Vicky Donor

"The best things in life come in small packages.." This adage came to my mind when I stepped out after watching 'Vicky Donor'.. Easily the best socially relevant comedy made in recent times, this one needs to be appreciated for its natural wit & intelligence in dealing with a sensitive issue in a non-preachy way. The movie manages to entertain as well as enlighten, & thats' a rare feat in context of Hindi Cinema. The movie succeeds in driving home its point in a subtle manner. Newcomer "Ayush-Man" is a complete natural in his roguishly charming Delhi guy act, while fellow débutante Yaami Gautam has extremely likable screen presence & is a competent performer as well. As a pair, both of them have a great on-screen chemistry, & their romantic track blends well with the story. On the other hand, every member of the supporting cast is an absolute delight to watch, especially Anu Kapoor as "Doctor Fertility". The music is also quite good, with "Paani Da Rang..." being the best pick with its soothing composition. There is some emotional drama in the 2nd half & the culmination is arguably convenient, yet it suits the "feel-good" tone of the film. Overall, this is a crisply entertaining movie with a BIG heart. Highly recommended for lovers of good cinema, & a welcome break from all the crude slapstick "comedies" that are regularly dished out at the Indian Box Office in the name of entertainment. A complete surprise package!

Blood Donation is an old theme nowadays. Why not sperm? Fertilization has been shown previously in movies like I AM, The Tree Of Life and more. But Vicky Donor bring an aspect of Comedy involving fertilization in the movie. That's a different and peculiar attempt introduced in Bollywood movie. A fresh theme with fresh stars featured in a feature film - Vicky Donor.

John Abraham, The new boy in Producer Town does an earnest effort here and deals with a fresh theme based on a totally out-of-the-box concept. John after acting on 'masala maardhaar' movies now starts investing money on offbeat movies - that's strange but is smart also as the promos of Vicky Donor has a youth appeal also keeping beside the sperm oriented theme. Some in the town thinks Vicky Donor is somehow sex-oriented and disgusting in theme as it deals with such vulgar things like sperm donation and fertilization. Anyhow still Vicky Donor makes its individual impact in Bollywood and its pretty good.

In an environment where the job pressures are high and couples lead an erratic and unhealthy lifestyle, Dr. Baldev Chaddha (Annu Kapoor), a well-qualified fertility expert, runs a fertility clinic and a sperm bank in Daryaganj, New Delhi. Unfortunately, he has more failed cases to his credit than successes. A healthy, high-performing donor is the need of the hour.

Vicky Arora (Ayushymann Khurrana), a young, good looking Punjabi guy from Lajpat Nagar, is the only son and of no financial support to his mother Dolly (Dolly Ahluwalia), a widow, who runs a small beauty parlor from home. As luck would have it, a small brawl in the colony brings Dr. Chaddha and Vicky face to face, where Chaddha concludes that Vicky could be that donor he has been looking for. From here on, Dr. Chaddha's days and nights are spent in convincing Vicky to become a donor till he finally gives in.

Vicky finds his love interest in Ashima Roy (Yami Gautam), a pretty Bengali girl, who works in a bank. But soon their hunky dory world comes crashing down because of Vicky's past as a donor.

Vicky Donor is a special mixture of Youth, Romance, Sperm Donation type offbeat concept and Comedy. So, compilation like this is hard to find in recent movies and there's where VD wins the race for its individuality. Even being a small budget film, VD gives you the feel of the same amount of humor, romance and consciousness about the concept used in a big budget film. It enlightens, then entertains and then wins.

Shoojit Sircar, after giving such a serious movie like YAHAAN (2005), it was very unlike to see a comic movie from him after 7 years. Anyway he deals very well with Vicky Donor and gives justice to the concept. Story, Dialogue and Script by Juhi Chaturvedi was very neat, sophisticated and came to a very good conclusion as the two parts of the movie was capably balance. Cinematography was not such a big deal for the movie but still good work done by Kamaljeet Negi. Editing by Shekhar Prajapati was good. The soundtrack of the movie is mediocre but still tracks like PANI DA RANG (sung, written and composed by the lead actor of the movie Ayushmann Khurrana), MAR JAIYAAN & RUM WHISKY work perfectly. These three songs are worth listen for many times. Background scores also by the music director duo Abhishek-Akshay duo are perfect for the movie.

Shoojit Sircar, I must say has chosen the actors for the movie very aptly. The very famous face from the Television Ayushmann Khurrana is good-looking, humorous and a very good performer. The naturalism in his expression and act was fascinating and profound. Another fresh face from Television Yami Gautam was strikingly beautiful, sensible and a good performer. Her presence and charm in various sequences adds value to them. Annu Kapoor aka Dr. Chadda is an anomaly. His humorous acts, sensitive acting adds the movie a new aspect.

Dolly Ahluwalia (Vicky's Mom) was very well as well as Kamlesh Gill (Vicky's grand-mom). Jayanta Das (Ashima's father) was fine. John Abraham makes a stunning impact on viewers by appearing in the song "RUM & WHISKY".

Finally, Vicky Donor is just like sperms, tiny but very effective and gives birth to a new idea in entertainment. With genuineness in script and rigorous performances by leading actors, Vicky Donor is successful in making a strong ascendancy in small budget films. Try not to miss this one.

I don't like Bollywood cinema, it has just never appealed to me and therefore I tend to avoid such movies like anything with Tom Cruise.

I found myself watching Vicky Donor as it's supposed to be an Indian remake of the excellent French Canadian movie Starbuck (2011). I'll say right off the bat, it's not............it really really isn't and they need to stop making that claim.

A very high rated Indian movie it tells the story of a lovable loser type who reluctantly begins donating sperm. He hides it from his family and the woman he loves because for some reason it would bring great shame.

That's it, so again this is not Starbucks plot at all despite being advertised as such.

It has most of the Bollywood tropes but thankfully no sudden dance numbers, I really couldn't have sat through it if there had been. There is however a heavy soundtrack and in this guys view it damaged the film.

The soundtrack grinds, the characters certainly could have been more likeable and much of the film feels like a melodrama more than anything else.

However on the flipside some of the writing is excellent, the plot though simple is handled well and the finale really saved the movie.

Vicky Donor is not Starbuck but it has it's own identity and for a guy who hates Bollywood I can't deny that it certainly has its moments.

Vicky Donor is an enjoyable affair despite its flaws.

The Good:

Yami Gautam

Some of the script is exceptional

Great finale

The Bad:

Randomly shifting back and forth between languages mid conversation

Frustrating soundtrack

Not even remotely the Starbuck story

Jokes tend to miss their mark

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

When a movie starts with the fact it was created by the "Eros" network it makes a person pause and recheck they have the right film!

Indians talk so fast it can make subtitles a chore at times

If "God" wanted you to have a child surely you wouldn't be infertile

Shaking hands with someone after they've made a sperm donation seems like a bad call

The word "Coming" was used a suspicious amount in this film, intentional?!

Banks allow their employees to go in after hours to mope dramatically

A person who refers to everyone as sperm would likely not be on my speed dial

The chief concerns of a 25 year old? Money, a job, a girlfriend and some respect from his family. Vicky Donor injects a new age career (if you may call it) of donating sperms in to the life of a happy, cricket loving, 25 but jobless Delhi boy Vicky (Ayushmann Khurrana). After Dr. Baldev Chaddha, (Annu Kapoor) an infertility specialist overtly chases Vicky for this covert job; he begins to enjoy the perks that come along with the job. However with great perks come great pains. Great perks – money, job, girlfriend (incidental to the job) and respect from his family. Great Pains – Not being able to tell his family and girlfriend about his career. So do the perks outweigh the pains? Or life is beyond such naive comparisons? For the answers, watch the movie!

While you are at it, you will be treated to some delightful real life characters, Kamlesh Gill as Vicky's alcohol-loving, forward-thinking grandma, Dolly Ahluwalia as Vicky's alcohol-loving, loud and dutiful mother, Annu Kapoor the singularly focused Dr. Baldev Chaddha, the beautiful Ashima Roy (Yami Gautam) and her oh-so Bengali family. The banter between Kamlesh Gill and Dolly Ahluwalia, Annu Kapoor's character who sees life through the lens of sperms will keep you chuckling through the movie. You will want to cheer the celebration of differences and the eventual mingling between the Punjabis and the Bengalis, brought to the fore in the wedding sequence.

Is this Ayushmaan's debut? Wow! Doesn't seem like that! He comes across as completely natural and never seems anything besides Vicky! He is absolutely lovable as the boy next door. Annu Kapoor is scintillating. He amuses you and makes you laugh. Kamlesh Gill and Dolly Ahluwalia are uncontainable. Debutant Yami Gautam looks delectable and performs well.

Juhi Chaturvedi's very believable story has a thoroughly enjoyable screenplay where witty one-liners are the order of the day. Kamaljit Negi's cinematography is good. Shekhar Prajapati's snips ensure the movie never slows down. Abhishek-Akshay's music carries the narration forward while Rum Whiskey will be a party smasher!

Director Shoojit Sircar after a hiatus of 7 years (Yahaan 2005) deftly blends in a topical story with some endearing characters and real life sequences to dish out a delightful slice of life film! Go watch it!

Watch for: A topical story. Light hearted entertainment. Watch out for: Performances and some superlative real life banter between the characters! Don't watch if: No-no. Go watch!

Story: 7 | Screenplay: 8 | Performances: 8 | Songs and Music: 7 | Direction: 8 | Overall: 7.5/10

It turned out to be pleasant surprize form Vicky Donor. While I waited for one week for the reviews before confirming if the movie is watchable, the movie stood tall in all aspects. Anu Kapoor is back with a bang with some impressive performances by Ayushman and Yami. The movie provided the right perspective to look at sperm donation and its importance. Though the conservatives with frown at such issues, even from the entertainment point of view, the movie provides everything that audience expects from a movie. The punches are spot on in terms of timing as well as dialogs. While a majority of the dialogs are in Punjabi (which might repel certain set of audiences), it just improves the originality of the plot. Music has been another highlight of the movie with the song "Paani Da Rang" being the masterpiece. Overall, a good 2-3 times watch.