Devdas (2002)

After his wealthy family prohibits him from marrying the woman he is in love with, Devdas Mukherjee's life spirals further and further out of control as he takes up alcohol and a life of vice to numb the pain.

Director:

Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Writers:

Saratchandra Chatterjee (based on the novel by) (as Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay), Prakash Kapadia (screenplay)

Stars:

Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Top Rated Indian Movies #158 | Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 44 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shah Rukh Khan	...	Devdas Mukherji
Madhuri Dixit	...	Chandramukhi
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan	...	Parvati ('Paro') (as Aishwarya Rai)
Jackie Shroff	...	Chunnilal
Kiron Kher	...	Sumitra
Smita Jaykar	...	Kaushalya
Tiku Talsania	...	Dharamdas
Vijayendra Ghatge	...	Bhuvan Choudhry
Milind Gunaji	...	Kalibabu
Ananya Khare	...	Kumud
Manoj Joshi	...	Dwijdas
Ava Mukherjee	...	Dev's Badima (as Ava Mukherji)
Dina Pathak	...	Badima
Vijay Crishna	...	Narayan Mukherji
Muni Jha	...	Kaka

Storyline

Devdas Mukherji is black-listed by his multi-millionaire Zamindar father, Narayan. After completing 10 years of study; Devdas return to his home-town where his family prepares to welcome him but their happiness changes when Devdas prefers to visit his childhood sweetheart, Parvati alias Paro before paying respect to his mother. After so much years Devdas finds he is still the black spot in his father's life especially when he is prevented from marrying Paro who happen to be a lower-caste girl. Eventually time passes with Paro's family arranging her marriage to a much elderly man named Bhuvan Choudhry where she is introduce to Bhuvan's children - who happen to be within her age group. This sadness not only breaks Devdas heart but confines him to alcohol in a big way. Soon Devdas starts to frequent a brothel and catches the eyes of a courtesan named Chandramukhi - step by step Devdas starts to head towards a path of self destruction.

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Plot Keywords:

love | marriage | courtesan | letter | neighbor | 

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Taglines:

A grand saga of timeless love

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Genres:

Drama | Musical | Romance

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

India

Language:

Hindi Urdu Bengali

Release Date:

12 July 2002 (India)

Also Known As:

Девдас

Filming Locations:

Aarey Colony, India

Box Office

Budget:

INR 500,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$3,500,000, 31 December 2002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Red Chillies Entertainment, Mega Bollywood

Technical Specs

Runtime:

185 min 165 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite refusing the first two films of Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Kareena Kapoor screen tested for the role of Paro.

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Goofs

When Devdas meets Paro in the full moon night, while she was sleeping her black mole keeps changing position.

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Quotes

Devdas Mukherjee: You are so silly!
Parvati: Mention not.

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Connections

Referenced in Dev.D (2009)

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Soundtracks

Devdas (The Theme)
Written by Nusrat Badr
Composed by Monty Sharma
Performed by Rashmi Sharma
Courtesy of Universal Music India

User Reviews

A Bittersweet Classic

Gloriously excessive Bollywood epic starring former Miss World Aishwarya Rai. Set in the 30s and sumptuously shot, it follows a lovelorn suitor's slide into alcoholism and despair

Bhansali's film boasts the biggest budget for an Indian film ever and boy, does it show. An extravagant tale of love, loss and serious drinking, it operates on a scale previously unseen in Bollywood.

Essentially a tragic love triangle, the story follows tortured Devdas (Khan) as he mucks things up with childhood sweetheart Paro (Rai), meets courtesan Chandramukhi (Dixit) and then drinks himself to death. A spirited anti-hero, in India his name his synonymous with a sort of heroic failure.

Everything about the film - costumes, sets, songs and sentiments - is larger than life and the sheer spectacle demands respect. The musical numbers cast Devdas and Paro as the mythical lovers Krishna and Radha. Cheeky, sexy and dizzyingly complex, the dancers display astonishing energy and precision, whole sequences shot from above to resemble the shifting patterns of a kaleidoscope.

Certainly there are moments of daftness. A half-cut Devdas resolves a financial dispute by setting fire to a sofa, for example, and nobody tries to stop him. But there's also humour, style and a conclusion that's plenty teary. As Western directors continue to look to Bollywood for inspiration this is a shining example how it should be done. Intoxicating.

Verdict Starts big, gets a whole lot bigger then gets twice as big after that, this is Bollywood at its most flamboyant. The song and dance numbers alone are worth the price of entry and whether you're familiar with the genre or not this is irresistible from start to finish.