Guru (2007 film)
Guru | |
---|---|
Cinematography | Rajiv Menon |
Edited by | A. Sreekar Prasad |
Music by | A. R. Rahman |
Production company | |
Distributed by | |
Release date |
|
Running time | 162 minutes |
Country | India |
Language | Hindi |
Budget | ₹220 million[2] |
Box office | ₹836.7 million[2] |
Guru is a 2007 Indian
The film was rumored to be a biopic of the industrial tycoon Dhirubhai Ambani, but Ratnam refuted the claims, clarifying it was a work of fiction.[3] The film was released on 12 January 2007 with its première at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto, Canada, on Thursday, 11 January 2007 by Roger Nair, making it the first Indian film to have a mainstream international première in Canada. Roger Nair productions acquired the rights for Canada and held a premiere with most of the cast and crew flown to Toronto, Canada.[4][5][6] The film was premiered in the Tous Les Cinemas du Monde (World Cinema) section of 2007 Cannes Film Festival.[7][8] The film had also been dubbed and released in Tamil with the same title while in Telugu with the title Gurukanth.
Plot
The beginning of the film is set in 1951 in a small village of
"Nanaji" Manik Dasgupta, who publishes a newspaper "Swatantra" ("The Independent"), treats Guru as his son. Guru likewise looks upon him as a father figure who supported him during his early days of struggle in Bombay. He also develops a strong friendship with Meenu, granddaughter of Nanaji. Meenu develops multiple sclerosis as she grows up, and begins using a wheelchair.
As Guru's business grows into one of the largest in India, he ruthlessly pursues success, engaging in activities such as smuggling machine parts for his polyester mills, illegally manufacturing goods, and manipulating stocks to make a higher profit. However, when Nanaji learns that Guru's means of success are not always honest, he, along with a reporter of his newspaper, Shyam Saxena, decides to expose Guru's increasingly corrupt ways.
The stress of his battle with the newspaper causes Guru to have a stroke, and he is paralysed on his right side. Meanwhile, Meenu, who is now married to Shyam, is slowly weakening from her illness, and eventually dies. In the end, Guru is brought before a private government inquiry on 16 October 1980, to defend himself against the charges pressed against him. However, the next day, he tells the press that he was an ordinary villager who didn't even understand the meanings of excise duty, customs, and sales tax. All he knew was his business, however, the corrupt system made sure that a villager doesn't become a rich businessman. As a result, he had to indulge in corrupt practices. This forces the government to clear him of 27 of the 29 charges against him. He is charged with a fine of ₹6.3 million (equivalent to ₹100 million or US$1.6 million in 2016) and ₹96,000 (equivalent to ₹1.6 million or US$24,000 in 2016) for the respective two charges, which are proved and is allowed to return to his company. The movie ends with Guru telling Shakti's shareholders that his father was proven wrong as he said dreams don't turn true, but they all are now a part of India's largest company. Guru asks them if they should stop. Shareholders refuse and resolve to be the largest company in the world instead.
Cast
- Abhishek Bachchan as Gurukant "Guru" Desai
- Aishwarya Raias Sujata "Suju" Desai
- Mithun Chakraborty as "Nanaji" Manik Dasgupta
- R. Madhavan as Shyam Saxena
- Vidya Balan as Meenakshi "Meenu" Saxena (née Gupta)
- Roshan Seth as Justice Thapar
- Mallika Sherawat in a guest appearance as Champa, the dancer in song "Mayya Mayya"
- Arya Babbaras Jignesh
- Arjan Bajwa as Arzan Contractor
- Rajendra Gupta as Guru's father Kantilal Desai
- Sarita Joshi as Guru's stepmother
- Sachin Khedekar as Sujata's father
- Sudhir Pandey as Mathura Das
- Neena Kulkarni as Tulsiben, Sujata's mother
- Prathap K. Pothanas K. R. Menon I.A.S.
- Darshan Jariwala as cashier Anand Palekar
- Sanjay Mishra as Chhagan, Guru's senior in Turkey
- Manoj Joshi as Ghanshyam Das
- Dhritiman Chatterjee as Contractor
- Sanjay Swarajas Guru's brother
- T. M. Karthik as Doctor
- Anaushka Dantra and Ashoi Dantra as Disha Desai and Drishti Desai, Guru's twin daughters
- Sunil Agarwal as Ashok Agarwal
- Murad Ali
- Raviprakash as Bhanu Patel (in voice)
- Sunny Subramanian as Young Guru
- Mukesh S Bhatt as Ramlal
Production
Guru was written and directed by
Guru has others involved in the production as a film that is reflective of a man's desire for ambition and success, and how times have changed from the period immediately after the country's independence to the present. Some reports have speculated that this film is a biographical film of, one of India's biggest industrial tycoons, Dhirubhai Ambani. Like Guru, Ambani also had roots in Gujarat as the son of a schoolteacher, went abroad to work for the gas company Shell, and returned to India to import polyester.[10] Ratnam has described Guru as inspired by stories both past and present.
The less known fact is that, the role of R. Madhavan is based on Swaminathan Gurumurthy, who along with Ramnath Goenka worked to expose Reliance Industries. The title is speculated to be an acknowledgement of this fact, where in his name is playfully swapped with Ambani's character. In real life, Gurumurthy has twin daughters much like the Guru character in the movie.
Reception
Box office
Guru opened well upon release, gaining momentum over time.[11] In the United States, Guru, opening on a limited release, registered good collections in its opening weekend, fetching ₹3 crore during this period, with a high screen average.[12] By its seventh week, the film had netted ₹41.65 crore in India,[13] collecting ₹13 crore in the US and the UK.[14][15] As of 23 February 2007, Guru, having released 12 January, has grossed more than ₹83.67 crore across the world and was declared a "hit" at the box office.[2][16] In the United States, it was a blockbuster.[citation needed]
Critical reception
Guru has received positive reviews from critics. Abhishek Bachchan received widespread praise for his performance. The film has a rating of 85% at the review website
Raja Sen from
Accolades
Soundtrack
The soundtrack for this film is composed by A. R. Rahman. For his work in this film, A. R. Rahman received awards for Best Music Director and Best Background Score at the 53rd Filmfare Awards as well as the 9th IIFA awards. According to the Indian trade website Box Office India, with around 11,50,000 units sold, this film's soundtrack album was the year's twelfth highest-selling.[31]
See also
- List of Bollywood films of 2007
References
- ^ Verma, Meenakshi (24 April 2007). "Adlabs to spin distribution network". The Economic Times. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
- ^ a b c "Guru – Movie". Box Office India.
- ^ "'Guru is not Dhirubai Ambani's story'". Hindustan Times. 9 January 2007. Retrieved 9 January 2007.
- ^ "Thousands attend 'Guru' premiere". Toronto Star. The Canadian Press. 11 January 2007. Retrieved 15 August 2008.
- ^ "Canada mayor invites 'Guru' crew for world premiere". Indo-Asian News Service. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 10 January 2007.
- ^ "YouTube Channel". Saregam movies.[dead YouTube link]
- ^ Preview: Acceptance in Cannes bestows prestige and honour Archived 30 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Cannes, India celebrate 60 years".
- ^ "Guru". Guru production.
- ^ Mukherjee, Krittivas. "Rags-to-riches story". Retrieved 27 February 2009.
- ^ "Indian B.O.: 'Guru' strong in parts". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 24 February 2007. Retrieved 18 February 2007.
- ^ "Overseas: 'Guru' is a smash hit". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 18 February 2007.
- ^ "Domestic Box Office". IBOSNetwork. Retrieved 18 February 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Top Lifetime Grossers Worldwide (IND Rs)". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
- ^ "Overseas: Realism bites the dust". IndiaFM. Archived from the original on 23 April 2007. Retrieved 18 February 2007.
- ^ "Box Office: **The 2007 Box Office Report and Classifications**". IBOS. Retrieved 7 January 2008.
- ^ "Guru". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ Webster, Andy (15 January 2007). "Polyester and Power at Play for a Mogul and His India". The New York Times. Retrieved 9 February 2007.
- ^ "Guru opens with a big bang in the U.S." Hindustan Times. 17 January 2007. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 17 January 2007.
- ^ Corliss, Richard (12 January 2007). "Guru – Review". Time. Archived from the original on 16 October 2007. Retrieved 9 February 2007.
- ^ "REVIEW: Guru: Good value for Mani". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ Adarsh, Taran (12 January 2007). "Guru". IndiaFM. Retrieved 17 January 2007.
- ^ "Guru : Movie Review by Taran Adarsh". Bollywood Hungama. 12 January 2007. Archived from the original on 25 January 2008. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ "Watch Guru for the actors". Rediff.com. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ Mirani, Indu (12 January 2007). "When form and style merge". Daily News and Analysis. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
- ^ "Movie Review:Guru". Sify. Archived from the original on 26 August 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ "Friday Review Chennai / Film Review : Tale of a dreamer admirably told – Guru". The Hindu. 19 January 2007. Archived from the original on 22 January 2007. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ "Masand's Verdict: Guru | Reactions". IBNLive. Archived from the original on 15 October 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ Sinanan, Anil (1 February 2007). "Guru Review". The Times. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
- ^ Jaspreet Pandohar (8 January 2007). "Movies – review – Guru". BBC. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ "Music Hits 2000–2009 (Figures in Units)". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 24 June 2010.
External links
- Guru at IMDb
- Guru at Box Office Mojo