Jab We Met


Jab We Met is a 2007 Indian romantic comedy film written and directed by Imtiaz Ali. The film, produced by Dhillin Mehta under Shree Ashtavinayak Cinevision Ltd, stars Kareena Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor in their fourth film together with Dara Singh, Pavan Malhotra and Saumya Tandon in supporting roles.
Primarily based in Mumbai, Bathinda, and Shimla, Jab We Met tells the story of a feisty Punjabi girl, Geet Dhillon, who is sent off track when she bumps into a depressed Mumbai businessman, Aditya Kashyap, on an overnight train to Delhi. While attempting to get him back on board when he alights at a station stop, both are left stranded in the middle of nowhere. Having walked out of his corporate business after being dumped by his girlfriend, Aditya has no destination in mind, until Geet forces him to accompany her back home to her family, and then on to elope with her secret boyfriend, Anshuman.
Released in the United Kingdom a day before its worldwide release of 26 October 2007, the film became a hit at the Indian box office as well as overseas. The distributors of the film, Shree Ashtavinayak Cinevision Ltd, announced that Jab We Met would be remade by corporate entity Moser Baer in four other Indian languages: Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam. However, eventually, it was remade only in Tamil as Kanden Kadhalai.
The film fetched several awards, among which was a National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer awarded to Shreya Ghoshal for the song Yeh Ishq Haaye, which remained a chartbuster for many weeks.

Plot

Aditya Kashyap is a wealthy industrialist struggling with his business and personal life. With his company in a bad condition and his girlfriend marrying another man, he becomes depressed and wanders aimlessly until he boards a train, wanting to get away from his life. Inside, he meets another passenger, Geet Dhillon, a bubbly, talkative Sikh girl. Irritated by her talkativeness, he lashes out at her, but she thinks nothing of it, understanding that he is upset.
When Geet sees that Aditya has gotten off the train, she disembarks to let him know the train is leaving but ends up missing it herself. Aditya reluctantly helps her get to the next station by driving a taxi himself but Geet misses the train again. Now stranded, she announces to the exasperated Aditya that she won't leave him alone until he drops her back home and the duo embarks on a road trip to reach her house in Bhatinda. During the trip, they bond and Aditya begins to feel better, enjoying himself with Geet. At her home, he meets her large family, who shower him with affection for taking care of Geet and make him stay for a week. After her family tries to get Geet engaged to someone else, she decides to run away, as she has already confided in Aditya about the man she loves, Anshuman. Sure that her family wouldn’t agree to their marriage, she plans to run away, marry Anshuman, then come back and beg for forgiveness. That night, the two flee, and her enraged family assumes she has eloped with Aditya. The two head to Manali, where Anshuman lives. She tells Aditya to come to meet Anshuman with her, but Aditya, now in love with her, bids her farewell.
Nine months later, Aditya’s company is now a lot more successful and Aditya is more positive about life, having been influenced by Geet. He launches a calling card in Geet's name, which her family sees on TV. Believing Geet and Aditya are together, her uncles angrily confront Aditya, revealing that Geet has not contacted them for nine months and they have no idea where she is. Baffled by this revelation, Aditya promises that he will bring her back. He travels to Manali to meet Anshuman and discovers that Anshuman coldly rejected Geet the day Aditya dropped her off at his house.
Having learned that Geet is in Shimla, Aditya travels there and is shocked to find her as a depressed and quiet schoolteacher. He cheers her up by making her call Anshuman and swear at him, taking out all her anger. Guilt-ridden, Anshuman asks to get back together. Geet reluctantly patches up with him after Aditya advises her, though she is visibly distressed. The three of them drive back to Bhatinda and to their shock, Geet's family welcomes Geet and Aditya as a couple since they believe the two eloped, taking Anshuman to be Aditya's friend. Geet sees how Aditya and her family get along while Anshuman is rather standoffish and annoyed by them. She gets a chance to tell her mom the truth about Anshuman but can’t bring herself to do it. The preparations for their wedding begin.
The next day, Anshuman explains to Geet how the two of them will go tell her family about him and remove Aditya from the picture. As an oncoming train drowns out his words, Geet has an epiphany - she loves Aditya and he is the one for her. She runs after Aditya, who is leaving, and declares her feelings and the two finally unite. They get married and have twin daughters.
The movie ends with Geet's grandfather telling her and Aditya's daughters that he knew that they both were in love with each other, and was able to see through their lies due to his experience in life.

Cast

Pre-production work on the film began in early 2007 when Shree Ashtavinayak Cinevision Ltd announced that director Imtiaz Ali would be directing the then real-life couple Shahid and Kareena Kapoor in their first "full-fledged romantic drama". When Ali began casting for the film, Preity Zinta was the director's first choice to portray the role of Geet Dhillon whilst actor Bobby Deol was the first choice for the role of Aditya Kashyap but Shahid replaced Bobby after Ali met him and discovered the actor was more than a poster boy, while when Preity refused to do the film the role went to Kareena. On the two lead actors, Ali commented, "I wanted a girl who could look natural in scenes where she misses the train. She had to be without make-up, someone who could be hyper, talkative and interesting but not irritating. I was never a fan of her and hadn't seen too many of her flicks, but I just knew Kareena was perfect as Geet , When I met him , I realised he wasn't the forgettable actor that he comes across in several of his movies. He has gone through a lot in life and that maturity had never been brought out. He was perfect for the role of a young, mature, quiet guy."
The film was shot throughout the Punjab region, and filming started on 20 March 2007 in Chandigarh and later headed to Shimla and Manali, where the crew filmed a song on the Himalayas and the Rohtang Pass. Manish Malhotra served as the costume designer. The summer shots in Punjab of the haveli were filmed in Nabha near Patiala. While shooting the last schedule of the film in Mumbai, sources had indicated that the lead pair had broken up. Though the media projected it as a publicity stunt for the film, it was later confirmed that the couple had indeed parted ways. The title of the film was decided by a popular vote; moviegoers had a choice between Punjab Mail, Ishq Via Bhatinda and Jab We Met.
To promote the film, the actors appeared separately on different television shows. Kareena Kapoor appeared as guest judge on the singing talent contest Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 whilst Shahid Kapoor appeared on Amul STAR Voice of India and Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa; they later appeared together on the television show Nach Baliye. Apart from this, the producers also painted two full local trains in Mumbai from the Western and Central lines with Jab We Met imagery, where Shahid Kapoor chatted up with fellow passengers and informed them about the movie. On the night of 23 October 2007, a special preview of the film was organized at Yash Raj Studios in Mumbai for those associated with the film and their families.

Release

Reception

The film opened to positive reviews on 26 October 2007 with a fairly good opening of 70% all over India and later increased to 90% during the weekend. Making a total first week net business of 11.75 crores from 350 cinemas, the film went into the second week with very strong collections and saw a massive increase with 40%-50% increment in shows worldwide.
Continuing its strong march in week two with collections of over and a two-week total of, the film was declared a hit. During its third week, Jab We Met managed to add another to its collections but suffered a setback due to the arrival of Farah Khan's Om Shanti Om and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Saawariya, which resulted in the number of shows for the film being reduced. Due to popular demand and the poor performance of the latter,
the following week saw an increase in the number of prints for the film across the country, and resulted in a 50% increase of the film's collections. Completing fifty successful days at the box office on 14 December 2007, the film received a hit status by BoxOffice India and continued running successfully in cinemas with greater number of shows than the much later-released, Om Shanti Om.
As of February 2008, Jab We Met has made a net business of over ₹710 million, and has emerged as one of the biggest hits of the year. On 30 January 2008, it was announced that to celebrate the success of its 100 days run at the box office, PVR Cinemas in Delhi would have a special screening of the film on Valentine's Day.
Meanwhile, Jab We Met also opened well overseas especially in the U.K., where it was released a day before its worldwide release of 26 October. Debuting at number 10 in the U.K., the film grossed £11,488 on its previews night and £144,525 on its opening weekend, collecting a total of £156,013 from 31 screens. The film continued to do strong business and garnered excellent collections during its second week, making a two-week total of £325,996. Over the next five weeks, Jab We Met collected a total of £43,529 from 54 screens and made a grand total of £424,681.

Reviews

Upon release, the film opened to positive reviews. Critics praised the film for its simplicity, its romance, saying that it was "one of the finest romantic films to come out of Bollywood in 2007". The film's direction and performances were particularly appreciated. Taran Adarsh from indiaFM gave the film a 3.5 out of 5 rating saying it is "as refreshing as an ice-cold watermelon juice in scorching heat." Subhash K. Jha wrote, "...Jab We Met is the kind of cinematic experience that is hard to come by in this day and age of smoky cynicism and borrowed rage." Rajeev Masand from CNN-IBN, who gave the film 3 stars out of 5, described it as "a film bursting with the kind of lovely little moments that'll bring a smile to your face. Khaled Mohamed, of the Hindustan Times, gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, saying the film, "is quite a delight, particularly for the chirpy-chirpy-cheep-cheep girl and the retentive, moan-groan boy. Directed with a flair for garnishing even the most abject of circumstances with humour and irony, here’s a feel-cool movie. Wonderful.
Most critics agreed that the main highlight of the film was the leading pair and Shahid and Kareena's chemistry. Rajeev Masand further explained, "The real magic of this film lies in the performances of its two main leads who seize your attention from the moment they first appear on screen." Taran Adarsh commented, "Shahid delivers his career-best performance in Jab We Met... Kareena is in top form as well. Jab We Met is a turning point in her career . Fantabulous -- that's the right word to describe her work this time. The confidence with which she handles the contrasting characterization speaks volumes. This film should do for her what Kuch Kuch Hota Hai did for Kajol." Subhash K. Jha approved the chemistry as well, "...there are sparks...and the ones between Kareena and Shahid are so unselfconsciously genuine that you end up looking at the characters rather than the two actors going through a series of brilliantly conceived and energized incidents..." The Times of India gave the film 4 out of 5 stars concluding, "The film belongs to Shahid and Kareena who pitch in memorable performances and lend a whole new meaning to the boy-meets-girl story." Joginder Tuteja from indiaglitz.com gave the film 3.5 out of 5 stars, described it as "Shahid-Kareena's DDLJ", and concluded that "...it would be a pain if any of the two actors do not get awarded and rewarded for their performances..."
Reviews towards the director, Imtiaz Ali, were favourable as well. Indiatimes wrote, "After his much appreciated Socha Na Tha, Imtiaz goes bigger and better and the result is nothing but flying colours".

Legacy

Jab We Met remains one of the most popular romantic films in Bollywood. The film helped bring Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor's acting careers to a whole new level. The couple was named onto Bollywood Hungamas list of the top 10 best romantic couples of the decade. Yahoo! Movies India listed the film as one of the Bollywood's top 10 most romantic movies. The film's remake is the Tamil film Kanden Kadhalai, the film's plot inspired the Hollywood film Leap Year and television show Love U Zindagi.
Kareena Kapoor, who had before enjoyed only some success in her films, had catapulted herself to becoming one of Bollywood's superstars. Her character, Geet Dhillon, has become one of the most popular and recognizable heroines in Bollywood. She later went on to say about her role, "To play a character like 'Geet' doesn't happen all the time; it just happens. When you begin working on a film, you of course know about the story and your character. However, no one knows how audiences would eventually react to it. 'Geet' did strike a chord with the audiences and became a household name." Kareena Kapoor, for her performance, was ranked number 66 in Filmfare magazine's 80 Iconic Bollywood Performances list. According to Hindi Film News, she was number 5 in the critic's top ten and number 4 in the popular top ten for the finest performance by a Bollywood actress for the decade. She was also named by Rediff as one of Bollywood's most beloved characters.

DVD

On 7 December 2007, the film was officially released on DVD in the U.S., U.K., UAE and other international markets. A single disc collector's item in an enclosed box, the DVD contained English, Portuguese, Arabic, and Spanish subtitles.
In India, Jab We Mets DVD was released on 29 January in a single as well as an exclusive twin DVD pack with a price of under Rs. 50. While the film's duration is 138 minutes, the additional DVD in a twin pack also has 20 minutes of special features of the film's making directed by Nazar Abbas.

Music

Score

The score was composed and produced by Sanjoy Chowdhury.

Songs

The film featured songs composed by Pritam Chakraborty with lyrics by Irshad Kamil. "Aaoge Jab Tum is Composed by Sandesh Shandilya and lyrics penned by Faaiz Anwar, the film's soundtrack was released on 21 September 2007 by lead actress, Kareena Kapoor on the musical show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007. Joginder Tuteja from IndiaFM gave the music 3.5 out of 5 stars saying, "In 2007, Pritam may have been come up with good music in number of films But if there is one album that impresses most after Life in a... Metro and turns out to be most satisfying experience, it is Jab We Met. The album is a perfect example of how to get a quality soundtrack which mixes songs for different segments of audience." Movietalkies.com rated the album 4 out of 5 stars, describing the album as "certainly one of the better albums that have come out this year... Pritam has shown a depth and width of imagination in the manner in which he has used so many different genres and mixed them together to create a fascinating journey of music."
The film's soundtrack debuted at number 8 and later jumped up to number 5 during its second week. Over the next several weeks, the album steadily began climbing up the music charts and saw the album sales increase after the film's release. During the week of 19 November the album replaced the soundtrack of Om Shanti Om and moved up to number 1 but fell back to number 2 the following week. Despite competition from the release of newer soundtracks, the album stayed at the top for over nine weeks. According to the Indian trade website Box Office India, with around 19,00,000 units sold, this film's soundtrack album was the year's second highest-selling.
Jab We Met's soundtrack was featured on Rediff's and IndiaFM's year-end list of 2007's Top 10 Music Albums.

Awards and nominations

Below is a complete list showing the awards and nominations Jab We Met received:
CeremonyCategoryRecipients and nomineesResultRef.
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest Actress in a Leading RoleKareena Kapoor
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest Music DirectorPritam Chakraborty
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest DialogueImtiaz Ali
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest DirectorImtiaz Ali
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest ScreenplayImtiaz Ali
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest FilmJab We Met
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest Actor in a Leading RoleShahid Kapoor
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest Female Playback SingerShreya Ghoshal
Producers Guild Film AwardsBest ChoreographyBosco-Caesar
Central European Bollywood AwardsBest CoupleShahid Kapoor & Kareena Kapoor
Central European Bollywood AwardsBest FilmJab We Met
Central European Bollywood AwardsBest ActorShahid Kapoor
Central European Bollywood AwardsBest ActressKareena Kapoor
Central European Bollywood AwardsBest Male Playback SingerMohit Chauhan – "Tum Se Hi"
Central European Bollywood AwardsBest Female Playback SingerShreya Ghoshal
Central European Bollywood AwardsBest StoryImtiaz Ali
Filmfare AwardsBest FilmJab We Met
Filmfare AwardsBest DirectorImtiaz Ali
Filmfare AwardsBest ActorShahid Kapoor
Filmfare AwardsBest ActressKareena Kapoor
Filmfare AwardsBest Music DirectorPritam Chakraborty
Filmfare AwardsBest Female Playback SingerShreya Ghoshal
Filmfare AwardsBest DialogueImtiaz Ali
HT Café Film AwardsBest ActressKareena Kapoor
International Indian Film Academy AwardsBest MovieJab We Met
International Indian Film Academy AwardsBest DirectorImtiaz Ali
International Indian Film Academy AwardsBest ActorShahid Kapoor
International Indian Film Academy AwardsBest ActressKareena Kapoor
International Indian Film Academy AwardsBest Female PlaybackShreya Ghoshal
International Indian Film Academy AwardsBest StoryImtiaz Ali
International Indian Film Academy AwardsBest DialogueImtiaz Ali
Li'l Star AwardsBest ActressKareena Kapoor
National Film AwardsBest Female Playback SingerShreya Ghoshal
National Film AwardsBest ChoreographySaroj Khan
Planet Bollywood People's Choice AwardsBest ActressKareena Kapoor
Rediff Readers' Choice AwardsBest ActressKareena Kapoor
Screen AwardsBest ActorShahid Kapoor
Screen AwardsBest ActressKareena Kapoor
Screen AwardsBest Female PlaybackShreya Ghoshal
Screen AwardsBest StoryImtiaz Ali
Screen AwardsBest ScreenplayImtiaz Ali
Screen AwardsBest DialogueImtiaz Ali
Stardust AwardsBest FilmJab We Met
Stardust AwardsHottest Young FilmmakerImtiaz Ali
Stardust AwardsStar of the Year – MaleShahid Kapoor
Stardust AwardsStar of the Year – FemaleKareena Kapoor
Stardust AwardsBest Actor Shahid Kapoor
Stardust AwardsNew Musical Sensation – MaleMika Singh – "Mauja Hi Mauja"
Zee Cine AwardsBest FilmJab We Met
Zee Cine AwardsBest DirectorImtiaz Ali
Zee Cine AwardsBest Actor – MaleShahid Kapoor
Zee Cine AwardsBest Actor – FemaleKareena Kapoor
Zee Cine AwardsBest Music DirectorPritam Chakraborty
Zee Cine AwardsBest Playback Singer – FemaleShreya Ghoshal
Zee Cine AwardsBest Track of the YearPritam Chakraborty
Zee Cine AwardsBest ScreenplayImtiaz Ali