An exclusive look at Dostana : NAACHGAANA

An exclusive look at Dostana

July 24th, 2008

Dharma Productions’ next release is the Abhishek Bachchan- John Abraham- Priyanka Chopra starrer Dostana. The film is directed by Karan Johar’s erstwhile assistant Tarun Mansukhani. A major portion of the film was shot in the sun-clad beaches of Miami and needless to say, the cast and crew had the time of their lives. As can be seen from the still, the trio of AB Jr., John and Priyanka look completely chilled out enjoying a drink on the beach. While John looks super-duper fit, even Priyanka looks sizzling hot in this green dress. As for AB Jr., he looks like a complete dude with a scarf around his neck and cool glares to beat the sun.

The shooting of the film is almost complete barring an item number which is yet to be shot. Since Abhishek is now busy with his ‘Unforgettable’ tour, the song featuring all the 3 lead actors will be shot only when he returns in September. Dostana is about 3 friends and is portrayed as a cool, fun film. Looks like Johnny boy, AB Jr. and Piggy Chops indeed had a ball shooting with each other in the picturesque locales of Miami. While Priyanka seems to have her hands full with shopping bags, it’s quite a funny sight to see John pushing AB Jr. in a shopping cart.

Going by the first look of the film and the chemistry which the actors share, Dostana indeed looks like a complete fun-filled experience. The film is slated to release on Nov 14 this year.

There Are 85 Responses So Far. »

Comment by manoj16_391 on 24 July 2008:

khoob jamegi mehphil jab mil baithenge bewade teen!
Comment by Eire on 24 July 2008:

Filming Dostana in Miami definitely paid dividends because it looks very colourful, vibrant, fun, and picturesque which will hopefully serve the film well.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

I like abhishek’s look here, and John is also looking good, but of all Abhi’s films this one excites me the least…
Comment by manoj16_391 on 24 July 2008:

u r right qalandar
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

Re.-I like abhishek’s look here, and John is also looking good

I would not know, I am busy lookinkg at Priyanka !! LOL
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Rocky: Johar saab ki film mein ladkon ko nahin dekhoonga to phir kis ki film mein dekhoonga?

Nice avatar btw…
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

Thanks !
Comment by Achilles on 24 July 2008:

Priyanka looking smashing here!
Comment by Tango on 24 July 2008:

Surprisingly still no gay jokes about Karan Johar as yet

I must reming members taht Dostana is a karan Johar project.
Comment by Tango on 24 July 2008:

**Surprisingly still no gay jokes about Karan Johar

I must remind members that Dostana is a Karan Johar project.**
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

well Rocky and I had our own gay theme going here (more at my expense than his)…
Comment by Tango on 24 July 2008:

“well Rocky and I had our own gay theme going here (more at my expense than his)…”

Rocky bhai yeh ghalat baat hai aapki.

Anyway December mein aana to mithai khilana, Laal chaddhi utar gayee Karat ki.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

But I will give Johar credit for one thing: he himself has started peddling the gay theme, and thus he has defanged attempts to attack him on those grounds by himself making a joke of it (e.g. at recent Filmfare awards).

I read somewhere that John is playing a gay guy in this movie. Full credit to him if true…takes guts IMO.
Comment by Tango on 24 July 2008:

Johar is a great sport and has the guts to take all the gay jokes.

Personally Karan may have an effeminate style, but that may be because of growing up amongst too many female family members. I have seen that in many families.
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

Zaroor Tango ,
Q, Expense aapka ho ya mera, Net Gain NG ka Hai !!!!
Comment by Tango on 24 July 2008:

Both Abhishek and John are playing Gay to patao Priyanka.

But I just hope Bobby does not make it the predictable Deewaana Mastana ending.
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

Johar neeeds to get a Girl ( Friend ho Ya Enemy ) !
Comment by Tango on 24 July 2008:

Rocky hum milenge, either Karim’s par ya ek bade se gaon mein
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

Bada Gaon ab Mandal ho gaya hai !
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

BTW, Tango your Avatar gives a feeling ke Ladne kee tayaree se aaye ho !!! LOL!! Just Kidding !
Comment by aby2000 on 24 July 2008:

This movie has a fabulous sound track!
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

Is it out yet ???
Comment by coolp on 24 July 2008:

Rocky : It will be out on September 30th. This is from KJ’s posting on his blog :

“..The music will be out on the 30th of September. If I may say, Vishal and Shekhar have outdone themselves. What they’ve delivered is a foot tapping, melody filled album that I hope you like. Let me know what you think of the music when it’s out.”
Comment by aby2000 on 24 July 2008:

No Rocky it ain’t out….but i’ve heard the songs..
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

coolp: who is that in your avatar?

aby2000: damn you’ve heard the songs?! Well good to hear V-S are in good touch here…

Tashan I was initially not too happy with, but over the last few months I’ve found myself listening more to it than to many other V-S soundtracks…
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Johar has definite latent homosexuality. The theme also keeps cropping up regularly in his films. First KHNH, now dostana.
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Rocky, that’s the point. Johar doesn’t want a girl! He has never been linked with anyone nor shows any interet in marriage!
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Moreover from his side there is definitely a very odd relationship with SRK.
Comment by rks on 24 July 2008:

Satyam:
Ekta Kapoor and Karan Johar in Love?

I’d love to marry Karan Johar: Ekta Kapoor
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

Priyanka looks good!

Ps: Hi everybody! (Thankyou Rks and Rohit!)
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Rks: Wow, never saw this story! Must be a plant. LOL! The heat was getting too much for Johar. Then again marrying Ekta Kapoor has its advantages!
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Welcome Johnnybrutal.. hope we won’t see much brutality here!

You should tell us about your favorite stars. that way we can put you on the right side of the ring!
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Welcome Johnnybrutal; glad to have you on board.
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

there is nothing odd about srk and johar relationship, srk has always been a big brother/father figure to johar, rumors about them are just plain sick, having a gay friend is no crime.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Re: “…having a gay friend is no crime.”

Completely agree.

Aside: never heard any rumors about SRK and Johar being involved; all the rumors are one-sided, i.e. they refer to a Johar crush on SRK…
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

thanks satyam and Q! You guys will get to know about my favorite stars as time passes, telling is no fun.
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Well there is of course nothing wrong in being gay or having a gay friend or what have you. On the other hand why then is the rumor considered ’sick’?

I personally consider SRK simply heterosexual. Johar however I think has repressed his homosexuality. There is a lot that is odd about what he says with respect to SRK. It’s not just being best friends. There are many examples of the latter that are not odd.

Now I do concede that a lot is said about Johar in this context to run him down but then being homophobic is hardly new to the Indian scene!
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

“You guys will get to know about my favorite stars as time passes, telling is no fun”

Look forward to the surprise!
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Incidentally this is the one Abhishek film I’m least looking forward to. Johar’s cinema is not my thing, nor is this whole Miami deal. I’m sure the film will be multiplex gold though. The overseas will also lap it up. Unless Mansukhani really surprises me and I’m skeptical about this!

Having said that if Abhishek and John really make a good team it might be fun watching them. I don’t think highly enough of John’s acting abilities to believe this. For example I liked Abhishek and Ritesh in BM but John is no Ritesh. In this sort of thing chemistry is very important. The ideal casting for this film would have been what Johar initially wanted — Saif instead of John. Abhishek and Saif are great foils physically but would also have done well together. Saif didn’t want the second lead and it didn’t work out. Ironically this would have been a good deal for him because he would probably be on screen all the time with Abhishek. On the other hand he got stiffed in Tashan and moreover even the Yashraj solos haven’t been worth anything to him of late.
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

leaving this aside, i think dostana will do very well, priyanka has never looked better! Box office wise I think this will be abhi’s best, d6 will be good but not successful and dont know what to expect from drona.
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Then again Saif had already done KHNH (where I consider him the scene stealer) and two films with gay themes might have been a bit much for him!
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Well the thing with Abhishek is that every film of his is a little risky. Drona is risky for obvious reasons. D6 is too, ultimately Mehra doesn’t have the longest track record. Same goes for Rohan’s new film. And of course Rathnam is also not a safe director. The other thing with this whole Aamir plan where you do a lot of prestige or edge films is that until you build enough brand equity you’re doing stuff that’s too different from film to film. Plus a hit at any point means less for the next film. So for example if Drona’s a hit what does that mean for Dostana? Or if someone’s in it for the Dostana deal and the film works well D6 is nothing like it. Same goes for SR earlier. This means that it’s really the prestige of the project and then the star’s own prestige that have to combine to deliver a big initial. But it takes a while to deliver on one’s own prestige. This is why most stars if not all cling to a com,fort genre the moment they find it.

Now having said all of this it is also true that the multiplex system has also rewarded some very interesting films in recent times and sometimes in big ways. And Abhishek is certainly on the right side of this trending by maintaining the ‘cutting edge’ factor.
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

satyam, john isn’t playing the second lead, both have equal roles. saif can eat any actor playing a young hip fun character and johar would never approach saif to play a second fiddle to abhi.
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

I just want to see Abhi/Saif in a proper film. I think there’s great potential to this team if done the right way. They had a very good moment in LoC. Also liked them in that last act of SN.
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

And of course there was also that moment in HT.
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

JohnnyBrutal: I know that. But in such films the bigger star always becomes the lead whether the footage is equal or not. Saif by the way was approached for Dostana, even admitted as much in his interviews, then didn’t do it. of course Ash was also in the film at the time and he might have felt he’d be sidelined. There are multistarrers where there are two or three leads but the most important star is the one who counts. When Johar couldn’t get both Abhi and Saif in the same film he went with the one who mattered most and got the star who was willing to do the role Saif didn’t. That’s what I mean. On Saif eating any star I guess Saif himself didn’t have that confidence otherwise he’d have done the film!
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

saif will soon bounce back! The guy is talented! Aht, omkara, dch(scene stealer), khnh, pareenita, humtum.
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

By the way Saif earlier refused a role in Guru. Also refused BM with Abhishek.
Comment by satyam on 24 July 2008:

Saif has damaged himself too badly with some of his recent stuff and he really needs to bring about drastic change to bring about a different dynamic. First off he should simply ditch Yashraj. Secondly he should do another serious acting role like Omkara. The box office matters less when you get the buzz factor going. And he can then do the Race sort of film at the same time to keep the hits going. It’s not too late for him but it’s getting there. He’s had TRRP (wrong categorized a flop by the media but that’s the general impression), Eklavya, TPTM, Tashan. Nothing has worked other than Race where ironically the film opened so big that no one could really believe Saif was responsible and hence credited the genre (of course this film deconstructed something like D2!). Even Omkara hardly did much at the box office though here the buzz was sufficient enough to help Saif. So he’s had some bad luck with most of these films if not all. But he’s is in some trouble at the moment. The best project he now has is the Johar one with Vivek Oberoi.
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

saif was offered abhi’s role and abhi was gonna do ritesh role, saif said the climax or the movie wont work and he was kinda right, it was an average grosser, satyam, when dostana was offered to saif he was the bigger star, he is still at par with abhi.
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

Thanks Coolp.
Aby2000- first email id of Bachchan and now prelisten(derived from preview)of Dostana songs.
Wow man!!
Comment by Rocky on 24 July 2008:

Re.-Nothing has worked other than Race where ironically the film opened so big that no one could really believe Saif was responsible and hence credited the genre
LMAO !!
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

yea true, but atleast saif was considered the main lead and wasnt eaten up by khanna!
Comment by Eire on 24 July 2008:

All films are risky in these times when no one knows what will click with the audience at any given time. I think Abhishek’s line up of films is very good. I like the variety and diversity. I like how Abhishek can never be pigeon-holed or stuck in one type of image. I think that will bring longevity to Abhishek as an actor and his career. Drona, Dilli 6, Dostana, and Mani’s next all have the potential to become hits at the box office(and even acclaimed films). Its up to the audience to see if the films click. But Abhishek’s line up of films looks very promising and interesting in my opinion.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Well said Eire — add Sarkar Raj, Jhoom Barabar Jhoom and Guru, and he’s really covered quite a range…
Comment by Tony Montana on 24 July 2008:

Frankly, I do not expect much from a Karan Johar film But I’m looking forward 2 it cuz of Abhi.

johnnybrutal - Saif is done.. Its time to stick a fork.
Comment by Gabber on 24 July 2008:

1st pic looks the collest.
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

So Abhishek gets the credit for Guru, but poor Saif does not get the credit of Race! Abhishek tried different in JBJ (a flop) so wow, but Saif tried different in Tashan (a flop) so boo. I thought this kind of spin was something reserved for politicians! Saif is 10 times the actor Abhishek is, just look at their past films. And this year Saif has delivered a huge hit in Race. That is more than we can say for Abhi.
Comment by Som on 24 July 2008:

Kinda liked the pics, hopefully the movie will turn out to be good!
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

Som - is that Gregory Peck on your avatar?
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Re: “So Abhishek gets the credit for Guru, but poor Saif does not get the credit of Race!”

Actually Neelu, it is you who suggested that while Shahid Kapoor got the credit for his hits, it was an “ensemble cast” + Mani + ARR that got the credit for Guru.

Saif of course did have Race, no two ways about it. And he also had Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic, which opened worse than Jhoom Barabar Jhoom even over a year later, no two ways about that either.

I like Saif quite a bit but IMO Abhishek Bachchan is the superior actor.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Som: expecting something good from the House of Dharma requires optimism that I simply do not possess!
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Re: “is that Gregory Peck on your avatar?”

…and here I thought it was a pic of som himself…
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

‘Actually Neelu, it is you who suggested that while Shahid Kapoor got the credit for his hits, it was an “ensemble cast” + Mani + ARR that got the credit for Guru.”

Oh - so then we are to take Guru away from Abhi? What is the poor man left with then? This is so unfair.

“And he also had Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic, which opened worse than Jhoom Barabar Jhoom even over a year later, no two ways about that either.”

But he also had Tashan which opened quite well despite the fact that it did not release in multiplexes. Spin, spin, spin.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Re: “he also had Tashan which opened quite well despite the fact that it did not release in multiplexes.”

Given Akshay’s presence in the film, not even Saif’s mother would give the lion’s share of the credit for Tashan’s opening — in single screens, no less — to Saif.
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

But even if Saif gets part of it, and single screen only, then it is bigger than Abhi’s share of JBJ! And I would not go for the mother - she is true tigress when it comes to the son
Comment by Som on 24 July 2008:

“expecting something good from the House of Dharma requires optimism that I simply do not possess! ”

Q: I am an optimistic guy, there is always the “hope”.again contrary to many here I kinda liked KANK more than his earlier movies, so I expect he learns from his mistakes and does a better job with his movies in future.what impresses me the most about Karan is that he is inclined to do something different here, whether he succeeds in his attempt or not is a different thing.after the debacle of KANK he would have easily been disheartened and done something that he is good at not something in the line of MNIK which I am led to believe might be a difficult proposition to handle for someone of the director caliber of Johar.

Neelu: Yeah that is him, one of my favorite actors.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

RE: “even if Saif gets part of it, and single screen only, then it is bigger than Abhi’s share of JBJ!”

Uh, you’re seriously suggesting Bobby Deol was a bigger draw than Abhishek in JBJ?
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Can’t say Peck is one of my favorites, but one film I really liked him in is Duel Under the Sun…he was damn charismatic there…God, Jaanbaaz was such a cheesy rip off of this…
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

Bobby, Preity, Lara cannot be denied their share can they? So that cuts into Abhi’s share of JBJ. Tell me one film with him as a major draw - that would mean no Big B or Aishwarya (she is bigger than him). We will see his draw in the 3 Ds coming up. Tashan could easily have doubled its share in a full release, and that means Saif did quite well as a draw.

About Peck - always liked him a lot but my absolute favorite is Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird. He snatched the Oscar from Peter O’Toole (Lawrence of Arabia) that year, and it was one year where I wish they had just divided the trophy into two! Was great in Roman Holiday, How to Steal a Million.
Comment by Som on 24 July 2008:

I agree with Satyam here that Saif has deconstructed himself too badly with some of the movies in the last couple of years.Saif I think is an actor of tremendous potential, perhaps the best amongst the current lot of actors.I still can’t believe the guy who was a part of movies like DCH,Being Cyrus, EHT,Omkara even KHNK(he was the best thing) few years back is now doing stuffs like TRPP,Race and TPTM.Now he is basically following SRK,to be known as a big superstar rather than a great actor which he has the potential to be one.
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

What did you think of him in Eklavya?
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Re: “Bobby, Preity, Lara cannot be denied their share can they?”

Then how can Kareena be denied her share in Jab We Met, Vidya Balan in Kismat Konnection, ad infinitum? If we are even speaking of Lara Dutta as co-equal draw with Abhishek, then there really isn’t much to say. And I suppose Preity Zinta has also been eating into the draws of all those other Shah Rukh films too.

On Aishwariya: she was certainly not a bigger draw than Abhishek in Sarkar Raj or Guru; she obviously was in Umraojaan. In general she is, as I noted many comments ago, always a factor — but I don’t notice her only in Abhishek films, but also in others: such as Jodha Akbar, Devdas, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, and so on.

The point is not to deny anyone their rightful share of the glory; but one ought to have a uniform standard. When one speaks of Shahid’s hits, ignoring Kareena, and then in the same breath cites Lara Dutta and Bobby Deol for Jhoom Barabar Jhoom’s opening, it smacks of a double standard.
Comment by Som on 24 July 2008:

“but one film I really liked him in is Duel Under the Sun…he was damn charismatic there…”

Q: I have loved his performances in To Kill a Mockingbird,The Yearling, The Roman Holiday and couple of others.I am yet to see all his movies though.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

Som: but the difference is that unlike SRK, saif isn’t getting success with films like Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic. Taram Pam was unfairly categorized by the media as unsuccessful when it wasn’t, but there you have it.
Comment by Som on 24 July 2008:

“What did you think of him in Eklavya?”

Neelu: ohhh yes, how can I forget Eklavya?I found him very good.He was also quite likable in Hum Tum as well.
Comment by Qalandar on 24 July 2008:

My favorite role in Eklavya was Sanju’s cameo, great fun. Saif seemed a bit flat, and didn’t much care for Amitabh’s role at all. Jimmy Shergill was also great fun in that movie…

Overall Eklavya was IMO a great missed opportunity. It could have been epic, but Vinod Chopra always manages to mess something up…
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

Oh - Shahid was a walk on in JWM, I think I stated that a while ago. Any good looking munda with bhangra skills could have done the role! The credit was all Kareena’s! But Shahid gets that same boost that Aishwarya got from Dhoom 2 where the credit was all Hritik’s. But KK is all Shahid, because (1) Vidya has no draw and has only done insignificant roles after her release film (2) she was the worst part of KK according to me and most critics. So Shahid takes a lead right now with a 20 cr. opening as a major draw.
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

shahid and ranbir will be the upcoming superstars, i am sure imran will fade away, the guy just isnt superstar material
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

something funny i noticed while looking at priyanka’s legs, john’s legs were as smoothly shaven as priyanka’s! lol

in the second pic priyanka went shopping in a bikini (or is it a sports bra?)
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

johnnybrutal - what are you doing staring at John’s legs?

In Miami people only own one type of clothing - swim-wear!
Comment by Som on 24 July 2008:

“johnnybrutal - what are you doing staring at John’s legs?”

thank God! He is only staring at John’s legs!

BTW Welcome to NG, johnnybrutal!
Comment by johnnybrutal on 24 July 2008:

i knew someone would say that! I was looking at priyanka’s legs when i noticed johns. Neelu, then why is abhi all covered up? maybe he is the male rani mukherji.
Comment by neelu on 24 July 2008:

Abhishek is feeling shy - uska waxing ka appointment miss ho gaya!
Comment by sandy on 24 July 2008:

Agree that John is pretty much a non-actor. Also Priyanka is someone I find a complete put-on. Abhishek is probably the only interesting element. And to add, this has the stalest title possible.

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