Happy Bhag Jayegi
Happy Bhag Jayegi | |
---|---|
Directed by | Mudassar Aziz |
Written by | Mudassar Aziz |
Produced by | Aanand L. Rai Krishika Lulla |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Saurabh Goswami |
Edited by | Ninad Khanolkar |
Music by | Sohail Sen |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Eros International |
Release date |
|
Running time | 126 minutes |
Country | India |
Language | Hindi |
Budget | ₹20 Crores |
Box office | est.₹46.5 Crores[1] |
Happy Bhag Jayegi (transl. Happy will run away) is a 2016 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film, written and directed by Mudassar Aziz, and produced by Aanand L. Rai and Krishika Lulla. It stars Diana Penty as the eponymous character; a free-spirited bride-to-be from Amritsar who runs away from her wedding ceremony and inadvertently arrives in Lahore, Pakistan. The production features an ensemble cast consisting of Penty, Abhay Deol, Jimmy Sheirgill, Ali Fazal, and Momal Sheikh.
Aziz began writing for the film in 2012 and later approached Rai to produce it. Happy Bhag Jayegi was conceived as a "cross-border" romantic comedy and was originally titled Dolly Lahore Mein. Although a large part of the film is set in Lahore, the film was primarily shot in
Happy Bhag Jayegi was released theatrically in India on 19 August 2016; it opened to mixed responses from film critics, who appreciated the performances of the ensemble cast and the humour. Criticism was focused on its scattered screenplay, inconsistent tone, and relatively poor characterisation of the central character. Despite mixed reviews, the film was an average grosser at the box office, collecting ₹465 million against a budget of ₹200 million. It was considered a sleeper hit by media outlets in India. A sequel titled Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi was released on 24 August 2018.
Plot
Harpreet "Happy" Kaur is supposed to marry Corporator Daman Singh Bagga in
After fleeing Bilal's house, Happy creates a ruckus at a local marketplace and is arrested by police officer Usman Afridi. The officer informs Bilal, who decides to arrange for Happy's deportation. Unwilling to return to Amritsar, Happy blackmails Bilal into helping her using a contrived story about her being abducted by Bilal and his father. Bilal is then confronted by his fiancée Zoya, who initially suspects him of having an affair with Happy. Zoya later suggests bringing Guddu to Lahore, have him marry Happy there, and deport them together. Bilal begrudgingly agrees to help Happy but has difficulty keeping her a secret from his father and struggles to keep Happy reined in. Bilal finds himself attracted to Happy, who develops a close friendship with him and Zoya.
When Bilal's father travels to China for two weeks, he decides to go to India with Afridi to rescue Guddu. They pose as members of a Lahore-based music company and persuade Bagga they want Guddu to perform for their production in Lahore. Bagga realises their subterfuge and helplessly watches them board a bus to Lahore from Attari. He hires goons who abduct Happy from Bilal's house and sets off to Lahore along with Happy's father. Afridi arrests Bagga upon arrival and Happy's father escapes.
Afridi rescues Happy, who re-unites with Guddu. Completely smitten with Happy, Bilal begins to avoid Zoya but reconciles with her later. Happy's father, in his desperate attempts to find his daughter, is mistaken for an Indian spy who is planning to kill Bilal's father. Bilal arranges for Happy's marriage to Guddu at a mass wedding event. Having escaped prison, Bagga also arrives at the mass wedding disguised as a groom. The event turns chaotic when Happy's father makes a frenzied attempt to get the governor's attention using a police officer's gun. Happy marries Guddu and they head to the airport chased by Happy's father, Bilal and Zoya, and Bagga and his goons who lose track of the group. Before boarding the flight to Amritsar, Happy seeks validation from her father, who obliges. She embraces Zoya and Bilal and departs.
In a post-credits scene, Bagga seeks support for his election campaign at a public rally with Happy and Guddu in attendance; he declares himself the couple's saviour. Onlookers react with complete bafflement, much to the duo's amusement.
Cast
- Diana Penty as Harpreet Kaur aka Happy
- Abhay Deol as Bilal Ahmed
- Ali Fazal as Gurdeep Singh aka Guddu
- Momal Sheikh as Zoya
- Jimmy Sheirgill as Daman Singh Bagga
- Lankesh Bhardwajas Rajinder
- Kanwaljit Singh as Happy's Father
- Javed Sheikhas Javed Ahmed, Bilal's Father
- Piyush Mishra as Usman Afridi
- Jagat Rawat as Fakhru
- Ayesha Raza Mishra as Rifat Bi
- Ashu Sharma as Winkle
Production
Development
Happy is a crazy character. She's is fun, she is loud, she wears her heart on her sleeve. She's impulsive, she says what is on her mind. And it is all these quirks that make her very endearing.
—Diana Penty on Happy's characterisation.[2]
Happy Bhag Jayegi marks the
Filming and post-production
The filming process for Happy Bhag Jayegi was completed in March 2016.
Soundtrack
Happy Bhag Jayegi | |
---|---|
Soundtrack album by | |
Released | 1 August 2016 |
Genre | Feature film Soundtrack |
Length | 23:12 |
Language | Hindi |
Label | Eros Music |
The soundtrack for Happy Bhag Jayegi was composed by music director and singer Sohail Sen.[15] The lyrics were written by Mudassar Aziz, with the exception of the song "Gabru Ready To Mingle Hai", which features a rap segment with English lyrics written by Dee MC.[16] Harshdeep Kaur, Shahid Mallya, Mika Singh, Neeti Mohan, Tarannum Malik, Danish Sabri, Arijit Singh, and Altamash Faridi provided vocals for the album's songs.[15] The love song "Aashiq Tera"—the first track from the album to be released—was accompanied by a music video featuring Penty, Deol, Fazal, and Sheikh.[17] The soundtrack was released on 1 August 2016 on the label Eros Music.[15]
Commentators including Mohar Basu and Devesh Sharma positively reviewed the film's soundtrack and were appreciative of Sen's unique style.[16][18] Mohar Basu, writing for The Times of India, gave the album three and a half stars out of five, said it has an "interesting mix of different styles", and dubbed it "memorable". He was particularly impressed by Singh's vocals on "Gabru Ready To Mingle Hai", which he called a "crowd pleaser".[18] The view was shared by Sharma, who wrote that Singh sang with an "inherent panache". Writing for Filmfare, he called the album "hugely satisfying" and chose Faridi's qawwali-influenced "Aashiq Tera" as the standout track.[16] The song was also praised by Tatsam Mukherjee of India Today, who was otherwise critical of Sen's "forgettable" work. Although impressed by the vocalists—especially Kaur and Mallya—he dismissed the mediocrity of Sen's compositions.[19]
All lyrics are written by Mudassar Aziz; all music is composed by Sohail Sen
No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Happy Oye" | Harshdeep Kaur, Shahid Mallya | 4:40 |
2. | "Gabru Ready To Mingle Hai" | Mika Singh, Neeti Mohan, Tarannum Malik, Danish Sabri | 3:46 |
3. | "Aashiq Tera" | Altamash Faridi | 4:54 |
4. | "Zara Si Dosti" | Arijit Singh | 5:27 |
5. | "Yaaram" | Javed Ali | 4:25 |
Total length: | 23:12 |
Release
A promotional first-look poster for Happy Bhag Jayegi showing Penty and Deol wearing traditional
Reception
Critical response
Happy Bhag Jayegi received a mixed response from film critics.
Commentators including Uday Bhatia of Mint and Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express were critical of the film's scattered narrative;[33][34] the latter noted the script's intermittent humour, saying, "despite its occasional throwaway lines, and nice touches, it never comes together".[34] Bhatia also praised the comical aspect, writing that despite the film's silly premise he "still found [him]self laughing".[33] Saibal Chatterjee criticised Aziz's direction in his review for NDTV; he wrote that Aziz did not use the "narrative pieces ... consistently enough to be able to deliver an outright winner". Chatterjee also responded negatively to the change in tone of the narrative in the film's latter half. He was enthusiastic about the film's inoffensive nature, calling it a rarity in comedy films and saying its inoffensiveness "add[s] up to a lot".[35] Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com was largely dismissive of the "witless and flimsy" plot. She was also critical of the poor characterisation of the title character, calling her a "sloppy protagonist who's neither convincing in her mischief nor original in her exploits", and added that the character is further weighed down by a script "that sees odd virtue in her cantankerous ways".[36]
The performances of most of the cast were well received by film critics.[25] Penty was variously dubbed as "brimming with potential" and a "misfit".[11][34] Her performance was also a subject of contrasting opinions; Bhatnagar wrote that "she steals the spotlight in every frame" but Singh said she "lacks the thespian skills to uplift the spirited character". Deol, however, was widely praised for his performance in the film, with Ramnath writing, "he superbly brings out Bilal's nuances, steering the character expertly through both the quieter and the laugh-out-loud scenes".[27] He was also described by Firstpost's Anna M. M. Vetticad and Chatterjee as "charamatic" and "the anchor around which [the film] pivots", respectively.[11][35] The supporting cast also received a largely positive response; Fazal was lauded by Singh for his "measured performance" and Sheikh was deemed a "revelation" by Vats.[26][31] Shergill was singled out by Thakur, who described his performance as "a man high on testosterone, low on intelligence, a delightful lowlife".[30]
Box office
Happy Bhag Jayegi was released on about 1,000 screens but had a relatively poor opening collection of about ₹23 million (US$290,000). The slow start was attributed to the film's marketing and competition faced from the big-budget productions including
Sequel
Penty confirmed her involvement in a sequel to Happy Bhag Jayegi through her Twitter account. Rai and Eros Now were also confirmed as producers, and Aziz was retained as director for the sequel. The sequel, entitled Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi was released on 24 August 2018.[43]
Notes
- ^ Although Happy Bhag Jayegi was Rai's first production effort, Nil Battey Sannata, also produced by Rai's Colour Yellow Productions, was released in April 2016, before the former.[3]
References
- ^ a b "Special Features: Box Office: Worldwide collections of Happy Bhag Jayegi – Box Office". Bollywood Hungama. 20 August 2016. Archived from the original on 26 August 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
- ^ a b c d Aswani, Shradha (22 January 2017). "A Story for the Run – The Lead Cast on Happy Bhaag Jayegi". Pandolin. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
- ^ "'Nil Battey Sannata' Declared Tax-free in Delhi". The Indian Express. Indo-Asian News Service. 22 April 2016. Archived from the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
- ^ a b Bhattacharya, Roshmila (21 January 2015). "Abhay Deol to romance Diana Penty in Happy Bhaag Jayegi". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 20 September 2015. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ a b "'Happy Bhag Jayegi' is a cross-border comedy with a twist". The Times of India. 27 January 2018. Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Happy Bhag Jayegi Cast & Crew". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 22 January 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
- ^ Lohana, Avinash (31 July 2015). "'Tanu Weds Manu' director wants to shoot in Pakistan". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 23 August 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Was waiting for the right role, script: Diana Penty". Business Standard. Indo-Asian News Service. 16 March 2016. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
- ^ Tuteja, Joginder (12 August 2016). ""My character takes decisions for everyone else in the film" – Pakistani actress Momal Sheikh on Happy Bhag Jayegi". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 22 January 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
- ^ "'Tanu Weds Manu Returns' director Aanand L Rai begins shooting 'Happy Bhaag Jayegi' with Abhay Deol". The Indian Express. Press Trust of India. 17 September 2015. Archived from the original on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
- ^ a b c d Vetticad, Anna M. M. (19 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi review: Diana Penty brims with potential; film is funny, but forgettable". Firstpost. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
- ^ "Abhay Deol, Diana Penty go traditional in 'Happy Bhaag Jayegi'". The Indian Express. Indo-Asian News Service. 25 December 2015. Archived from the original on 6 June 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
- The Tribune. 26 September 2015. Archivedfrom the original on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
- ^ "Abhay Deol wraps up Happy Bhaag Jayegi, celebrates birthday with Diana Penty". The Indian Express. 16 March 2016. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
- ^ a b c "Happy Bhag Jayegi (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) – EP". iTunes Store. Archived from the original on 26 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
- ^ a b c Sharma, Devesh (6 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi Movie Review". Filmfare. Archived from the original on 25 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
- ^ "Check out the love song Aashiq Tera from Abhay-Diana starrer Happy Bhag Jayegi". Deccan Chronicle. 25 July 2016. Archived from the original on 24 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
- ^ a b Basu, Mohar (19 August 2016). "Music Review: Happy Bhag Jayegi". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
- ^ Mukherjee, Tatsam (2 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi music review: Sohail Sen needs to find his way back to interesting music". India Today. Archived from the original on 25 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
- ^ "Happy Bhag Jayegi". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
- ^ "Trailer of 'Happy Bhag Jayegi' released in Mumbai". The Times of India. 22 July 2016. Archived from the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
- ^ "Happy Bhag Jayegi's trailer evokes great response". The Times of India. 29 July 2016. Archived from the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
- ^ "Watch: Diana Penty and Abhay Deol starrer 'Happy Bhag Jayegi' trailer launched on 'The Kapil Sharma Show'". Daily News and Analysis. 21 July 2016. Archived from the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
- ^ Ghosh, Devarshi (19 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi movie review: Diana Penty and Abhay Deol's film is an inoffensive entertainer". India Today. Archived from the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
- ^ a b Goswami, Parismita (19 August 2016). "'Happy Bhag Jayegi' review round-up: Here is what critics have to say about Abhay Deol and Diana Penty's film". International Business Times. Archived from the original on 6 March 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ a b Vats, Rohit (20 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi review: Abhay Deol, Diana Penty return in full form". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 19 September 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ a b Ramnath, Nandini (19 August 2016). "Film review: Cross-border comedy 'Happy Bhag Jayegi' sprints hilariously to the victory podium". Scroll.in. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- News18. Archivedfrom the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
- ^ Bhatnagar, Rohit (19 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi movie review: A perfect family entertainer". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 30 December 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ The Wire. Archivedfrom the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ a b Singh, Suhani (21 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi review: The supporting characters shine in this film". India Today. Archived from the original on 26 January 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ Joshi, Namrata (19 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi: It's all about loving your neighbour". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ a b Bhatia, Uday (19 August 2016). "Film review: Happy Bhag Jayegi". Mint. Archived from the original on 11 April 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ a b c Gupta, Shubhra (20 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi movie review: A comedy that loses the plot". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 27 June 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ a b Chatterjee, Saibal (19 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi Movie Review". NDTV. Archived from the original on 18 June 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ Verma, Sukanya (19 August 2016). "Happy Bhag Jayegi Review: Too few laughs, too much mess". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 24 August 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ "Happy Bhag Jayegi collections: Abhay Deol, Diana Penty movie's day 1 take rises to Rs 2.32 crore". The Financial Express. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ "Happy Bhag Jayegi box office collection day 3: Diana Penty film shows growth despite Rustom". The Indian Express. 22 August 2016. Archived from the original on 30 October 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ "Happy Bhaag Jayegi". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 20 January 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
- The Telegraph. Archived from the originalon 6 March 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ "Revealed: Sonakshi Sinha bags Happy Bhag Jayegi Returns; Diana Penty also retained". Bollywood Hungama. 2 October 2017. Archived from the original on 26 January 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- ^ "Sonakshi Sinha-Diana Penty teams up for Happy Bhag Jayegi sequel". Deccan Chronicle. 2 October 2017. Archived from the original on 4 October 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
- News18. 21 February 2018. Archivedfrom the original on 22 February 2018. Retrieved 21 February 2018.
External links
- Happy Bhag Jayegi at IMDb
- Happy Bhag Jayegi at Bollywood Hungama