Apurv Shukla
Year 2018 has begun on a good note commercially for the Hindi film industry.
The delayed historical ‘Padmaavat’ was released in January to a thumping box office response.
Akshay Kumar carried on his successful run at the ticket window with the socially relevant ‘Padman.’
The SKTKS Magic
The surprising success story of the year so far though has been ‘Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety’ (SKTKS). The fourth collaboration between Director Luv Ranjan and actors Kartik Ayan and Nushrat Bharucha, this romantic comedy has resonated big time with the audiences.
It also stars actor Sunny Singh who has been part of this team two times previously.
What made SKTKS, a small budget film starring relatively unknown actors to strike big at the ticket window?
Simply put, ‘the connect with youth.’
Young people are among the most avid cinegoers.
From the time the first trailer was released, SKTKS created curiosity.
The film talked about commitment issues faced by today’s generation regarding relationships.
More importantly, the script created characters with which people could identify themselves.
The situations shown in the film were everyday occurrences in the urban youth’s life, told in an entertaining fashion. The dialogues were a highlight of this breezy entertainer.
Constantly witty, they spoke the language of today.
Alok Nath has drawn accolades for his portrayal of a colourful granddad in the film.
This was a complete departure from his normally pious and ‘Sanskari’ roles.
Music scores
Another big reason for the success of the film has been its music.
Following the trend of most Hindi films these days, SKTKS recreated two old songs alongside fresh music. Recreating old songs can be termed as an upgrade of remixes, which dominated airwaves until a few years ago.
Portions of yesteryear classics here are merged with new lyrics and peppier beats. Purists will find it disappointing and a sad reflection of music in today’s times.
But clearly this trend is finding popular resonance.
The Internet intervention
Cinema today is not the only medium of entertainment. Internet has brought a plethora of options to keep us busy on our phone screens.
Television is also going through a golden period where excellent content is being produced worldwide. This means a film has to face stiff competition to attract viewers.
In the context of Hindi cinema, a film should either have big stars or be an engaging product for people to leave their homes and watch it.
This is where SKTKS scored, as the buzz surrounding the film was good and the word of mouth after its release positive.
SKTKS follows in the line of films like ‘Fukrey’ and ‘Bareilly Ki Barfi,’ which achieved success, endorsed by the young generation. today Varun Dhawan, one of the biggest stars of today, owes his position to his massive fan-following amongst the youth.
Most of his films, from the ‘Dulhaniya’ franchise to ‘Judwaa 2’ have been targeted towards this segment.
