Race is a 2008 Bollywood film directed by director duo Abbas-Mustan and produced under the Tips Films banner. Released on March 21, 2008 worldwide, it stars Anil Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Akshay Khanna, Bipasha Basu, Sameera Reddy and Katrina Kaif in pivotal roles.
The film also stars Dilip Tahil and Johnny Lever for thriller and comedy sketches. Set and mostly filmed in Durban, South Africa and Dubai, Race is a comedy, thriller and action film which explores themes of sibling rivalry, betrayal and passion. The film is based on the 1998 Hollywood movie Goodbye Lover.The soundtrack was dubbed into Tamil as Panthayam and in Telugu as Race.
Critics and Response
Although receiving a mixed response from critics, Race went on to be the second Bollywood hit of 2008 behind Singh is Kinng. The film opened with a total of Rs.35,61,00,000 in India, £880,423 in the United Kingdom and $ 1,376,024 in the United States of America. As of May 30, it grossed Rs.63,67,00,000 ($14,886,600) in India, and $9,505,321 in other parts bringing a worldwide total of $24,391,921. Taran Adharsh gave the film 4 out of 5 stars, stating that Race “is a superb entertainer all the way” and that it “has not just style, but a lot of substance too”. Hanumant Bhansali praises the film and also says that Race is “a winner all the way”. In contrast to Adharsh and Bhansali, Race also met with some negative reviews, forcing the response from critics to be mixed. Raja Sen gave the film 1.5 stars out of 5 and described the various number of plot twists and poor character development as its main deficiencies.
Controversy
Taiwanese singer Lee-Hom Wang and his record label Sony BMG Music Entertainment Ltd. are suing Tips Films, the distibutors of Race, $320,000 in damages, for plagiarising his song Deep in the Bamboo Grove(Zhu Lin Shen Chu) into Zara Zara touch me from the film.
Also Pehli Nazar was copied from a Korean Song (“Sarang Hae Yo” – By Kim Hyung-Sub).
Notes
- The track Khwab Dekhe (Sexy Lady) was recorded after the release of the soundtrack on 9th February. It replaced Mujhpe To Jadoo in the film. Tips Music then re-distributed the soundtrack, adding Sexy Lady, after the release of the film.
Cast
- Saif Ali Khan as Ranvir Singh
- Akshaye Khanna as Rajeev Singh
- Bipasha Basu as Sonia
- Anil Kapoor as Robert D’Costa aka R.D.
- Katrina Kaif as Sophia
- Sameera Reddy as Mini
