The Dirty Picture

The Dirty Picture
A poster that features four people. From left, a man wearing a suit kneels down with a rose in his hand. A man wearing glasses looks away with a disgruntled expression. A provocatively dressed woman stands in a sensuous manner, with her lips slightly open. The third man holds the woman's thigh and smiles gleefully.
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMilan Luthria
Written byRajat Aroraa
Produced byEkta Kapoor
Shobha Kapoor
Starring
Narrated byEmraan Hashmi
CinematographyBobby Singh
Edited byAkiv Ali
Music byScore:
Sandeep Shirodkar
Songs:
Vishal–Shekhar
Production
companies
Distributed byAA Films
Release date
  • 2 December 2011 (2011-12-02) (India)
Running time
144 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguagesHindi
Tamil
Telugu
Budget₹18 crore (US$2.2 million)
Box office₹117 crore (US$14 million)[2][3]

The Dirty Picture is a 2011 Indian Hindi-language biographical musical drama film inspired by the life of Silk Smitha, an Indian actress noted for her erotic roles. The filmmakers have clarified that the story is not officially or literally based on Smitha alone, but on many of her contemporaries such as Disco Shanti. It also resembles the personal lives of other women in popular culture, including actress and sex symbol Marilyn Monroe.[4] The film was directed by Milan Luthria and co-produced by Shobha Kapoor and Ekta Kapoor, after Ekta came up with the idea and asked screenwriter Rajat Aroraa to pen a story based on it.[5][6]

Produced on a budget of ₹18 crore (US$2.2 million),[7] The Dirty Picture was released worldwide on 2 December 2011 (the anniversary of Smitha's birth),[8] in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil versions. Vidya Balan, Emraan Hashmi, Naseeruddin Shah and Tusshar Kapoor star in lead roles.[9] Upon release, it was a critical and commercial success, with Balan's performance receiving widespread critical acclaim and numerous accolades; she was called "the hero of the film".[10] In addition, the film has received high praise for portraying women as powerful, contributing something unique to a typically male-dominated society.[11] The film's soundtrack, composed by Vishal–Shekhar with lyrics written by Rajat Aroraa, also became a commercial success with the song "Ooh La La" become one of the chartbusters of the year.

The Dirty Picture grossed ₹117 crore (US$14 million) at the box office, with Box Office India declaring it a "hit" after its fourth week.[12][2][3] Balan won the National Film Award for Best Actress at the 59th National Film Awards for her performance in the film. At the 57th Filmfare Awards, The Dirty Picture received 6 nominations, including Best Film, Best Director (Luthria) and Best Supporting Actor (Shah), and won 3 awards, including Best Actress (Balan). Additionally, at the 17th Screen Awards, it received 10 nominations and won 6 awards, including Best Film, Best Director (Luthria) and Best Actress (Balan).

  1. ^ "The Dirty Picture (15)". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on 13 October 2014. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
  2. ^ a b "Boxofficeindia.com". Box Office India. 5 November 2012. Archived from the original on 7 October 2013. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
  3. ^ a b "2011 Worldwide Figures". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 23 January 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
  4. ^ "Vidya Balan has a unique sex-appeal: Milan Luthria". The Times of India. 1 December 2011. Archived from the original on 8 September 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
  5. ^ Talukdar, Tanya. "Dirty Picture chose me: Milan Luthria". Daily News and Analysis. India. Archived from the original on 15 April 2011. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
  6. ^ "'Silk' makes Vidya Balan a jubilee heroine in city, News – City – Ahmedabad Mirror, Ahmedabad Mirror". Ahmedabadmirror.com. 24 May 2012. Archived from the original on 19 July 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
  7. ^ Dubey, Rachana. "The Dirty Picture creates first day buzz". HT Media Ltd. Archived from the original on 4 December 2011. Retrieved 3 December 2011.
  8. ^ "'The Dirty Picture' hits screens on Silk Smitha's birthday". CNN-IBN. Archived from the original on 3 February 2012. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
  9. ^ Prakash (1 December 2011). "Actress Vidya Balan | The Dirty Picture | Tamil Audience". Oneindia.in. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2011.
  10. ^ ""Hero" Vidya enjoys the attention". NDTV Movies. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 20 March 2012.
  11. ^ S, Arpana. "Bollywood woman power". HT Media Ltd. Archived from the original on 10 December 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  12. ^ "Boxofficeindia.com". Box Office India. 10 December 2011. Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2011.