Stallone, Denise Richards, Brandon Routh and Holly Valance appear in cameos, playing themselves.[7]

Originally scheduled to release in December 2008,[8] the film was postponed due to extensive production work and was released on 3 July 2009. It was termed an average by Box Office India.

A mobile video game based on the film was released by ASTPL.[9]

Plot

When stuntman Viraj Shergill and medical student Simrita Rai come across each other at his brother Lucky's and her best friend Kamini Sandhu's hastily planned wedding ceremony, they instantly develop a dislike for each other. Both have a very low opinion of the opposite sex, and staunchly believe marriage is not the way to go for the two newlyweds, whom they try to discourage from proceeding further.

Simrita convinces Kamini to test out her theory that men are after only one thing, by forcing Lucky to delay their marriage vows for three months. She is sure, Lucky will not be able to do so and this will prove to Kamini that Lucky was just another man, like all others, and her claims of him being different from most men are unfounded. Viraj, upon hearing about this new development, tries to do the exact opposite. This results in a hilarious scene at a local disco bar, where Viraj lures Kamini with the hope of her finding Lucky with a "girlfriend" that he has planted in the lap of Lucky in order to make Kamini jealous. The plan backfires because of a police raid and Kamini and Lucky end up in divorce court where the judge puts them on a three-month probation and marriage counselling. Simrita keeps on telling Kamini that all men are the same and that all they want is sex. Lucky tries to make love with Kamini but she never lets him come near her.

Meanwhile, Simrita and Viraj keep bumping into each other when they both travel to Italy independently; the former to make some quick cash as a model to pay her medical bills, and the latter, with Lucky, to chill out and take a vacation from all of the marital stress Lucky has been facing back home. Upon returning home, Simrita is given a watch pendant by her aunt Dolly to wear as a good luck charm. The pendant hangs from a bracelet on her wrist. Viraj gets seriously hurt in an accident at work and is brought for emergency surgery to the hospital where Simrita is an intern. Much to each other's irritation, Simrita is given the charge to perform surgery on Viraj. After the surgery, while looking at the X-rays, she is horrified to discover that the watch on her wrist has accidentally ended up in Viraj's stomach.

Simrita tries various ways of getting the watch out. During one such process, which fails, it becomes clear that Simrita is bitter about her perceived unfaithfulness of the two most prominent men from her childhood: her divorced father and her elder sister's ex-husband. By this time, Viraj is secretly beginning to fall in love with Simrita. Several days later, Simrita is successful in removing the watch from Viraj's stomach. Following the surgery, Viraj overhears the truth and leaves. Several days later, he proposes to Denise Richards in an attempt to forget about Simrita. Upon realising her mistake, Simrita helps Lucky and Kamini reconcile and decides to confess her love for Viraj at the wedding ceremony. At first, Denise is upset but then tells Viraj to go to Simrita. The two embrace and go off together in the car sharing a few passionate kisses.

Cast

Cameos

Production

Development and writing

In November 2007, producer Sajid Nadiadwala signed on actor Akshay Kumar to play the lead role in his film.[10] Later that month Kareena Kapoor was signed on to play the female lead.[11] It is the seventh time Kumar and Kapoor are paired on-screen. Kumar plays a Hollywood stuntman in the film[12] and Kapoor plays a up-and-coming model.[13] According to Nadiadwala, "It will be an international love story on a lavish scale."[11]

The project was originally expected to commence filming in January 2008 in Los Angeles with nine actors from Hollywood[11] but due to extensive pre-production work on the film, it was later shifted to May 2008.[14] Reports indicated that actor and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger was signed on to do a cameo and that the film would feature a performance by singer and actress Beyoncé.[14] Prashant Shah, line producer of Kambakkht Ishq in L.A. commented, "We are in talks with Beyoncé and we have also received a letter from Arnold's office...Things will be confirmed shortly and we will be making a formal announcement when that happens."[12] It was later reported that neither star would be appearing in the film.[15]

In March 2008, Nadiadwala announced that "this would be the first Indian film to be shot within Universal Studios."[16] However, when a fire broke out on the backlot of Universal Studios on 1 June 2008, the shooting of the film was expected to be delayed. But the producer indicated, "so far the area where we are supposed to shoot remains unaffected. So for now, we are proceeding on schedule."[17] Later that month, the cast finally began filming for the project in Los Angeles, California, where pivotal scenes were shot at the Kodak Theatre and Universal Studios.[7] In August 2008, reports had indicated that the film was 50–60% complete and the cast would continue filming for the project in Venice, Italy.[18] After completing their overseas schedule, the production team later headed to shoot in Mumbai, India.[19]

During December 2008, reports surfaced indicating that Kumar and Kapoor would appear alongside Carmen Electra in a promotional music video for the film.[20][21] In February 2009, Nadiadwala announced that Electra wouldn't be appearing in the music video and was replaced by the music group RDB. According to Nadiadwala, "It is not a music video but a song that we will use as an integral part of the film. It will occur close to the film's interval. It will also be the first promotional song."[22] The first trailer of the film was shown alongside the release of Jehangir Surti's film Aa Dekhen Zara (2009).[23]

Music

Soundtrack

Kambakkht Ishq: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by
Anu Malik
Released13 June 2009 (India)
Recorded2009
GenreFilm soundtrack
Length41:03
LabelEros Music
ProducerAnu Malik
Anu Malik chronology
Teree Sang
(2009)		 Kambakkht Ishq: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
(2009)		 Toonpur Ka Super Hero
(2010)

The music of this movie was primarily composed by Anu Malik, with RDB and Salim–Sulaiman as guest composers.

No.TitleMusicSinger(s)Length
1."Om Mangalam"RDBRDB & Nindy Kaur4:22
2."Lakh Lakh"Anu MalikNeeraj Shridhar5:15
3."Bebo"Anu MalikAlisha Chinai, Suzanne D'Mello, Anushka Manchanda4:19
4."Kambakkht Ishq"Anu MalikKK, Sunidhi Chauhan4:51
5."Kyun"Anu MalikShaan & Shreya Ghoshal5:29
6."Om Mangalam" (Reprise)RDBRDB, Nindy Kaur4:35
7."Lakh Lakh" (Electro Dhol House Remix)Anu MalikEric Pillai, Benny Dayal4:02
8."Bebo" (Club Mix)Anu MalikKilogram K & G3:38
9."Kambakkht Ishq" (Remix)Anu MalikKilogram K & G4:00
10."Kyun" (Female – Reprise)Anu MalikShreya Ghoshal4:30
11."Welcome To Hollywood"Salim–SulaimanKarsh Kale, Anushka Manchanda2:11

Reception

Box office

Before the film's worldwide release of 3 July 2009, advance bookings for Kambakkht Ishq officially commenced from 28 June onwards to positive response from the public.[24][25] The film grossed over Rs 10 million from its 125 advanced paid previews shown on Thursday [2 July 2009] night.[26] On 3 July 2009, Kambakkht Ishq opened to an average response of 50-60% all over India.[27] Making a first day total of Rs 85.0 million,[26] the film emerged as the second biggest opening day gross of all time for a Bollywood film.[28] For its opening weekend in India, Kambakkht Ishq accumulated a total of Rs 245.0 million[28] from 1,400 screens.[29] The following Monday, it grossed another Rs 40 million,[30] and the following Tuesday it grossed Rs 30 million.[31] At the end of its first week, Kambakkht Ishq collected a total of Rs 359.5 million.[32] During its second week at the box office, the film showed a 70% drop in its collections; the movie was a semi-hit grosser overall at the box office.[33]

Besides being released domestically in India, Eros International released the film in over 600 screens overseas in a combination of prints and digital format.[29] For its opening weekend in the United Kingdom, the film debuted at number 8 and grossed £ 299,533 on 56 screens, for an average of £5,349 per screen.[34] Kambakkht Ishq debuted at number 14 in the United States and number 11 in Australia, accumulating US$768,542 from 100 screens in the former and $152,626 from 17 screens in the latter.[34][35] As of 29 July 2009, Kambakkht Ishq has grossed a total of £681,154 in the U.K. and $1,445,739 in the U.S.[36]

Critical response

Noyon Jyoti Parasara from AOL India concluded, "The film has nothing going for it. It has a worryingly bad script, horrible screenplay, traumatising dialogues and unpleasant music."[37] Parasara further explained, "Kambakkht Ishq is a shame when it comes to watching Indian films on the world stage."[37] Rajeev Masand from CNN-IBN, who gave the film 1 star out of 5, noted that Kambakkht Ishq "is a loud, vulgar and seriously offensive film".[38]

Taran Adarsh of indiaFM described Kambakkht Ishq as a film that would "strike a chord with the youth and those who relish zany and madcap entertainers".[39] He praised the performances, direction, and writing, noting that the film would "see an earth-shattering opening weekend and a historic Week 1."[39] Rachel Saltz from The New York Times concluded that "[the film] has only one frantic desire: to entertain. It spottily succeeds, despite its frequently crude humor, relentless pace and a few unpalatable racial bits."[40]

References

  1. ↑ "Eat popcorn, forget logic: Akshay Kumar". The Times of India. Indo-Asian News Service. Archived from the original on 28 June 2009. Retrieved 11 July 2009.
  2. ↑ Shilpa Jamkhandiker (3 July 2009). "Bollywood meets Hollywood in 'Kambakkht Ishq'". reuters.com.
  3. ↑ "Incredible Love ( Kambakkht Ishq) International Trailer (2009)". 8 April 2009.
  4. ↑ "Bollywood borrows southern spice for 'Kambakkht Ishq', 'Short Kut'". Deccan Herald. July 2009.
  5. ↑ "Kambakkht Ishq inspired by a Tamil movie?". Hindustan Times. 1 July 2009. Archived from the original on 14 December 2014.
  6. ↑ "19 International films Inspired Kamal Haasan movies…?". The Times of India. 16 June 2022.
  7. 1 2 Bollywood Hungama News Network. "Sylvester Stallone shoots for Kambakht Ishq". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 4 February 2009. Retrieved 24 July 2008.
  8. ↑ Adarsh, Taran. "Eros' impressive line up for 2008". IndiaFM. Retrieved 16 February 2008.
  9. ↑ "Kambakkht Ishq". phoneky.com. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  10. ↑ IndiaFM News Bureau (5 January 2008). "Sajid Nadiadwala's Kambakth Ishq stars Akshay". IndiaFM. Retrieved 26 June 2008.
  11. 1 2 3 Bollywood Trade News Network. "Kareena-Akshay in Sajid's KAMBAKTH ISHQ". glamsham.com. Retrieved 8 January 2008.
  12. 1 2 IndiaFM News Bureau. "Arnold Schwarzenegger and Beyoncé in Kambakth Ishq". IndiaFM. Retrieved 8 January 2008.
  13. ↑ Screen Weekly. ""I play a high society girl in Kambhakht Ishq" – Kareena Kapoor". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 17 February 2008. Retrieved 24 December 2007.
  14. 1 2 TNN (8 January 2008). "Sajid signs on Arnie & Beyoncé". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 21 October 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2008.
  15. ↑ Ramani, Nithya. "Stallone was very impressed with Indians". Rediff.com. Retrieved 9 August 2008.
  16. ↑ Jha, Subhash K. "Sajid Nadiadwala takes Akshay Kumar to Hollywood". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 18 June 2008. Retrieved 26 June 2008.
  17. ↑ Jha, Subhash K. "Fire rages at Universal Studios, Akshay's Kambhakt Ishq gets Signed". ThaIndian.com. Retrieved 26 June 2008.
  18. ↑ Bhandari, Rohini. "Kambakkht Ishq 50% complete by 5 Aug; next shoot in Italy". BusinessofCinema.com. Retrieved 9 August 2008.
  19. ↑ Das, Chuman. "Bebo's Bikini Obsession Continues". Indiatimes. Archived from the original on 10 January 2009. Retrieved 14 November 2008.
  20. ↑ Jha, Subhash K (1 December 2008). "Electric jugalbandi". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  21. ↑ Sharma, Mandvi (5 December 2008). "It is still an Indian film". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  22. ↑ Jha, Subhash K. "Sajid Nadiadwala spends 1.5 Crores on a song in Kambakth Ishq". IndiaFM. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  23. ↑ Adarsh, Taran. "'Kambakkht Ishq' promo rocks". IndiaFM. Retrieved 27 March 2009.
  24. ↑ TNN (30 June 2009). "A 'kambakkht' hit!". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  25. ↑ TNN (6 July 2009). "Kambakkht Ishq shatters all records!". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  26. 1 2 Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network. "Kambakkht Ishq Grosses 8.50 Crore on Day One". BoxOffice India.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2009. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  27. ↑ Adarsh, Taran. "B.O. update: 'Kambakkht Ishq' takes a hurricane-like start". IndiaFM. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  28. 1 2 Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network. "Kambakkht Ishq Grosses 24.50 Crore Over Its First Weekend". BoxOffice India.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2009. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  29. 1 2 Datta, Sudipta (26 June 2009). "Bollywood takes a gamble, to release Akshay film in 2,000 screens". The Financial Express. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  30. ↑ Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network. "Kambakkht Ishq Is Fairly Steady on Monday". BoxOffice India.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2009. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  31. ↑ Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network. "Kambakkht Ishq Has A Decent Tuesday". BoxOffice India.com. Archived from the original on 10 July 2009. Retrieved 10 July 2009.
  32. ↑ Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network. "Kambakkht Ishq – First Week Circuit Billings". BoxOffice India.com. Archived from the original on 13 July 2009. Retrieved 14 July 2009.
  33. ↑ Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network. "Jashnn Is Very Poor; Kambakkht Ishq Drops". BoxOffice India.com. Archived from the original on 21 July 2009. Retrieved 18 July 2009.
  34. 1 2 Adarsh, Taran. "Overseas Box Office: Good start". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 11 July 2009. Retrieved 10 July 2009.
  35. ↑ Adarsh, Taran. "Overseas Box Office: 'Short Kut' okay in U.K., dull in U.S." IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 20 July 2009.
  36. ↑ Adarsh, Taran. "Overseas Box Office: Mixed feedback | Overall it was declared an "Average" By box office india". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 24 October 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2009.
  37. 1 2 Parasara, Noyon J. "Kambakkht Ishq – Movie Review". AOL India. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  38. ↑ Masand, Rajeev. "Masand's Movie Review: Kambakkht Ishq vulgar, offensive". CNN-IBN. Archived from the original on 7 July 2009. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  39. 1 2 Adarsh, Taran. "Kambakkht Ishq: Movie Review". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 29 August 2008. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
  40. ↑ Saltz, Rachel (3 July 2009). "Movie Review – Kambakkht Ishq – The Bollywood Sign". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 July 2009.
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