Dostana is indeed a romantic drama film directed by Tarun Mansukhani as well as produced by Karan Johar and Hiroo Yash Johar that was released in India in 2008. Abhishek Bachchan, John Abraham, and Priyanka Chopra appear in the movie, which also has Kirron Kher, Sushmita Mukherjee, and Boman Irani in supporting parts. Dostana is a film about two men who pretend to be gay in order to share an apartment with a female, and who finally fall in love with her.
Mansukhani based the movie on his personal experience and saw it as a storey about three friends living together. He subsequently chose to incorporate homosexuality, which he believed was unexplored by Indian films, to shine a light on the topic for the Indian audience, since he wanted to bring something fresh to the script. Chopra’s outfits were created by Manish Malhotra, as well as the entire cast was dressed by Aki Narula. Vishal–Shekhar composed the music, with Kumaar and Vishal Dadlani writing the lyrics and Salim–Sulaiman composing the background score.
During the first part of 2008, principal photography did take place in Miami, Florida more than a two-month period. Dostana was the very first prominent Indian movie to include a gay character, and this is credited with bringing attention to an issue that had been mostly neglected in Hindi cinema.
The movie received good reviews upon its premiere on November 14, 2008, including acclaim for its actors, director, soundtrack, costumes, and aesthetic. Dostana was a box office hit, collecting over $871 million, making it the ninth highest-grossing Bollywood movie of the year.
The 54th Filmfare Awards have nominated Dostana for nine awards, namely Best Film, Best Actor (Bachchan), as well as Best Music Director. Chopra’s silver sari, which she wore inside the track “Desi Girl,” became popular as a result of the movie’s influence on Indian fashion. The celebrities’ appearance and elegance, as well as Abraham’s yellow trunks and Chopra’s golden bikini, drew a lot of attention and then were popular with kids.
Dostana is considered one of India’s most elegant and forward-thinking movies, having Filmfare putting it #1 in a 2013 vote. Dostana 2, the sequel, is currently in the works.
The soundtrack for Dostana was created by Vishal–Shekhar. Three songs were written by Anvita Dutt Guptan, while two were written by Kumaar. Vishal Dadlani co-wrote the words for one of the songs, in addition to co-composing the soundtrack and delivering vocals on four of them.
The album, also features Vishal Dadlani, Shankar Mahadevan, Sunidhi Chauhan, Master Saleem, Shreya Ghoshal, Amanat Ali, as well as Shaan on vocals, was released by Sony Music on August 9, 2008.
Music critics were enthusiastic about the album’s soundtrack. Bollywood Hungama’s Joginder Tuteja gave it a four-out-of-five rating, calling it a “great album”: “There isn’t a single number that isn’t valid. If the three gentle songs ‘Kuch Kum,’ ‘Khabar Nahi,’ and ‘Jaane Kyun’ are the best of the bunch, then ‘Desi Girl’ is a must-have for the dance floors. ‘Maa Da Laadla’ and ‘Shut up & Bounce’ are two songs that have their own spot in the sun.”
The album received an eight-out-of-ten rating from Planet Bollywood, and was named Vishal–best Shekhar’s album of the year: “Dostana offers music for everyone to enjoy, whether it be through the poignant vocal, melodic, and lyrical poetry of Kuch Kum, Vishal’s compelling vocal performance in Jaane Kyun, the calming depths of Khabar Nahin, or the uplifting, feel-good breeze of Desi Girl.”
The Hindustan Times praised it as well, calling it “a definite chartbuster.” “Except for ‘Shut Up and Bounce,’ each song in Dostana is wrapped in joy and peppiness on the one hand, and melody and rhythm on the other,” according to CNN-News18.
The soundtrack CD for this movie was indeed the fourth best-selling album of the year, as per the Indian trade website Box Office India, with about 1,700,000 units sold.
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