De Dana Dan: In pursuit of love

• Cast: Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Sunil Shetty, Sameera Reddy
• Director: Priyadarshan
• Rating: G

Two young and broke men, Nitin (Kumar) and Ram (Shetty) desperately need cash to marry their affluent girlfriends - Anjali (Kaif) and Manpreet (Reddy). They plot to make a quick buck - Nitin decides to kidnap Moolchandji, the pet dog of his wealthy boss Archana (Archana Puran Singh). The plan goes haywire when Moolchandji disappears while Nitin and Ram are holed up in a hotel after a failed kidnap attempt.

During this time, Nitin and Ram encounter a Chinese gangster, an assassin, a police inspector, a club dancer, an ambassador, a young frustrated wife, a waiter and they find a dead body. To add to the mayhem, Harbans (Paresh Rawal), a shrewd and debt-ridden businessman, decides to marry off his son (Chunky Pandey) to Manpreet at the same hotel. What follows is a series of comedic scenes.

Desperate for a hit

Kumar hasn't had much luck at the box office in 2009 with Chandni Chowk To China, Tasveer 8x10 and Blue failing to do well. His saving grace was Kambakht Ishq, which managed an average run. Besides the poor content, the main factor leading to Kumar's recent failure is his expensive price tag. In order to ensure that De Dana Dan works at the box office, Kumar has foregone his huge pay as an actor and has chosen to co-produce the film under the banner Hari Om Productions.

Helping Kumar's cause is Priyadarshan, who specialises in making comedies and shares a great chemistry with Kumar. "Priyadarshan is an intelligent director who knows the pulse of the audience and has a knack for bringing humour to the screen. My comic talent was tapped in his flick Hera Pheri and ever since we've shared a great rapport.

"The best part about doing a film with Priyadarshan is that he makes his films at break-neck speed, which keeps the film fresh and helps the producer to keep the production cost in control," says Kumar.

Winning combo

Apart from Priyadarshan's trademark comedy sequences, Kumar is also banking on the winning star cast. For starters, De Dana Dan teams the hot pair Kumar and Kaif who have given huge hits like Namastey London, Welcome and Singh Is Kinng. "Katrina is my lucky mascot and I'm delighted whenever I'm paired with her," says Kumar. Kaif, however, doesn't seem too enthusiastic about doing De Dana Dan, because her role isn't as meaty as some of her earlier flicks this year, namely New York and Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani. "I have done De Dana Dan mainly for Akshay Kumar with whom I share a special rapport," says Kaif.

The hot couple is believed to share a sizzling scene in the rain, where Kaif is seen in the quintessential wet sari that was a norm for heroines in the '80s and '90s.

The film also teams up Kumar, Shetty and Rawal under Priyadarshan's direction after nine years. They struck box office success when they starred together in the comic hit Hera Pheri. In fact, Kumar has suggested a signature dance step from Hera Pheri involving the trio to be included in the film's promotional track to give the audience a sense of déjà vu even though the film is not a sequel to the earlier movie. "De Dana Dan is not a continuation of the Hera Phera series. It's a new plot with a fresh set of characters. The common factor is that Paresh, Sunil and I are coming together under Priyadarshan's direction and it's a new comedy," clarifies Kumar. De Dana Dan has added oomph factor in the form of Reddy and Dhupia besides Priyadarshan's usual team of comedic actors - Rajpal Yadav, Asrani, Manoj Joshi and Lever.

De Dana Dan seems to be Kumar's safest bet this year and he's working overtime to ensure the film brings him a lot of good luck!

Film File

• RDB has composed the Paisa track in De Dana Dan. Earlier they had composed three hit tracks in Kumar's previous films Namastey London, Singh is Kinng and Kambakht Ishq.
• De Dana Dan is the 11th film that teams Kumar and Shetty together.
• Asin refused the lead heroine's role in De Dana Dan, which went to Kaif.
• Shetty and Kaif were injured during the movie's filming.
• The film was mainly shot in Singapore.