Scoundrel (2009)

The desperate lives of two estranged twin brothers converge over missing drugs, politics, racial prejudice, corrupt cops and an unplanned pregnancy.

Director:

Vishal Bhardwaj

Writers:

Cajetan Boy (based on an idea by), Supratik Sen (screenplay)

Stars:

Shahid Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Deb Mukherjee

9 wins & 29 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shahid Kapoor	...	Guddu / Charlie (as Shahid Kapur)
Priyanka Chopra	...	Sweety
Deb Mukherjee	...	Mujib
Shivkumar Subramaniam	...	Lobo (as Shiv Subrahmanyam)
Chandan Roy Sanyal	...	Mikhail (as Chandan Roysanyal)
Tenzing Nima	...	Tashi
Hrishikesh Joshi	...	Lele
Rajatabha Dutta	...	Shumon (as Rajatva Dutta)
Harish Khanna	...	Afghani
Carlos Paca	...	Cajetan
Eric Santos	...	Ragos
Amole Gupte	...	Bhope
Sagar	...	Young Guddu
Samrat	...	Young Charlie
Vijay Raj	...	Kishen

Storyline

Guddu and Charlie are identical twins born and raised in the slums of Mumbai. They dream of leaving the squalor behind and moving into a life of prosperity and dignity. Though they look alike, the two are as different as chalk and cheese: one lisps while the other stammers; one is an honest, diligent social worker while the other hedges bets at a racecourse. The brothers want nothing to do with each other, but when Charlie gets mixed up in a deadly get-rich-quick scheme and Guddu realizes that the love of his life has unwittingly put a price on his head, their lives begin to collide. Faced with rogue politicians, drug dealers and crooked cops, they uncover a sinister plot laid out by the 'political-police-underworld' nexus. Their stories finally converge to a point when they realize they only have each other.

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Plot Keywords:

cell phone | twin | cop | identical twins | crooked cop | 

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Taglines:

Difcover your mean fide

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Priyanka Chopra did not want to do the kiss in the film. So she had the director shoot the entire scene without the kiss until she could make up her mind. However Shahid Kapoor was a gentleman about it and said that he'd only do it if she felt comfortable, so she finally agreed.

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Goofs

In the opening shot, Charlie is shown to be standing amidst railway tracks, beside whom a fast long-distance train passes. The area is said to be Cotton Green, Mumbai, through a text below. However, unlike shown in the movie, the area around Cotton Green does not have so many railway lines but, only two. Besides, no long distance trains pass through Cotton Green.

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Quotes

Bhope Bhau: Listen, I understand your love for each other - I got a vibe in the train - but if my sister marries a migrant, I'll be crucified. My grave will be dug. Not only will I lose my reputation, but my election fund as well. The builder is paying me to get his son and Sweety married. Five crores! Can you imagine how much that is?
Lele: [heard in flashback] Hey.
Burgess: [heard in flashback] There is powder worth ten crores in the guitar.
Bhope Bhau: One million dollars.
Charlie: [heard in flashback] I'll shoot her! I'll shoot her!
Bhope Bhau: How much? ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

The song "Pehli Baar mohabbat ki" pictured on Shahid Kapur and Priyanka Chopra is shown alongside the credits.

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Connections

Features The Great Gambler (1979)

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Soundtracks

Fatak
Written by Gulzar
Composed by Vishal Bhardwaj
Performed by Sukhwinder Singh and Kailash Kher
Courtesy of Super Cassettes Industries Limited (T-Series)

User Reviews

A perfect dark comedy !

Thats what Monsieur Godard would call this film - a time pass; yet reasonably after Shekhar Kapur's comment on an esteemed daily Vishal Bhardwaj is being compared widely to Quentin Tarantino, a comparison, I feel is much forced rather than reasoned. With Kaminey Vishal Bhardwaj breaks his own elan & generates what we can call India's first perfect dark comedy. Amusingly, Vishal Bhardwaj once again displays his Shakespearean love. this time morsel of 'A Comedy of Errors', yet many may disagree. A fine work by a finer film-maker. Watch this movie without 'Maqbool' or 'Omakara' in your mind.

On a totally different note, the music of this film is exceptional, well versed by another genius in his own kind - Gulzar.

A must watch.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

India

Language:

Hindi Marathi Bengali English Portuguese

Release Date:

14 August 2009 (India)

Also Known As:

Scoundrel

Filming Locations:

Casa Colvale, Goa, India

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$726,834, 16 August 2009

Gross USA:

$1,291,827

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$9,610,033

Company Credits

Production Co:

UTV Motion Pictures, Vishal Bhardwaj Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

130 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1