Singh Is Kinng

<p>Lakhan “Lucky” Singh, known as the “Kinng,” is the kingpin of the Australian underworld, accompanied by his Sikh mafia associates Julie, Mika (Lucky’s brother), Pankaj Udaas, Raftaar Mann, Dilbagh Singh and Gurbaksh Singh. In Lucky’s birthplace in , another Sikh named Happy Singh often causes trouble despite his good intentions, leading the villagers to send him on a mission to Australia with his friend Rangeela to bring Lucky back and reunite him with his ill father, hoping to get rid of Happy for a while. At the airport, their tickets to Australia get swapped with those of Puneet, who was headed to Egypt. Consequently, Happy and Rangeela find themselves in Egypt, where Happy meets Sonia, a lawyer, and falls in love with her, but they part ways without him expressing his feelings. The two then proceed to Australia, where Lucky dismisses Happy’s request to return to Punjab and throws him out. Stranded, Happy receives kindness from an elderly lady who offers him food despite being a stranger. A series of incidents instigated by Happy result in Lucky getting severely injured and paralyzed. Surprisingly, Happy is then made the new Kinng by Lucky’s associates, who misread Lucky’s intention to kill him, much to Lucky’s chagrin. The elderly woman who helped Happy reveals her plight: her daughter is returning from Egypt with a wealthy fiancé, revealed to be Puneet, and she is worried her daughter will discover they are now living in poverty due to her father’s death. Happy offers her Lucky’s mansion to stay in and has the mafia associates work for her. When the daughter arrives, Happy is shocked to see that she is Sonia. Although Sonia begins to fall for Happy, she is conflicted because of her relationship with Puneet, who grows increasingly suspicious of Happy. Over time, the members of Lucky’s gang, inspired by Happy’s kindness, begin to reform their lives. Puneet eventually learns Happy’s true identity as the Kinng of the underworld and shares this revelation with Sonia. Initially shocked, she is later convinced by her mother, Rangeela, and Lucky’s gang members that Happy wants nothing else but to see others happy and peaceful. Meanwhile, Puneet conspires with Mika, who wants to become Kinng himself, to kill Happy. Their motives differ: Puneet wishes to eliminate Happy to keep Sonia, while Mika wants to seize power. On the day of Sonia and Puneet’s wedding, a confrontation ensues when Happy and his associates crash the event and fight Mika’s goons. During the chaos, Puneet abandons Sonia to save himself, allowing Happy to take his place at the altar and unintentionally marry Sonia. Puneet later seeks forgiveness as his father takes him away. Meanwhile, Mika’s guard tries to kill Lucky, but the trauma causes Lucky’s paralysis to be cured. Realizing Mika’s betrayal, Lucky is heartbroken. As the confrontation escalates, Mika, equipped with special glasses and a hearing aid, prepares to shoot Happy, but Lucky intervenes. A tense standoff unfolds, with Happy advising Mika on the qualities of a true Sikh. Lucky confesses that being Kinng was a source of misery for him, as a true Kinng fights for others, not himself. Remorseful, Mika drops his weapon. The film concludes with Happy and Sonia’s wedding and the gang members returning to their village, where they find peace and redemption. A final image shows Lucky reflecting, “And that’s how they became real Singh and real Kinng.” The music of the film was composed by and the lyrics were written by . The title song was composed by the British band RDB. The soundtrack was launched officially at the in on 8 June 2008. has a cameo in the video of the title song. , who sang the song “Teri Ore,” won the and the . Mayur Puri was nominated for the , in the “Best Lyrics” category, for the same song. According to the Indian trade website , with around 1,800,000 units sold, this film’s soundtrack album was the year’s third highest-selling. The song “Bhootni Ke” used in the film is sung by . of gave the film 4 out of 5 stars, and stated ” lives up to the hype and hoopla. At the box-office, the film will fetch a hurricane-like start and will be record-shattering. Notwithstanding the new oppositions in the weeks to come, it will rule the hearts of the . Blockbuster Hit!” gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, and stated “The film has an entertaining first half. The second half does get cluttered, clumsy and loose with loads of wasted talent in the likes of Ranvir Shorey, Javed Jaffrey and a side-lined Om Puri.” Gaurav Malani of stated, “This king doesn’t quite rule your heart unconditionally.” gave the film 2 out of 5 stars, and stated ” celebrates the spirit of being a Sikh, and yet it completely disregards the most basic detail of Sikh identity – how can your Sikh characters sport turbans but not full beards?” Aseem Chhabra of gave the film 2.5 stars out of 5, and stated “Akshay is the “. Lisa Tsering of stated, ” is a rollicking late-night party you don’t want to end – with a friendly, funny and generous host; gorgeous women; pumped-up bhangra music and an extravagant, booze-soaked scuffle or two.” Shubhra Gupta of stated, “Whatever else it notches up, ‘ ‘ will always and forever be known as the first Hindi film in Punjabi : everyone talks as if is coming out of their mouths.” Amodini of Friday Nirvana gave the film 0 out of 5 stars, and stated that it was a “dumbed-down masala”. Janak of Cinema Online Malaysia gave the film 5 out of 5 stars, and stated ” is a fantastic five-star movie with wonderful casts and beautiful songs. You may find all the elements of Hindi cinema in this film, from action to comedy, and drama to romance. This is a movie not to be missed, especially if you are a Punjabi and a Bollywood fan. I’m still buzzing from the soundtrack!” Wietske Uneken of Cinemagazine gave the film 3 stars out of 5 and stated, “Thanks to its humorous approach, ‘ ‘ is an entertaining film.” Sri of Frames N Pages stated, “The film lacks logic, but still a great entertainer.” R. Paul Dhillon of stated, “The filmmakers seem interested only in manipulating the audience, with absolutely no regard for plot, characters, or believability.” Molodezhnaja gave the film 2.5 stars out of 5. Rachel Saltz of stated, ” Singh Is Kinng” isn’t a great movie. But the immensely likable Akshay Kumar shines as a hero who spreads bedrock Indian values.” Sonia Chopra of gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, and stated “And there it is: yet another critic-proof film that the audience has pre-decided to like, such that you imagine them displaying the relevant finger to those who disagree. Some members of the Sikh community had expressed their dissatisfaction over the portrayal of Sikhs in the movie. On 1 August 2008, the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) wrote a letter to , the then Chief Minister of Delhi, asking her to ban the movie, as the trailer showed Akshay Kumar’s character sporting a trimmed beard. According to their religious guidelines, male Sikhs should not trim their beards, and the DSGMC found this offensive. After negotiations with the DSGMC authorities, the film was given clearance on 7 August 2008.</p>