Pardes (1997 film)
| Pardes | |
|---|---|
| File:Pardes.jpg Poster | |
| Directed by | Subhash Ghai |
| Written by |
|
| Produced by | Subhash Ghai |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Kabir Lal |
| Edited by | Renu Saluja |
| Music by | Nadeem-Shravan |
| Distributed by | Mukta Arts |
Release date |
|
Running time | 191 mins |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹10 crore[1] |
| Box office | ₹40.95 crore[1] |
Pardes (transl. Foreign land) is a 1997 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film directed, produced, and co-written by Subhash Ghai. Distributed by Mukta Arts, it stars Shah Rukh Khan, newcomers Mahima Chaudhry and Apurva Agnihotri, Alok Nath, Amrish Puri and Himani Shivpuri in leading roles. The film was theatrically released in India on 8 August 1997. It received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics, with praise for Khan, Chaudhry, and Agnihotri's performances. Pardes grossed over ₹409 million (US$4.9 million) worldwide, emerging as a commercial success, and was the fourth highest-grossing Bollywood film of 1997, behind Dil To Pagal Hai (also starring Khan), Border, and Ishq.
The film was shot at various locations in the United States (Los Angeles, Las Vegas), Canada (British Columbia, including Vancouver) and India (Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, including Agra). It received 12 nominations at the 43rd Filmfare Awards, including Best Film, Best Director for Ghai, and Best Actress for Chaudhry. It won three awards: Best Female Debut for Chaudhry, Best Screenplay for Ghai, and Best Female Playback Singer for Yagnik for "Meri Mehbooba".
The movie was remade in Telugu as Pelli Kanuka (1998) starring Jagapati Babu, Lakshmi & Banumathi Ramakrishna. It was released on the eve of celebration of 50th anniversary of the Indian independence.
Plot
Rajiv, the son of wealthy NRI Kishori Lal Sinha, arrives in India to meet Ganga Kashyap, for an arranged marriage. Having lived his entire life in the US, he is unaware of Indian traditions but is helped by his foster brother, Arjun Sagar who plays the role of matchmaker for them, helping them fall in love and becoming friends with Ganga.
After a brief courtship, Rajiv and Ganga get engaged and fly off together to the US. There, she faces hostility from the westernized Sinhas. Isolated, she increasingly seeks out Arjun for support and comfort. At a party, Ganga is shocked to see Rajiv smoking, drinking, flaunting his wealth and being verbally abusive. Later, she finds out about his ex-girlfriends and premarital affairs.
Angry, Ganga confronts Arjun for hiding facts about Rajiv. Arjun talks to him, but his growing closeness with Ganga is noticed by Sinhas. Instead, he is relocated within the US on excuse of business. Rajiv and Ganga reach Las Vegas. He insists on getting physical with her. She wishes to abstain until marriage, but Rajiv is unwilling to wait and disrespects Ganga. Outraged, Ganga slaps him and subsequently discards her ring indicating a fraud symbol of their relationship. This causes Rajiv to try to rape her, and Ganga fights back and escapes.
The following day, Arjun finds her crying in the train station and escorts her back to India; everyone believes they've an affair. In India, Ganga's father Suraj throws Arjun out of the house when the two arrive, and locks her up in a room. Ganga's friends and grandmother make her realize her friendship with Arjun is indicative of love, and free her so she can find him. Arjun is headed to his village but is intercepted by Rajiv, who wants revenge.
Kishori Lal questions Arjun; he confesses he loves Ganga, but never intentionally acted to separate her and Rajiv. Ganga reveals about the incident in Las Vegas. Furious, Kishori Lal slaps Rajiv and orders him to return to the US. He offers to take Ganga back to the US so she can marry Arjun instead. She marries him and lives a happy life in the US.
Cast
- Shahrukh Khan as Arjun Saagar
- Mahima Chaudhry as Kusum Ganga
- Apurva Agnihotri as Rajiv
- Amrish Puri as Kishorilal
- Alok Nath as Suraj Dev, Ganga's father
- Padmavati Rao as Narmada
- Dina Pathak as Dadi Maa
- Himani Shivpuri as Kulwanti
- Madhuri Bhatia as Neeta Sandiplal, Arjun's foster aunt
- Smita Jaykar as Padma
- Pawan Malhotra as Sharafat Ali
- Prachi Save as Daksha
- Aditya Narayan as Potla
- Ajay Nagrath as Dabboo
- Samta Sagar as Sonali Shahi
- Subhash Ghai as singer in a boat
- Remo D'Souza as Dancer
- Rakesh Thareja as Shekhar Paul, Rajiv's friend
- Ruhshad Nariman Daruwalla as Vikrant Pathak, Potla's friend
- Akash as Karnataki
- Richa Anderson as Kelly, Rajiv's ex girlfriend
- Sukhwinder Singh Chahal as Ramu
- Deepak Qazir as Amirchand
- Vinod Raut as Garibchand
- Anand Balraj as Manuchand
Soundtrack
| Pardes | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Soundtrack album | |
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack |
| Label | Tips Zee Music Company |
The soundtrack was composed by Nadeem-Shravan and the lyrics were penned by Anand Bakshi. For their work, Nadeem-Shravan received a Filmfare Award for Best Music Director nomination and won a Screen Award for Best Music Director. This was the only album where K.S. Chithra sung a Hindi song for Nadeem-Shravan.
Ghai wanted A. R. Rahman to compose the music of this film, but he was too expensive and didn't fit the budget of the film.[2] However, they collaborated on Ghai's next, Taal (1999).
Track list
| No | Title | Singer(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Nahin Hona Tha" | Alka Yagnik, Udit Narayan, Hema Sardesai, Sabri Bros. |
| 2 | "Meri Mehbooba" | Kumar Sanu, Alka Yagnik |
| 3 | "Yeh Dil Deewana" | Sonu Nigam, Vocals by Hema Sardesai, Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani |
| 4 | "I Love My India" | Kavita Krishnamurthy, Hariharan, Aditya Narayan & Shankar Mahadevan |
| 5 | "My First Day in USA" | Hema Sardesai |
| 6 | "Do Dil Mil Rahe Hain" | Kumar Sanu |
| 7 | "Jahan Piya Wahan Main" | K. S. Chithra |
| 8 | "I Love My India" (Part 2) | Kavita Krishnamurthy |
| 9 | "Title Music" | Sapna Awasthi, Shankar Mahadevan |
Reception
Planet Bollywood started their review by saying, "The music of Pardes is one of Nadeem-Shravan's best ever."[citation needed]
Box office
Pardes grossed ₹34.83 crore in India and $1.7 million (₹6.12 crore) overseas, for a worldwide total of ₹40.95 crore ($11.4 million), against its ₹10 crore budget. It had a worldwide opening weekend of ₹3.4 crore, and grossed ₹6.19 crore in its first week.[3] It is the 4th-highest-grossing film of 1997 worldwide.[4]
India
It opened on Friday, August 8, 1997, across 210 screens, and earned ₹61 lakh nett on its opening day. It grossed ₹2 crore nett in its opening weekend, and had a first week of ₹3.64 crore nett. The film earned a total of ₹22.83 crore nett, and was declared a "super-hit" by Box Office India.[3] It is the 4th highest-grossing film of 1997 in India.[5]
Overseas
It earned $1.7 million (₹6.12 crore in 1997) outside India.[3] Overseas, it is the 2nd highest-grossing film of 1997 after Dil To Pagal Hai, which grossed $3.3 million (₹12.04 crore in 1997).[6]
| Territory | Territory wise Collections break-up |
|---|---|
| India | Nett income: ₹31.83 crore |
| Entertainment tax: ₹12 crore | |
| Total gross: ₹43.83 crore | |
| International (outside India) |
$1.7 million (₹6.12 crore in 1997) |
| Worldwide | ₹49.95 crore ($11.4 million)[3] |
Critical reception
Pardes received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics. Praise was given to the music and the cast's performances; however the story and screenplay of the film received criticism.[7][8][9]
India Today cites it as one of the first major Bollywood pictures to succeed in the United States.[10]
In their book, New Cosmopolitanisms: South Asians in the US, Gita Rajan and Shailja Sharma view the film as a dichotomous depiction of the good NRI versus bad NRI, with Khan depicting the good immigrant, who assists the rowdy Indian American playboy Rajiv (Apurva Agnihotri), the bad. Khan's character of Arjun is perceived as a metaphor for cosmopolitanism or Indian cultural nationalism in the wider sense, in direct contrast to Rajiv who represents wealthy Westernization and all its negative vices and connotations.[11]
Accolades
Notes
References
- ^ a b "Pardes - Movie - Box Office India". boxofficeindia.com.
- ^ "21 Years of Pardes: When the music triumphed over the film's story!". 8 August 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Pardes". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 7 August 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ "Top Worldwide Grossers 1997". Box Office India. 22 July 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ "Top India Total Nett Gross 1997". Box Office India. 22 July 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ "Top Overseas Gross 1997". Box Office India. 22 July 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
- ^ "Planet Bollywood: Film Review: Pardes". planetbollywood.com. Archived from the original on 3 October 2011.
- ^ "Pardes". ApunKaChoice. Archived from the original on 26 March 2013.
- ^ Maheshwari, Laya (25 September 2017). "How Bollywood Stereotypes the West". BBC. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
- ^ "Pardes (1997)". India Today. Retrieved 27 December 2014.
- ^ Sharma & Rajan 2006, p. 126.
- ^ "43rd Filmfare Awards 1998 Nominations". Indian Times. The Times Group. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ "43rd Filmfare Awards 1998 Winners". Indian Times. The Times Group. Archived from the original on 8 May 2006. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ "The 4th Screen Awards Nominations: Bollywood's best to vie for Screen-Videocon awards". The Indian Express. 9 January 1998. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
- ^ "The 4th Screen Awards: And the nominees for 1997 are…". The Indian Express. 9 January 1998. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
- ^ "Screen Award winners for the year 1997 are". Screen India. Indian Express Limited. Archived from the original on 27 January 2004. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
{{cite news}}:|archive-date=/|archive-url=timestamp mismatch; 7 January 2004 suggested (help) - ^ "Star Screen Videocon Awards Winners". Screen India. Indian Express Limited. Archived from the original on 20 October 2002. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ "1st Zee Cine Awards 1998 Popular Award Categories Nominations". Zee Television. Zee Entertainment Enterprises. Archived from the original on 19 February 1998. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ "1st Zee Cine Awards 1998 Technical Award Categories Nominations". Zee Television. Zee Entertainment Enterprises. Archived from the original on 19 February 1998. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ "1st Zee Cine Awards 1998 Popular Award Categories Winners". Zee Television. Zee Entertainment Enterprises. Archived from the original on 2 July 1998. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- ^ "1st Zee Cine Awards 1998 Technical Award Categories Winners". Zee Television. Zee Entertainment Enterprises. Archived from the original on 2 July 1998. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
- Bibliography
- Sharma, Edited by Gita Rajan and Shailja; Rajan, Gita (2006). New Cosmopolitanisms: South Asians in the US. Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-0-8047-6784-2.
{{cite book}}:|first1=has generic name (help)
External links
- 1997 films
- Indian films
- 1990s Hindi-language films
- Films directed by Subhash Ghai
- Films scored by Nadeem–Shravan
- 1997 romantic drama films
- Films set in the United States
- Hindi films remade in other languages
- Indian romantic drama films
- Hindi-language films
- Films shot in British Columbia
- Films shot in Vancouver
- Films shot in Uttarakhand
- Films shot in Uttar Pradesh
- Films shot in Los Angeles
- Films shot in Agra
- Films shot in the Las Vegas Valley
- Films shot in Nevada
- Films set in Uttar Pradesh
- Films set in the Las Vegas Valley
- Films set in Nevada