Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year
Encyclopedia
Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year is a Hindi
film directed by Shimit Amin
and produced by Yash Raj Films
. Screenplay of the film is by Jaideep Sahni
, who collaborated with Shimit Amin
for Chak De! India. Ranbir Kapoor
, Shazahn Padamsee
and Gauhar Khan
play primary roles in the movie. Shazahn Padamsee
, daughter of Alyque Padamsee
and Sharon Prabhakar
, made her debut in the film.
) , a Sikh
B Com
graduate with approximately 39 percent marks who becomes a salesman with a big corporate computer assembly and service company, AYS. His idealistic vision of the working world shatters quickly. Within a few days, a client asks for a kick-back. Harpreet is aghast and files a complaint. But his honesty only brings him a demotion and humiliation. After making concessions to a client for the company, Harpreet realizes that sales success is dependent on the customer. No one agrees with him but Harpreet remains firm on his belief and forms his own company in Rocket Sales Corporation. Other disgruntled employees find their way to Rocket Sales — a place where even the guy who serves tea is an equal partner because he brings talent to the table.
The company soon becomes successful because of its dedication to excellent customer service. The MD of AYS, Sunil Puri, becomes angered by the small company's success. After multiple attempts at contact, he finally calls and the phone at the AYS reception desk begins to ring as Rocket Sales was being managed from the AYS offices where the Rocket partners were still employed. After thoroughly insulting him and firing both him and his partners, the MD has Harpreet sign a contract handing over Rocket Sales to him and hands him his final pay of Rs. 1. However, AYS is unable to maintain Rocket Sales' commitment to customer satisfaction because of its cold and greedy personnel. The MD, realizing his downfall in purchasing Rocket Sales, visits Harpreet at his new job at Croma
, an electronics store, and returns the contract to Harpreet in return for Rs. 1. He also tells him never to become a businessman again, because he will fail again. However, this is not intended as an insult, but rather as a compliment; he implies that what made Harpreet so successful was his eschewing of 'normal' business practices such as kick-backs, false advertisement, and low wages.
The ending scene is the new Rocket Sales office building where a prospective worker is going in for an interview. It shows the former employees, all partners of the business, and finally closes with Harpreet smiling genially at a desk, showing that eventually honesty and hard work is a sound business decision.
in her NDTV
review gave it 3 out 5 stars.
Nikhat Kazmi
in The Times of India
gave 3 stars out 5. An The Economic Times
review gave it a 4 stars out of 5 and called it, "one of the most rocking films of the year" An Outlook
review by Namarata Joshi gave it 3 out of 5 stars, saying that the film "Marks a continuum and a departure from the middle-class cinema of Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Basu Chatterjee and Sai Paranjape." Rajeev Masnd of CNN-IBN gave the movie 3.5 stars out of 5.
2010: IIFA Awards
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
film directed by Shimit Amin
Shimit Amin
Shimit Amin is an Indian film director and editor. He is best known for the award winning film Chak De! India .Amin was born in Uganda but grew up in Florida, in the United States.He entered the film industry straight out of college, working primarily on independent films in Los Angeles.He is...
and produced by Yash Raj Films
Yash Raj Films
Yash Raj Films is an Indian Entertainment company set up by Yash Chopra, an Indian film director and producer who is considered an entertainment mogul in India.-Initial years:...
. Screenplay of the film is by Jaideep Sahni
Jaideep Sahni
Jaideep Sahni is an Indian screenwriter, songwriter and producer, most known for screenplays of films like, Company , Khosla Ka Ghosla and Chak De! India . He is currently on contract with Yash Raj Films...
, who collaborated with Shimit Amin
Shimit Amin
Shimit Amin is an Indian film director and editor. He is best known for the award winning film Chak De! India .Amin was born in Uganda but grew up in Florida, in the United States.He entered the film industry straight out of college, working primarily on independent films in Los Angeles.He is...
for Chak De! India. Ranbir Kapoor
Ranbir Kapoor
Ranbir Kapoor is an Indian actor who appears in Bollywood movies.Making his acting debut in the 2007 film Saawariya, for which he won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut, Kapoor went on to earn critical praise for his performance in Wake Up Sid...
, Shazahn Padamsee
Shazahn Padamsee
Shazahn Padamsee is an Indian film and stage actress, who has also worked a model. Daughter of noted actors Alyque Padamsee and Sharon Prabhakar, she made her first film appearance in the 2009 Hindi film Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year...
and Gauhar Khan
Gauhar Khan
Gauhar Khan is an Indian model, VJ and actress, most known for her prominent role in Ranbir Kapoor starrer, Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year . She is the sister of television actress Nigaar Z Khan...
play primary roles in the movie. Shazahn Padamsee
Shazahn Padamsee
Shazahn Padamsee is an Indian film and stage actress, who has also worked a model. Daughter of noted actors Alyque Padamsee and Sharon Prabhakar, she made her first film appearance in the 2009 Hindi film Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year...
, daughter of Alyque Padamsee
Alyque Padamsee
Alyque Padamsee is an Indian theater personality and ad film maker. He is probably best known in the English-speaking world for playing Muhammad Ali Jinnah in the film Gandhi...
and Sharon Prabhakar
Sharon Prabhakar
Sharon Prabhakar is an Indian pop singer, theatre personality and public speaker. She was an active singer in 1980s and 90s, with a total of seven albums to her credit.-Career:...
, made her debut in the film.
Plot
Harpreet Singh Bedi (Ranbir KapoorRanbir Kapoor
Ranbir Kapoor is an Indian actor who appears in Bollywood movies.Making his acting debut in the 2007 film Saawariya, for which he won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut, Kapoor went on to earn critical praise for his performance in Wake Up Sid...
) , a Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
B Com
Bachelor of Commerce
A Bachelor of Commerce is an undergraduate degree in commerce and related subjects. The degree is also known as the Bachelor of Commerce and Administration, or BCA...
graduate with approximately 39 percent marks who becomes a salesman with a big corporate computer assembly and service company, AYS. His idealistic vision of the working world shatters quickly. Within a few days, a client asks for a kick-back. Harpreet is aghast and files a complaint. But his honesty only brings him a demotion and humiliation. After making concessions to a client for the company, Harpreet realizes that sales success is dependent on the customer. No one agrees with him but Harpreet remains firm on his belief and forms his own company in Rocket Sales Corporation. Other disgruntled employees find their way to Rocket Sales — a place where even the guy who serves tea is an equal partner because he brings talent to the table.
The company soon becomes successful because of its dedication to excellent customer service. The MD of AYS, Sunil Puri, becomes angered by the small company's success. After multiple attempts at contact, he finally calls and the phone at the AYS reception desk begins to ring as Rocket Sales was being managed from the AYS offices where the Rocket partners were still employed. After thoroughly insulting him and firing both him and his partners, the MD has Harpreet sign a contract handing over Rocket Sales to him and hands him his final pay of Rs. 1. However, AYS is unable to maintain Rocket Sales' commitment to customer satisfaction because of its cold and greedy personnel. The MD, realizing his downfall in purchasing Rocket Sales, visits Harpreet at his new job at Croma
Croma
Croma is a dialect of Lisp created by the 2005 Irish Young Scientist of the Year, Patrick Collison.This language went on to take second place at the 17th European Contest for Young Scientists in Moscow....
, an electronics store, and returns the contract to Harpreet in return for Rs. 1. He also tells him never to become a businessman again, because he will fail again. However, this is not intended as an insult, but rather as a compliment; he implies that what made Harpreet so successful was his eschewing of 'normal' business practices such as kick-backs, false advertisement, and low wages.
The ending scene is the new Rocket Sales office building where a prospective worker is going in for an interview. It shows the former employees, all partners of the business, and finally closes with Harpreet smiling genially at a desk, showing that eventually honesty and hard work is a sound business decision.
Cast
- Ranbir KapoorRanbir KapoorRanbir Kapoor is an Indian actor who appears in Bollywood movies.Making his acting debut in the 2007 film Saawariya, for which he won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut, Kapoor went on to earn critical praise for his performance in Wake Up Sid...
as Harpreet Singh Bedi - Shazahn PadamseeShazahn PadamseeShazahn Padamsee is an Indian film and stage actress, who has also worked a model. Daughter of noted actors Alyque Padamsee and Sharon Prabhakar, she made her first film appearance in the 2009 Hindi film Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year...
as Sherena - D. Santosh as Girish Reddy
- Gauhar KhanGauhar KhanGauhar Khan is an Indian model, VJ and actress, most known for her prominent role in Ranbir Kapoor starrer, Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year . She is the sister of television actress Nigaar Z Khan...
as Koena Sheikh - Manish Chowdhary as Sunil Puri
- Prem ChopraPrem ChopraPrem Chopra is an actor in Hindi and Punjabi films. He has acted in over 400 films. He is famous for his soft spoken diction despite being a villain in most films.-Personal life and education:...
as P.S. Bedi - Mukesh Bhatt (Actor) as Chhotelal Mishra
- Naveen Kaushik as Nitin Rathore
- Mokshad Dodwani as Taxi ( Tanmay )
- Amol Parashar as Sai
- Debi DuttaDebi DuttaDebi Dutta is a model and actress. She has appeared in commercials of Pepsi, Nokia, HCL Laptops, Close Up. She entered into movies by playing character of Aparna, a childhood friend of Ranbir Kapoor in the movie Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year ....
as Aparna
Crew
- Production Designer: T.P.Abid
- Costume Designer: Niharika Khan
- Chief Assistant Director: Vicky Vijay
- Sound Designer: Manas Choudhury
Critical reception
Film critic, Rachel Saltz of New York Times called it a "a smart, focused Bollywood movie" and commended Ranbir Kapoor for "turning in a skillfully understated performance" while Anupama ChopraAnupama Chopra
Anupama Chopra is a noted author, journalist and film critic. She has written several books on Indian cinema and has been a movie reviewer with NDTV and India Today.-Career:...
in her NDTV
NDTV
NDTV is an Indian commercial broadcasting television network founded in 1988. It was founded by Prannoy Roy, an eminent journalist and current chairman and director of NDTV Group. NDTV currently has more than 1,000 employees producing news from over twenty locations in India...
review gave it 3 out 5 stars.
Nikhat Kazmi
Nikhat Kazmi
Nikhat Kazmi is a senior correspondent and well-known film critic from India, who has been writing for The Times of India, since 1987.-Books:* If Shakespeare was a gun: a play. Writers Workshop, 1984....
in The Times of India
The Times of India
The Times of India is an Indian English-language daily newspaper. TOI has the largest circulation among all English-language newspaper in the world, across all formats . It is owned and managed by Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd...
gave 3 stars out 5. An The Economic Times
The Economic Times
The Economic Times is an English-language Indian daily newspaper published by the Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd.. The Economic Times was started in 1961. It is the most popular and widely read financial daily in India, read by more than 8 lakh people...
review gave it a 4 stars out of 5 and called it, "one of the most rocking films of the year" An Outlook
Outlook (magazine)
Outlook is one of India's four top-selling English weekly newsmagazines. Like many other Indian magazines, it is reluctant to reveal its circulation, but the 2007 National Readership Survey suggested 1.5 million copies...
review by Namarata Joshi gave it 3 out of 5 stars, saying that the film "Marks a continuum and a departure from the middle-class cinema of Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Basu Chatterjee and Sai Paranjape." Rajeev Masnd of CNN-IBN gave the movie 3.5 stars out of 5.
Awards
2010: Filmfare AwardsFilmfare Awards
The Filmfare Awards are presented annually by The Times Group to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the Hindi language film industry of India. The Filmfare ceremony is one of the oldest and most prominent film events given for Hindi films in India. The awards were...
- Won: Best Actor (Critics' Choice)Filmfare Critics Award for Best ActorThe Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor is given by Filmfare as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films. The award is given by the chosen jury of critics assigned to the function, and is a derivation from a previous award known as the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance, which...
- Ranbir KapoorRanbir KapoorRanbir Kapoor is an Indian actor who appears in Bollywood movies.Making his acting debut in the 2007 film Saawariya, for which he won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut, Kapoor went on to earn critical praise for his performance in Wake Up Sid...
2010: IIFA Awards
- Nominated: IIFA Best Villain AwardIIFA Best Villain AwardThe IIFA Best Villain Award is chosen via a worldwide poll and the winner is announced at the ceremony.The winners are listed below:-- See also :* IIFA Awards* Bollywood* Cinema of India...
- Manish Chowdhary
External links
- Official website
- Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year Bollywood HungamaBollywood HungamaBollywood Hungama is a leading Bollywood entertainment website, owned by hungama.com....