Hasee Toh Phasee

Plot

Nikhil (Sidharth Malhotra) is a struggling businessman whose girlfriend whom he thinks he loves Karishma (Adah Sharma) is an actress. Nikhil is a guy who believes that once you are committed to a girl, there should be no straying. Karishma asks Nikhil to arrange ₹50 million (US$780,000) before marriage, which is 7 days later, to earn a contract.

Nikhil meets Meeta (Parineeti Chopra), Karishma's younger sister, with whom he had a brief encounter 7 years ago. Meeta, who is an IITian in Chemical Engineering and PhD., is a super-intelligent geek with unusual behaviour and habits, who ran away 7 years ago to China after stealing money from her own father, leading to his heart attack. Now, just a week before Nikhil and Karishma's wedding, Meeta has turned up to meet her father, but Karishma is scared that her sister's sudden appearance might ruin their wedding. Hence, Karishma assigns Nikhil to keep Meeta away from her father (Manoj Joshi).

Meeta has returned with an intention to steal again but her involvement with Nikhil during the next 7 days diverts her attention. During these 7 days, with many personal and social activities, Nikhil and Meeta fall in love but Nikhil backs off as he doesn't want to betray Karishma. He comes to know that for her research, Meeta has taken a heavy loan of ₹100 million (US$1.6 million) from a Chinese investor by forging her father's signature. The deadline for payback is over and an extension of three days was given, during which she has to steal money from her father's account to save him from the investor's goons. Nikhil helps Meeta to hack her father's account but advises her to apologize to her family. Meeta reunites with her family and Nikhil realizes he is marrying the wrong girl.

Meeta is unable to gather the courage to steal her father's money and tells her father the truth. Her father forgives her and provides her with the money. Nikhil later tells Meeta on the phone that he should have gone with her to Goa when she asked him to come with her 7 years ago. Meeta tells him that it is not too late for them to run away.

When Nikhil comes to Meeta's house to run away with her, he sees Karishma with her family and returns home, realizing the complications. Nikhil later scolds Meeta for being so ready to run away and says that he cannot torture Karishma even though Karishma has emotionally tortured him throughout their relationship. Nikhil leaves Meeta and tells her to go away from here. Later that night Nikhil receives the call of his investor Mr. Adlani and gets the news that he liked his plan and is ready to invest in his plan.

On the wedding day, Meeta leaves her house without informing anyone except her father, leaving her mobile phone inside Karishma's room. Nikhil tries to call her and sends many texts, which go unanswered. On reaching the mandap Meeta's father informed him that she has already left for china. Karishma finds Meeta's phone in her room, reads the messages, and realizes she has lost Nikhil. During the wedding she asks Nikhil to leave the wedding, her decision is supported by her father. Meeta on the airport cries hard and tries to end her life but give up that decision and goes back to wedding. The two reunite and express their love.

The movie ends with Nikhil and Meeta at the airport, scheduled to travel to Germany. Meeta tells him that there is another problem waiting for them.

Cast

Development

Karan Johar's production house Dharma Productions is financing this film along with Phantom Productions, which is run by four filmmakers - Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane, Vikas Bahl and Madhu Mantena.

Casting

Anurag Kashyap, who is very excited about this project, said, "The story works with fresh faces, but requires a high level of chemistry and maturity in the performances. After spending months shortlisting various actors, we finalised Sidharth and Parineeti." Reportedly, Adah Sharma is playing the second female lead in the movie and the sister of the film's female protagonist. To capture the seven-year period covered in the film, Vinil Matthew wanted Parineeti Chopra to have different hairstyles.

Filming

Filming began on 18 April 2013. On talking about the director Vinil Mathew, Sidharth Malhotra, who would be cast as a middle class working man in the film, said, "It didn't feel like the first day of shoot because he is so sorted and knows exactly what he wants. He made us rehearse a lot during a two-month workshop before shooting began". In an Interview Siddharth says, he plays a character who is stressed out, lost and sentimental. He meets a girl who is a bit cracked. Actress Parineeti Chopra reported that her character was a quite difficult one. It is the first collaboration for both the protagonists with each other, but however, none complained and instead, both were praising each other to be energetic and tireless. The fact that actress Adah Sharma was also involved in the cast as one of the lead characters was supposed to be kept a secret as the producers wanted to make an official announcement about it. But it was later revealed as Adah was seen shooting for the film at the Bandra Bandstand Promenade.

Music

Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy were initially signed on as composers for the film. But eventually they opted out, and songs featured in the film were composed by Vishal-Shekhar, while the lyrics are written by Kumaar and Amitabh Bhattacharya. The track "Drama Queen", sung by Shreya Ghoshal and Vishal Dadlani, was launched as a single on December 23, 2013. The song "Zehnaseeb", sung by Chinmayi along with Shekhar Ravjiani, was launched on January 2, 2014. There are six original tracks and a remix track in the album. The remix version of "Drama Queen" was later uploaded as a single on the official YouTube channel of Dharma Productions.

Track listing

All lyrics written by Amitabh Bhattacharya and Kumaar; all music composed by Vishal–Shekhar.

Reception

The soundtrack received positive reviews from critics. Rediff gave it 3.5/5 stars and stated, "The music of Hasee Toh Phasee delivers more than it promised at the outset. One expected just a fun-filled score, but Vishal-Shekhar have gone beyond that to bring us some soulful melodies as well." Koimoi giving the same ratings added, "If you can't applaud this music album for technique and creativity, sheer freshness will do the trick for you. From a peppy Wedding Song to the calming Manchala, music-director duo Vishal and Shekhar strike the right chords. Moreover, lyrics by Rakesh Kumaar and Amitabh Bhattacharyya add the right ingredients to make the scores of Hasee Toh Phasee worth listening to more than a single time."

Critical reception

Meena Iyer of Times of India gave it 4/5 stars, stating, "Hasee Toh Phasee is for the romantics who like their martinis stirred not shaken. This romantic comedy mirrors the quirks in human nature subtly and provides humour in everyday situations; in the family and amongst friends. If you're looking to rediscover the magic of goofy love around Valentines, give HTP a shot." Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama gave it 3.5/5 stars and said, "Hasee Toh Phasee dares to be distinctive. This one's *not* merely about opposites falling in love. This one's a quirky love tale involving two individuals, shades different from the mundane stuff on matters of heart". Sukanya Verma of Rediff gave the movie with same ratings and wrote, "Hasee Toh Phasee is that rare film that allows you to know the two people you're investing in. And the closer you get, the more they win you over. Parineeti sinks her teeth into this misunderstood kook without a trace of self-consciousness or exaggeration. If that's not magical enough, what Hasee Toh Phasee celebrates certainly is. That the only high you need is life, love and smiles." Mohar Basu of Koimoi gave it 3/5 stars and wrote, "The film is both pleasantly surprising and utterly baffling in equal amounts. Though Vinil Mathew's direction might not be perfect due to his lack of experience, Hasee Toh Phasee will definitely win your heart for the symbiotically arranged, pitch perfect chemistry of Parineeti Chopra and Sidharth Malhotra. It was passionate and compelling, almost to make me wish that they were a real life couple and that alone becomes the winning shot." A review from India Today rated it with 3/5 stars, stating, "Hasee Toh Phasee is a refreshing, much-needed entry in the contemporary romcom genre, which has lately seen a series of uninspiring films. It's largely to do with the presence of an unseen pairing with great chemistry - Chopra and Sidharth Malhotra - and Mathew and writer Harshvardhan Kulkarni's perky take on love."

Tushar Joshi of Daily News and Analysis gave the movie with 3/5 stars, writing, "The lead pair of Sidharth and Parineeti make Hasee Toh Phasee enjoyable and believable. This odd pairing works only because these two actors take an effort to play their characters with utmost sincerity. Watch it if you want to see a different take on modern day romance. Hasee Toh Phasee is worth a watch for a solid act put together by its lead pair.".

India

According to Box Office India, Hasee Toh Phasee had a reasonable start in major metros in most parts of the country. Hasee Toh Phasee grossed around ₹40 million (US$620,000) on its first day. The movie showed a 35% growth on Saturday, earning about ₹55 million (US$860,000). The weekend collections (according to Box Office India) were approximately ₹170 million (US$2.7 million), while trade analyst Taran Adarsh claimed it to be ₹185 million (US$2.9 million). The movie grossed a decent ₹275 million (US$4.3 million) in the first week. In the second week, the movie's screen count fell due to the release of Yash Raj Films' Gunday. However, it still grossed a figure of ₹47.5 million (US$740,000), taking the 10-day total to ₹320 million (US$5.0 million).

Overseas

The opening weekend gross of film was approx $1.027 million (₹ 64.1 million).