Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, also known by its initialism as RNBDJ, is a 2008 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Aditya Chopra and produced by his father Yash Chopra under their production banner of Yash Raj Films. The film stars Shah Rukh Khan as Surinder Sahni, a mild-mannered office employee who marries his deceased professor's daughter, Taani, portrayed by Anushka Sharma in her debut. His friend, played by Vinay Pathak, eventually transforms him into the fun-loving "Raj Kapoor" to win Taani's love. The film's soundtrack was composed by Salim–Sulaiman, and it became the first Bollywood soundtrack to reach the top 10 album sales on the iTunes Store.

Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi was released worldwide on 12 December 2008 and marked Chopra's return to direction after an 8-year hiatus, following his previous directorial venture, Mohabbatein (2000), which also starred Khan. The film was not heavily promoted pre-release by either Khan or YRF, mainly due to uncertainty and apprehensions regarding cinema-market conditions following the terror attacks in Mumbai. Upon release, the film received positive reviews from critics and broke several box-office records. It was declared a year-end super-hit, and at the end of its theatrical run, it grossed over inr 1570000000 worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing Hindi film of the year overseas, as well as YRF and Khan's highest-grossing film at the time.

At the 54th Filmfare Awards, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi received a leading 10 nominations, including Best Film, Best Director (Aditya), Best Actor (Khan), Best Actress (Sharma) and Best Supporting Actor (Pathak), and won 2 awards – Best Male Playback Singer (Sukhwinder Singh for "Haule Haule") and Best Scene of the Year.

The film's script was recognized by a number of critics and was invited to be included in the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, just a day after its release. The script is accessible for research purposes only; students, filmmakers, writers, and actors are among the regular patrons.

Plot
Surinder Sahni (Shah Rukh Khan), a shy, introverted, mild-mannered, and kind-hearted electrical engineer working in Punjab Power, falls in love at first sight with Taani (Anushka Sharma), the beautiful and vivacious daughter of his former Professor Gupta (M. K. Raina), during her wedding preparations. However, the marriage party receives the devastating news of Taani's fiancé and his family dying in a bus accident, causing Taani's father to suffer a major heart attack, unable to bear the shock. At the hospital on his deathbed, Taani's father asks Surinder to marry his daughter, fearing that she will be left alone in the world after his death. Surinder agrees since he loves Taani nevertheless, while Taani also agrees to fulfill her father's last wish. After Taani's father's death and funeral, Surinder has an impromptu marriage with Taani and takes her to his ancestral home in Amritsar, Punjab. While Surinder's good nature leads him to treat Taani with exceptional care and patience (he even lets her have his bedroom all to herself while he stays in the storeroom upstairs), he is too frightened to confess his love for her.

Later on, Surinder's office colleagues and his childhood friend Balwinder Khosla, aka Bobby (Vinay Pathak), invite themselves to his house after they learn about his marriage from the neighbors. Surinder feels awkward as he initially fails to convince a depressed Taani to meet them, but is pleasantly surprised when she comes and attends to the guests. Taani tells Surinder that she will be a good wife, and thus respect her role in his life, but feels that she can never love him due to having no love left within her after the loss of her fiancé. A grateful Surinder still continues to indulge Taani's every desire, and this includes frequent visits to the cinema to watch Hindi films which appeal to Taani's fantasies about romance and her passion for dance.

A few days later, Taani discovers a poster for a dance competition held at Amritsar and asks for Surinder's permission to participate in it, in an attempt to take a break from her daily routine as a housewife. Surinder agrees and also helps Taani pay the fees. During their visits to the cinema, Surinder feels inadequate in comparison to the strong, masculine images that Taani admires, and eventually requests Bobby, a hair salon owner, for grooming advice that will help him win his wife's love. Bobby eagerly gives Surinder a complete makeover - removing his eyeglasses, trimming off his moustache, changing his hairstyle, and fitting him in with a new set of funky Western-style clothing, including a pair of aviator-style contact lenses and oversize pastel sunglasses. Surinder is thus transformed into the swaggering, boisterous, and fun-loving "Raj Kapoor", a name that Surinder adapts from the protagonist of a film that Taani enjoyed. Further, Raj joins the dance competition to spend time with Taani in his newfound self, and by coincidence or, as he believes, divine intervention, he happens to becomes her partner in the competition.

Despite Raj's initial crudeness, a result of Surinder's inexperience with women, and clumsy attempt to emulate the "cool" images from films, Taani befriends him and the two work hard together on their dance routine. In the process, Raj feels even more encouraged when Taani does not tie a Rakhi (holy thread) on his wrist on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan (for to do so would indicate that she considered him only as a brother). He occasionally struggles to maintain his double life as Surinder and Raj, such as getting an upset stomach after having a gol goppa-eating competition with Taani (as Raj) and eating biryani she prepared for dinner (as Surinder). When they are selected for the finals, Raj grandly declares his love for Taani by using his company connections to shape the lights of entire Amritsar from top to spell out "I Love You" in front of her. Despite Raj's assurance that they can still remain friends even if his feelings are not reciprocated, a shocked Taani enters into a period of internal conflict, desperately wishing to escape from her despair-filled life through finding a new person to love. Despite her loveless marriage, Taani feels compelled to stay with Surinder due to the promise that she made to her father. Surinder also faces an extraordinary paradox: Taani's sheer misery as his wife in contrast to her delight with his fabricated alter ego "Raj". Bobby advises Surinder to attempt to win Taani's love in his original self, an act which only alienates her further.

One night, Surinder takes Taani to a trade fair in Amritsar in which he participates in a Sumo-wrestling competition in an attempt to win two tickets to Japan, knowing that his office salary would be insufficient for the trip. He is severely injured while wrestling, but ultimately wins. However, while treating Surinder's injuries at home, a shocked and infuriated Taani demands to know the reason behind his actions, and begs him to not keep showering his care on her since she would never be able to repay him. Surinder realises that true love cannot be repaid and is disappointed as Taani cannot witness it in his original self, but only in Raj. Later that night, a confused Taani runs away to meet Raj to tell him her predicament, hoping that he will help her. Raj offers to elope with Taani on the night of the dance competition, which she tearfully agrees to. A heartbroken Surinder tells Bobby that he will end this pretense in his own way, sacrificing his cravings for Taani's love, confessing the truth through a letter, leaving her his property, and transferring himself to Delhi, so that Taani will be free to find some suitable "Raj" for herself.

On the day of the competition, Surinder takes Taani to the Golden Temple to get God's blessings for her competition that night, and internally, also for her life with Raj. While there, Taani has an epiphany in which God seemingly shows her a sign that her marriage with Surinder is divinely inspired. For the first time, she reflects on her husband and becomes aware of the strength and integrity of Surinder's character, which she grows to love. That night, Taani tells Raj that she cannot leave her husband behind, as it is equivalent to leaving God behind, which is impossible. She leaves him in what appears to be a state of shock and grief, but Raj is overjoyed that Taani loves his "true-self", Surinder, after all.

When the time comes for their dance performance, Taani is shocked to see Surinder joining her on stage instead of Raj. While dancing with him, Taani puts two and two together and through a series of flashbacks, and awakens to the fact that Surinnder himself is indeed Raj. Backstage after their performance, Taani confronts Surinder over his passionate love for her, to which Surinder finally admits that he loves her more than God and Taani tearfully embraces him. The couple win the competition and the end credits show them visiting Japan on their belated honeymoon.

Special appearances during the "Phir Milenge Chalte Chalte" song (in order of appearance)

 * Kajol as Nargis
 * Bipasha Basu as Sadhana Shivdasani
 * Lara Dutta as Helen
 * Preity Zinta as Sharmila Tagore
 * Rani Mukerji as Neetu Kapoor

Theme
Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi tells a story from the point of view of an ordinary person and, most importantly, conveys a message that being 'ordinary' is cool. The filmmakers were confident that it would be able to strike a chord with millions because the film has ordinary people as its target audience:

"'As middle-class people, so many of us have a routine life. We wake up in the morning, get dressed, go to the office, come back, sometimes for a change we buy things to take home, watch TV, eat dinner and go to sleep. And then we repeat this day after day, week after week. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi talks about one such man who lives a routine life. It is a simple film at heart.'"

Casting and filming
In February 2008, Aditya Chopra announced that he will helm another film titled Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and that it will star his lucky mascot, Shah Rukh Khan. Initial speculations put Sonam Kapoor as the lead actress while the movie was to be inspired by the 1964 Hollywood classic My Fair Lady, but Sonam eventually dismissed reports about her being a part of the movie. The female lead was to be a newcomer who would be chosen following a massive talent hunt for a young, demure woman with quintessential Punjabi features. In May 2008, Yash Raj announced the casting of the 20-year-old model Anushka Sharma as the leading lady opposite Khan. Yash Chopra commented: "'We were looking first for someone who could truly embody the spirit of small-town Punjab. We know we have found her in Anushka. While she has no previous acting experience, we have seen that unique spark in her that makes us confident that she will be a standout even opposite Shah Rukh.'"

Sharma was chosen over hundreds of girls for this role and was kept hidden from the media during the filming. When asked about that, Khan said: "The idea was not to keep her a secret; we wanted her work to speak for her. When new actors come into films, it is important for people to see their work and then question them. It becomes easier after the film releases." Vinay Pathak was cast to play an important role in the film, making it his first commercial outing.

Filming began in May 2008; Yash Chopra was present at the shoot. A portion was shot with Khan at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab. Khan had to lose the six-pack abs he developed for the song "Dard-E-Disco" from Om Shanti Om (2007) since he was playing the role of a very normal, regular person.

Music
The soundtrack of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi was composed by Salim–Sulaiman. The lyrics of all the songs have been given by Jaideep Sahni. This marks the second collaboration of the composer duo with Shah Rukh Khan after Chak De! India (2007). The album was mixed by Vijay Dayal at YRF Studios in Mumbai and was mastered by Brian "Big Bass" Gardner at Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.

The song "Phir Milenge Chalte Chalte" pays homage to Bollywood actors Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand, Shammi Kapoor, Rajesh Khanna and Rishi Kapoor and actresses Nargis Dutt, Sadhana Shivdasani, Helen Khan, Sharmila Tagore and Neetu Singh. The performance of the song includes appearances by Kajol Devgn, Bipasha Basu, Lara Dutta, Preity Zinta and Rani Mukerji.

Serbian pop singer Jelena Karleuša remade the song "Dance Pe Chance" as "Insomnia" in 2010. Bulgarian pop singer Ivana also made a copy of the same song as "Nedei".

The soundtrack of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi was released on 6 November 2008. It is the first Bollywood soundtrack to reach the top 10 album sales for the iTunes Store. According to the Indian trade website Box Office India, with around 19,00,000 units sold, this film's soundtrack album was the year's second highest-selling.

Release
Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi was released across 30 countries worldwide on 12 December 2008 on over 1,200 screens, including approximately 300 prints for the overseas market, making it the first time a Bollywood film was released on such a wide scale. Before release, the film witnessed a large volume of advance bookings. Aditya Chopra, who is known for maintaining secrecy over his films and not showing them to anyone until the day of release, made an exception and held a special screening on 23 November 2008 at Yash Raj Studios. The screening was attended by Khan and his family, Karan Johar, Yash Chopra, and debutante Sharma.

There was a huge debate in the industry whether Aditya Chopra's decision to go ahead with the release of the film in the wake of the terror strikes in Mumbai was the right one. With the trauma of the terrorist attacks on Mumbai city on 26, 27, and 28 November still fresh, there was divided opinion on the release schedule. While some felt that Chopra should go ahead with the release because the public, tired and depressed after watching news of the attacks and the aftermath on television screens, would be waiting for a true entertainer to divert its mind, others thought he should postpone the film release as the audiences, not just in Mumbai but all over the country, were still not in a mood to visit theatres.

Promotion
The first poster of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi was released in October in theatres and multiplexes across India, with full-page advertisements in national dailies. The first theatrical promo was released on 14 November, with Karan Johar's Dostana. Initially very little was known about the movie, and there were many theories floating around on the Internet about the story. The first music promo of the song "Haule Haule" was released on 2 November 2008, across all leading television channels to coincide with Khan's 43rd birthday. The song promo had received praise from the public.

Home media
Joginder Tuteja of Bollywood Hungama gave the DVD of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi 3.5 out of 5 stars stating that it is a good choice if you "want to watch a clean family movie at home." The DVD includes the documentaries, The Making of the Film and The Making of the Songs ("Haule Haule", "Dance Pe Chance", "Phir Milenge Chalte Chalte"), as well as a number of deleted scenes and interviews. The film, was released on Blu-ray a year after its theatrical release.

Critical reception
Upon release, the film received positive reviews. Robert Abele of the Los Angeles Times calls Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi an "agreeably amusing comedy/romance/musical" noting that, "the magnetic Khan is a skilled enough comic actor with his physical transformation—like a Peter Sellers-ish recessive turning into a Jerry Lewis extrovert—that believing Taani wouldn't notice isn't difficult." Rachel Saltz of The New York Times describes it as "soft, sweet and slow, in the words of one of its songs. It deftly blends comedy, the ruling tone of the new Bollywood, with melodrama, the ruling tone of the old." Manish Gajjar of the BBC gave the film 4 out of 5 stars noting that, "Shah Rukh Khan makes you laugh and cry as the nerdy-looking, clumsy, bespectacled Surinder and all hip and happening Raj. A true professional in his own right, Khan breezes through his dialogues during the emotional and comic scenes." Frank Lovece of Film Journal International argues that it is "smarter and more self-aware of its rom-com contrivances than most Hollywood movies" and notes that while "the movie's cleverness eventually devolves into a simplistic Harlequin-Romance-for-males wish-fulfillment about beauty and the geek, it's a very well-acted variation on a Hollywood staple." Critic and author Maitland McDonagh of MissFlickChick.com stated that the film, "has been dismissed in some quarters as self-conscious and artificial, a coyly self-referential reworking of outdated movie tropes a la Todd Haynes' Far From Heaven, but it works for me in a way that most contemporary Hollywood romcoms don't."

The film also received some negative reviews. Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN was critical, giving it 2 out of 5 stars and stating that "Aditya Chopra's return to direction after 8 years is marked by a flawed script, which in turn spawns a disappointing film. Where's the smart dialogue and the spirited characters that defined his debut film, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge? There's no trace of either in this film...the problem then, at the root of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, is that much like those artificial sets in the film, the emotions too are contrived." Derek Elley of Variety argues that the film has "a huge, hollow center that sinks the project early on...A paper-thin script drags itself to the finish line amid tiresome mugging by Khan, a huge credibility gap (she never recognises him without his spectacles and moustache?), and a blah score with only one showstopper (featuring 5 famous actresses)."

A number of critics have further noted the similarities between this movie and superhero films. Khalid Mohamed, of the Hindustan Times, gave the film 3.5 out of 5 stars stating that Surinder "is a soul brother to the mousy Clark Kent-cum-Superman" who "makes you laugh and sob alternately." Mayank Shekhar from Mumbai Mirror gave the film three out of five stars and argues that "[The] same person, oppositely twinned, is usually the stuff of superhero films; the kinds of Clark Kent-Superman, Peter Parker-Spider-Man etc. You feel entirely lost in this fantasy flick because for the most part, it’s built around something so intimate and real. It’d be much easier to travel to foreign countries around far-fetched situations with fake heroes." In addition, Sudish Kamath of The Hindu stated that while Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi could have been an interesting art film exploring the dynamics of an arranged marriage, the director instead "treats this character type like Sam Raimi would treat Spider-Man...Superhero 'Raj' slips into costume and out, complaining about how it gets uncomfortable around the crotch, to win over his Mary Jane with not much saving-the-world business to keep him busy. But while Spidey does it for a bigger reason than just MJ, Raj’s sole motivation is to stalk his wife and play out his fantasy as somebody else. His obsession with his alter-ego reaches new heights when he wants his wife to cheat on the real him—the goofy Surinder Sahni who starts off well."

Box office
Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi collected inr 420000000 in its opening week. By its fourth week, it had earned inr 860000000, making it Shah Rukh Khan's fifth consecutive blockbuster in 3 years and Aditya Chopra's third blockbuster as a director. The film grossed $8.43 million in the overseas market of which $2.09 million was contributed by the United States and $2.24 million from the UK, and was declared as a blockbuster overseas.

At the end of its theatrical run, it grossed inr 1578900000 worldwide, thus becoming Yash Raj Films' and Khan's highest-grossing film at the time of its release. It was the second-highest-grossing film domestically and the highest-grossing in the overseas market that year.