Vicky Donor
| Vicky Donor | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Shoojit Sircar[1][2] |
| Produced by |
John Abraham[3] Ronnie Lahiri |
| Written by | Juhi Chaturvedi[4][5][6] |
| Starring |
Ayushmann Khurrana Yami Gautam Annu Kapoor Puja Gupta |
| Music by |
Abhishek-Akshay Bann Rochak Kohli Ayushmann Khurrana[7] |
| Cinematography | Kamaljeet Negi |
| Edited by | Shekhar Prajapati |
Production company | |
| Distributed by |
John Abraham Entertainment Eros Entertainment |
Release date |
|
Running time | 125 minutes[8] |
| Country | India |
| Language |
Hindi Punjabi Bengali |
| Budget | ₹5 crore (US$700,000)[9] |
Vicky Donor is a 2012 Indian romantic comedy film directed by Shoojit Sircar and produced by actor John Abraham.[10] It stars Ayushmann Khurrana, Yami Gautam and Annu Kapoor in the lead roles. It released on 20 April 2012 in around 750 screens across India[11][12] and received positive response worldwide.[11] Vicky Donor opened to critical acclaim and performed strongly at the box office.[13][14] The storyline is based on sperm donation and infertility inspired by Canadian movie Starbuck.[15][16][17] The film won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment at the 60th National Film Awards. The film is remade in Telugu as Naruda Donoruda starring Sumanth and Pallavi Subhash.[18]
Plot
Dr. Baldev Chaddha (Annu Kapoor) is a fertility expert who runs a clinic and a sperm bank in Daryaganj, Delhi that guarantees high-quality sperm for couples. Unfortunately, he has more failed cases than successes. A healthy and high-performing donor is needed.
Vicky Arora (Ayushmann Khurrana) is the only son of his widowed mother Dolly (Dolly Ahluwalia), who runs a small beauty parlour from their home in Lajpat Nagar. He provides no financial support to his mother. Vicky wants a job that will provide him a better lifestyle.
Chaddha meets Vicky and concludes that Vicky is the donor he has been looking for. He painstakingly convinces him to become a donor. Though Vicky is hesitant at first, he accepts after seeing the high salary. He starts to spend the money wildly and renovates his home and his mother's parlour. At first, he tells his friends he is a sperm donor but after their disgust, he starts to keep it a secret.
Vicky falls in love with Ashima Roy (Yami Gautam), a Bengali bank employee. After dating, they want to get married. Ashima reveals that she is divorced, having been previously married to a man who left her because he loved someone else. Vicky hides the fact he is a sperm donor, feeling ashamed of it. Despite initial friction between their families due to conflicting cultures, they convince their families and get married.
After their wedding, Vicky stops donating sperm out of faithfulness to Ashima. In an ironic turn, it is discovered that Ashima is infertile. One day, when Ashima can't find his doctor's report, Vicky admits that he did not take the fertility test because of his past success as a sperm donor. Ashima becomes upset as her husband has multiple children already while she is unable to bear any herself. She is also upset that he hid this from her and goes back to her father's home.
Vicky is heartbroken. One night, he gets a frantic call from his mother who claims that income tax officers have raided her beauty parlour. Vicky is arrested on suspicion of handling black money. He is bailed out by Dr. Chaddha, who clears the air with the police about where Vicky got so much money from. He reveals that the money was payment from the parents who used his sperm to have children. Chaddha tells Vicky that he will fix Vicky's marriage. He asks Vicky to bring Ashima to an event he is hosting.
Vicky's mother is angry about Vicky's sperm donation and slaps him. However, Vicky's grandmother points out that Vicky brought happiness and joy to those parents that can't have their own children. She then encourages him to bring back Ashima. Vicky goes to Ashima's father's home and tries to apologize for his deception. Though Ashima is reluctant, Ashima's father tells her that Vicky is a good person, and she should not leave him just because she is envious of him being able to have children.
Vicky and Ashima attend Chaddha's party, for which Chaddha has called all the families who successfully had children with Vicky's sperm. Ashima sees these families and realizes how Vicky has brought happiness into their lives. Chaddha then takes the two to an orphanage and explains that he came across one child Vicky had fathered who lost her parents in a car accident. He says that Vicky and Ashima should adopt her. They happily agree and reconcile with each other.
The movie ends with Chaddha calling Vicky telling him that a request for his sperm has come in. With Ashima's approval, he agrees.
Cast
- Ayushmann Khurrana as Vicky Arora
- Yami Gautam as Ashima Roy Arora aka Tuna[19]
- Annu Kapoor as Dr. Baldev Chaddha
- Dolly Ahluwalia as Mrs. Dolly Arora (Vicky's Mother)[20]
- Kamlesh Gill as Biji[21][22]
- Puja Gupta as Shweta (Vicky's Neighbour)
- Jayant Das as Mr. Roy (Ashima's Father)
- Swaroopa Ghosh as Pishi (Ashima's Aunt)
- Inderpal Singh as Tayaji
- Bupesh Pandya as Chaman (Dr. Chadhha's Assistant)
- K.V Rajni as nurse Lata.[23]
- Paramjyot Singh as Vicky's Mama Ji
- John Abraham as himself in the song "Rum Whisky"
Themes and development
Vicky Donor deals with sperm donation and infertility.[24] When questioned about the risky subject matter, Abraham responded, "Basically, Vicky Donor is a romantic comedy. But the concept is set against the background of sperm donation." Abraham hoped that the film could shed light on a serious issue still considered "taboo" in Indian society.
Sircar said, "I want to take a light-hearted look at the taboo attached to infertility and artificial insemination." Before filming began, Sircar researched the plot themes for three years.[25] Juhi Chaturvedi, creative director at advertising agency Bates, who wrote the screenplay based on her own idea, had stayed in Lajpat Nagar as a student at College of Arts, Delhi. As the script went through several drafts, she met a couple who run a noted fertility clinic in Mumbai.[26][27]
Production
Despite the usual trend, Abraham did not take up the leading role in the film: "It was a conscious decision to not act in my first production because I believe producing a film is about creating quality content that I believe in."[28] Director Sircar suggested Khurrana, a video jockey and television host, for the role of Vicky; he was considered because he was popular among the youth. He "can read and write Punjabi too."[25][29] Khurrana turned down three film projects to play the lead in Vicky Donor. To prepare for the role, he met medical experts and donors to understand sperm donation; a major medical consultant specialising in the field was later inducted as a medical adviser for the film. Additionally, Khurrana studied acting and attended workshops with N.K. Sharma in Delhi.[25] It was later reported that Abraham would perform an "item number."[30] Commenting on the his performance, Abraham said "I am glad I cast Ayushmann in the lead. He's a complete natural, has all the trappings of a fine actor and has delivered a super performance. It doesn't seem like Vicky Donor is his first film." It was reported that the production crew would feature "the best technicians from Los Angeles" and acclaimed action choreographer J J Perry. Incidentally, Ayushmann who plays the lead role, successfully performed a task on the reality show MTV Roadies: Season 2, which was sperm donation.[28][31]
Reception
Critical reception
Blessy Chettiar of DNA India rated the film with 4 stars and said, "Run to the nearest theatre and surrender yourself to charm of Vicky and his team. This "Aryaputra" provides only good quality entertainment."[32] Madhureeta Mukherjee of The Times of India gave Vicky Donor 3.5 stars and said, "It takes a man to make a film like this, literally. Kudos to John Abraham for his brave maiden production. Thankfully, this sperm hits bullseye."[33] Mathures Paul of The Statesman gave the film 3.5 stars and wrote, "Vicky Donor is an admirable movie that is at once simple, emotional, daring and in your face."[34]
Box office
The movie made 700% profit at the box office, earning approx ₹645.0 million (US$9.0 million) worldwide.
India
The film had an opening at the box office worldwide and collected ₹18.8 million (US$260,000) on its first day in India.[35] Vicky Donor showed good growth on Saturday as all India collections jumped around 35%–40%; it collected around ₹26.0 million (US$360,000) nett taking its two-day business to ₹45.0 million (US$630,000) nett.[36] The film got tough competition from Housefull 2 and Hate Story in its first week of theatrical run in India.[37] Vicky Donor is the 3rd small-budget film of 2012 after Paan Singh Tomar and Kahaani to receive such an acceptance by critics, multiplex goers and urban audience. It grossed ₹32.5 million (US$450,000) nett on Sunday. Vicky Donor had a decent three-day weekend as it grossed around ₹77.5 million (US$1.1 million) nett over its first weekend.[38]
It had a good first week of around ₹135.0 million (US$1.9 million) nett.[39] Vicky Donor had an excellent second week collecting around ₹112.5 million (US$1.6 million) nett taking its two-week total to around ₹255.0 million (US$3.6 million) nett.[40] Vicky Donor continued its strong run into the third week and totally grossed ₹405.0 million (US$5.6 million).[41][42][43]
Overseas
The film had a wide release with close to 125 prints and grossed a decent $350,000 overseas in four days.[44] It has done well in North America and decently in other markets.[45] It was declared a semi hit in overseas markets.
Grosses are as follow:
- UK: £90,329 ($140,600)
- USA: $466,467
- UAE: $286,000
- Australia: $88,682
Total: $1.2 million (65 million)[46]
Awards and nominations
Sequel and remakes
After the major critical and commercial success of the film, producer John Abraham announced that he was encouraged by the response of Vicky Donor and has therefore laid a sequel on the cards.
Indian actor Siddharth bought the remake rights for the Tamil version.[66] Dileep has bought the remake rights for the Malayalam version.[67] Telugu director Madhura Sreedhar bought the remake rights of the film for the Telugu version named Naruda Donoruda.[68]
Soundtrack
| Vicky Donor | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Soundtrack album by Abhishek-Akshay, Bann, Rochak Kohli and Ayushmann Khurrana | ||||
| Released | 9 April 2012 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 35:13 | |||
| Label | Eros Music | |||
| Producer | John Abraham | |||
| Abhishek-Akshay, Bann, Rochak Kohli and Ayushmann Khurrana chronology | ||||
| ||||
The soundtrack was composed by Abhishek-Akshay, Bann, Rochak Kohli, and Ayushmann Khurrana. The album was released on 9 April 2012.
IBNlive.in quotes "Vicky Donor album tracks are worth listening and contain rawness."[69] Ayushmann Khurrana won Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer at 58th Filmfare Awards for "Pani Da Rang."[70]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Artist(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Rok" | Akshay Verma | Akshay Verma, Aditi Singh Sharma | 4:28 |
| 2. | "Kho Jaane Do" | Juhi Chaturvedi | Clinton Cerejo, Aditi Singh Sharma | 4:57 |
| 3. | "Rum Whisky" | Kusum Verma | Akshay Verma | 4:04 |
| 4. | "Pani Da Rang" (Male) | Ayushmann Khurrana, Rochak Kohli | Ayushmann Khurrana | 4:00 |
| 5. | "Mar Jayian" (Romantic) | Swanand Kirkire | Vishal Dadlani, Sunidhi Chauhan | 4:48 |
| 6. | "Chaddha" | Vijay Maurya | Mika Singh | 3:50 |
| 7. | "Pani Da Rang" (Female) | Ayushmann Khurrana, Rochak Kohli | Sukanya Purkayastha | 4:49 |
| 8. | "Mar Jayian" (Sad) | Swanand Kirkire | Bann | 4:14 |
| Total length: | 35:13 | |||
3
References
- ↑ Zinia Sen, TNN (2 June 2012). "Sperm's part of daily vocab now: Shoojit Sircar". The Times of India.
- ↑ "Every filmmaker lives for this moment". Rediff.com. 27 April 2012.
- ↑ "John Abraham turns producer with Vicky Yadav". NDTV. 10 November 2011. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
- ↑ "So what's a sperm?".
- ↑ "Juhi Chaturvedi Filmography". Movietalkies.com. 21 January 2013.
- ↑ 'Vicky Yadav' is not about sex education: Writer Archived 29 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ "Vicky Yadav's music scores a hit". The Times of India. 17 April 2012.
- ↑ "VICKY DONOR (12A) – British Board of Film Classification". 17 April 2012. Retrieved 17 October 2012.
- ↑ Khuranaa, Amann (12 October 2015). "Talvar to Vicky Donor: Low Budget Films that Won Our Hearts". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Bennett, Coleman. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
- ↑ Saini, MInakshi (16 February 2012). "John Abraham proud of his first 'baby'". hindustantimes.com. HT Media. Archived from the original on 19 February 2012.
- 1 2 "Hate Story And Vicky Yadav Have Dull Start". Box Office India.
- ↑ "Vicky Donor Cast & Crew http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jme-VkIzkoUaccessdate=February 18, 2012". Bollywood Hungama. External link in
|title=(help) - ↑ "Vicky Donor Continues Strong Run Emerges SUPER HIT". Box Office India.
- ↑ Box Office: 'Vicky Donor' earns Rs 22 crore, becomes a hit Archived 1 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ "John's sperm in demand!".
- ↑ "Donor's Circle". The Indian Express. 25 April 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
- ↑ "Vicky Donor walks away with cake". Daily.bhaskar.com.
- ↑ "It's a wrap on Sumanth's Vicky Donor remake - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
- ↑ Subhash K Jha (24 April 2012). "What a saas-bahu pair in Vicky Yadav". The Times of India.
- ↑ "Ties of success". The Tribune. 16 April 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
- ↑ "Meet Kamlesh Gill, Vicky Donor's progressive 'biji'". CNN-IBN. 23 April 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
- ↑ Vicky Donor's "drinking mom" is a hit among fans
- ↑ "'Vicky Donor' is great fun". HindustanTimes.
- ↑ "John next production based on sperm donors". Hindustan Times. 17 February 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
- 1 2 3 "Ayushmann's film debut as sperm donor". The Times of India. 7 October 2011. Archived from the original on 10 October 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2012.
- ↑ "Mr Bachchan has approved one of my new screenplays". The Pioneer. 27 April 2012.
- ↑ "Vicky Donor is born". Tehelka. Vol 9, Issue 19, dated 12 May 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2013. Check date values in:
|date=(help) - 1 2 "John Abraham is looking for a Donor". The Times of India. 9 November 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2012.
- ↑ "Introducing John's new hero: Ayushman Khurana". Hindustan Times. 18 February 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
- ↑ "John turns producer and item boy for sperm donors!". Daily Bhaskar. 18 February 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2012.
- ↑ "`Vicky Donor' Ayushmann Khurranna makes ramp debut". Zeenews.india.com. 28 June 2012.
- ↑ Chettiar, Blessy. "Review: Vicky Donor". DNA. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
- ↑ Mukherjee, Madhureeta. "Vicky Yadav". ToI. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
- ↑ Paul, Mathures. "Donor 53!". The Statesman. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
- ↑ "Vicky Donor First Day Territorial Breakdown". Box Office India.
- ↑ "Vicky Donor Shows Growth on Saturday". Box Office India.
- ↑ "Housefull 2 Is First Choice Again This Week". Box Office India.
- ↑ "Vicky Donor Has Decent Weekend". Box Office India.
- ↑ "Tezz Has Dull Opening Vicky Donor Heads For Big Success". Box Office India. 28 April 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
- ↑ "Jannat 2 Opens Well Tezz Is Disaster". Box Office India. 5 May 2012.
- ↑ "Vicky Donor Continues Strong Run Emerges SUPER HIT". Box Office India. 5 May 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
- ↑ "Multiplex Contribution To Big Hits of 2012". Box Office India.
- ↑ "6th Week Box Office Collections of VICKY DONOR". Boxofficecapsule.com.
- ↑ "Vicky Yadav Decent Housefull 2 On $5.75 Million in 17 Days". Box Office India. 25 April 2012.
- ↑ "Tezz is Very Dull Housefull 2 Top Grosser of 2012". Box Office India. 2 May 2012.
- ↑ "Vicky Donor Box Office Collections".
- ↑ "60th National Film Awards: The list of winners". News18. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "58th Idea Filmfare Awards nominations are here!". filmfare.com. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ Hungama, Bollywood (2013-01-20). "Winners of 58th Idea Filmfare Awards 2012 - Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Nominations: 19th Annual Colors Screen Awards | Latest Movie Features - Bollywood Hungama". 2013-01-05. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Winners of 19th Annual Colors Screen Awards | Latest Movie Features - Bollywood Hungama". 2013-09-25. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Screen Awards 2013: Hall Of Fame - Indian Express". archive.indianexpress.com. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "8th Apsara Awards - Nominees". apsaraawards.org. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Star Guild Awards - Winners". starguildawards.org. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "TOIFA 2013 nominations | Times of India Film Awards". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "TOIFA 2013 Winners: Barfi! Wins Top Honors". indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Winners of Zee Cine Awards 2013 | Latest Movie Features - Bollywood Hungama". 2013-12-27. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Nominations for IIFA Awards 2013 | Latest Movie Features - Bollywood Hungama". 2013-04-25. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Winners of IIFA Awards 2013 | Latest Movie Features - Bollywood Hungama". 2015-06-10. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "IIFA 2013 Technical Awards Winners | Latest Movie Features - Bollywood Hungama". 2013-08-26. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Big Star Awards 2012 / 2013 - Winners, Nominations". www.indicine.com. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Nominations - Mirchi Music Award Hindi 2012". www.radiomirchi.com. Retrieved 2018-04-27.
- ↑ "Winners - Mirchi Music Award Hindi 2012". www.radiomirchi.com. Retrieved 2018-04-27.
- ↑ "Nominations for Stardust Awards 2013 | Latest Celebrity Features - Bollywood Hungama". 2013-01-23. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ "Presenting the nominees for ETC Bollywood Business Awards 2012". PINKVILLA. Retrieved 2018-07-18.
- ↑ IndiaGlitz. Siddharth to make 'Vicky Donor' in Tamil, Telugu? CNN-IBN. 6 May 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
- ↑ Times of India. Dileep to remake Bollywood hit Vicky Donor in Malayalam, The Times of India. 26 July 2012. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
- ↑ "Madhura Sreedhar to direct Telugu version of Vicky Donor | NDTV Movies.com". Movies.ndtv.com. 13 September 2012.
- ↑ "Music Review: Rawness forms core of 'Vicky Donor'". Ibnlive.in.com.
- ↑ "iTunes - Music - Vicky Donor (Original Soundtrack to the Motion Picture) by Abhishek - Akshay". iTunes Store. 4 April 2012.
External links
- Vicky Donor on IMDb