Mithya
Encyclopedia
Mithya is a 2008
Indian
film co-written and directed by Rajat Kapoor
and produced by Planman Motion Pictures. The film stars Ranvir Shorey
, Neha Dhupia
, Naseeruddin Shah
and Vinay Pathak
in pivotal roles. The film's score and soundtrack is composed by Sagar Desai. The film which was released on 8 February 2008 opened to good reviews.
's Planman Motion Pictures was working on a new film. Actor
-director
Rajat Kapoor was to direct this venture that was to have criminal underworld
as its basic premise. Naseeruddin Shah, Neha Dhupia and Ranvir Shourie were reported as its cast. Shooting for this film commenced in July 2006.
Sanchita Bhattyacharya
, the winner of 2006 singing reality show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs
, made her singing debut in the Hindi cinema industry
through this film. Director Kapoor and music director
were quite convinced about her singing abilities. The producers were hopeful of utilizing Bhattacharya's recent success while promoting the film's soundtrack.
Actress Neha Dhupia immediately accepted Kapoor's offer for the film. She considered the film to be among one of her best performances. Though it was evident from the initial media reports, some found her presence in the film rather surprising. By being good friends with director Kapoor, actor Ranvir Shorey found it better to work with him in this film.
. Although the film was to feature at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival
, the film was not complete by the nomination deadline. The organizers did not want to compromise on the quality of post-production by rushing through it.
The film's commercial release was on February 8, 2008. Having arrived at the box office with no expectations, the film didn't have a favorable opening in the initial days. Slowly the collections showed signs of improvement based on the word of mouth. Based on this, the trade analysts felt that the film will be able to recover its shoestring budget. By the end of the first week, the film had a decent profit. Due to the film's offbeat nature, it did quite well mainly in Mumbai
and New Delhi
with collections exceeding Rs.
7.5 million (approximately US$
167,000) and Rs. 6 million respectively. In the subsequent two weeks, huge budget films such as Jodhaa Akbar caused a corresponding drop of 65% and 50% in the film's box office collections. However by the fifth week, the film had Rs. 52.5 million as its cumulative box office earnings. Trade analysts even called the film as the dark horse of the first quarter of 2008.
While rating 4 out of 5 in his review, noted critic Rajeev Masand
spoke highly about Rajat Kapoor's directorial abilities. He said that the film was a "brave, mature effort by a discerning director." Masand wrote highly about Ranvir Shorey by saying that the actor's performance "merits an impromptu ovation." In her review, well-known critic Nikhat Kazmi
liked Kapoor's unconventional approach to the usual storyline. Besides appreciating Shorey for his performance, she had high regard for Neha Dhupia and rest of the ensemble cast. Other movie critics such as Taran Adarsh
, Anupama Chopra
and Raja Sen
wrote generally good reviews for the film.
2008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
Indian
Cinema of India
The cinema of India consists of films produced across India, which includes the cinematic culture of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal. Indian films came to be followed throughout South Asia and...
film co-written and directed by Rajat Kapoor
Rajat Kapoor
Rajat Kapoor is an Indian actor, writer and director born in 1961.Kapoor was born in Delhi, India. As a teenager he would watch films with his family and decided to become a filmmaker at the age of 14. He mainly focused on acting at first...
and produced by Planman Motion Pictures. The film stars Ranvir Shorey
Ranvir Shorey
Ranvir Shorey is an Indian actor and former VJ. Since making his debut in Ek Chotisi Love Story , he has starred in a number of high profile films such as Jism and Lakshya...
, Neha Dhupia
Neha Dhupia
Neha Dhupia is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films. She is a former beauty queen and winner of Femina Miss India 2002.-Early life:...
, Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
and Vinay Pathak
Vinay Pathak
Vinay Pathak is an Indian actor and a theatre person born and raised in Bhojpur, Bihar. He is known for his great Comic timing and as a revolution in Indian Cinema along with Ranvir Shorey, Rajat Kapur, Abhay Deol, who are tagged as actors of a new genre...
in pivotal roles. The film's score and soundtrack is composed by Sagar Desai. The film which was released on 8 February 2008 opened to good reviews.
Production
It was first reported in August 2006 that Arindam ChaudhuriArindam Chaudhuri
Arindam Chaudhuri is an Indian economist, management guru, former member Planning Commission and a honourary director of the IIPM Think Tank at Indian Institute of Planning and Management. He is the founder of the Planman Consulting. He is the winner of three National Film Awards from the...
's Planman Motion Pictures was working on a new film. Actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
-director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
Rajat Kapoor was to direct this venture that was to have criminal underworld
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
as its basic premise. Naseeruddin Shah, Neha Dhupia and Ranvir Shourie were reported as its cast. Shooting for this film commenced in July 2006.
Sanchita Bhattyacharya
Sanchita Bhattyacharya
Sanchita Bhattyacharya is an Indian singer. On October 28, 2006, she was declared the winner of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs, an Indian reality television show. At 15, this makes her the oldest winner in Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs history as well as the first female winner with public voting...
, the winner of 2006 singing reality show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs
Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs
Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L'il Champs Hindi was an Indian televised children's singing competition that aired on Zee TV. The judges were Abhijeet, Alka Yagnik, and Bappi Lahiri, who was a judge of the earlier seasons, not of the third one.-First season:...
, made her singing debut in the Hindi cinema industry
Film industry
The film industry consists of the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking: i.e. film production companies, film studios, cinematography, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post production, film festivals, distribution; and actors, film directors and other film crew...
through this film. Director Kapoor and music director
Music director
A music director may be the director of an orchestra, the director of music for a film, the director of music at a radio station, the head of the music department in a school, the co-ordinator of the musical ensembles in a university or college , the head bandmaster of a military band, the head...
were quite convinced about her singing abilities. The producers were hopeful of utilizing Bhattacharya's recent success while promoting the film's soundtrack.
Actress Neha Dhupia immediately accepted Kapoor's offer for the film. She considered the film to be among one of her best performances. Though it was evident from the initial media reports, some found her presence in the film rather surprising. By being good friends with director Kapoor, actor Ranvir Shorey found it better to work with him in this film.
Release and reception
The film was first screened at the 9th Osian's Cinefan Festival of Asian and Arab CinemaOsian's Cinefan Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema
Osian's-Cinefan, the largest film-festival devoted to Asian and Arab cinema, is part of Osian's Film House Division. The festival celebrated its 10th anniversary in July 2008.-History:...
. Although the film was to feature at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
, the film was not complete by the nomination deadline. The organizers did not want to compromise on the quality of post-production by rushing through it.
The film's commercial release was on February 8, 2008. Having arrived at the box office with no expectations, the film didn't have a favorable opening in the initial days. Slowly the collections showed signs of improvement based on the word of mouth. Based on this, the trade analysts felt that the film will be able to recover its shoestring budget. By the end of the first week, the film had a decent profit. Due to the film's offbeat nature, it did quite well mainly in Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
and New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
with collections exceeding Rs.
Indian rupee
The Indian rupee is the official currency of the Republic of India. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Reserve Bank of India....
7.5 million (approximately US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
167,000) and Rs. 6 million respectively. In the subsequent two weeks, huge budget films such as Jodhaa Akbar caused a corresponding drop of 65% and 50% in the film's box office collections. However by the fifth week, the film had Rs. 52.5 million as its cumulative box office earnings. Trade analysts even called the film as the dark horse of the first quarter of 2008.
While rating 4 out of 5 in his review, noted critic Rajeev Masand
Rajeev Masand
Rajeev Masand is an Indian film critic and entertainment reporter for CNN-IBN. Masand started his career as an entertainment correspondent at the young age of 16...
spoke highly about Rajat Kapoor's directorial abilities. He said that the film was a "brave, mature effort by a discerning director." Masand wrote highly about Ranvir Shorey by saying that the actor's performance "merits an impromptu ovation." In her review, well-known critic Nikhat Kazmi
Nikhat Kazmi
Nikhat Kazmi is a senior correspondent and well-known film critic from India, who has been writing for The Times of India, since 1987.-Books:* If Shakespeare was a gun: a play. Writers Workshop, 1984....
liked Kapoor's unconventional approach to the usual storyline. Besides appreciating Shorey for his performance, she had high regard for Neha Dhupia and rest of the ensemble cast. Other movie critics such as Taran Adarsh
Taran Adarsh
Taran Adarsh is an Indian film critic, journalist, editor and film trade analyst. He is also a former producer and screenwriter. He is the son of film director and producer, B.K. Adarsh....
, Anupama Chopra
Anupama Chopra
Anupama Chopra is a noted author, journalist and film critic. She has written several books on Indian cinema and has been a movie reviewer with NDTV and India Today.-Career:...
and Raja Sen
Raja Sen
Raja Sen is an Indian film and television director, and the winner of three National Film Awards from Kolkata, West Bengal, India.-Career:...
wrote generally good reviews for the film.