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Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara

Original title: ज़िन्दगी न मिलेगी दोबारा

  • 2011
  • 2 h 34 min

Overview

Kabir Dewan, an architect, proposes to his interior designer girlfriend, Natasha Arora. At their engagement celebration, Natasha discovers that Kabir has planned a three-week bachelor road trip across Spain with his childhood best friends, Imran Qureshi, an advertising copywriter, and Arjun Saluja, a London-based investment banker. Bound by a school-day pact, each friend must secretly choose an adventure sport that all three must complete together. Arjun initially resists the trip because of work, but Kabir persuades him by reminding him that they had abandoned the same vacation four years earlier. Meanwhile, Imran has a personal mission: after finding an old letter addressed to his mother, he plans to locate his biological father, Salman Habib, an artist living in Spain. The friends reunite in Spain, where Arjun remains glued to his laptop and phone, working remotely throughout the journey. Frustrated, Imran throws Arjun's phone out of the moving car, triggering an argument over a painful betrayal: four years earlier, Imran had slept with Arjun's then-girlfriend, causing the cancellation of their original trip. Kabir intervenes, urging them to let go of the past and not allow it to ruin the vacation. At the Costa Brava, Imran flirts with Laila, an Anglo-Indian fashion design student. Kabir reveals his chosen challenge: deep-sea diving. Arjun, who has a severe fear of water, is terrified, but Laila, their diving instructor, helps him overcome his phobia and complete the dive. Later, Natasha notices Laila in Kabir's hotel room during a video call and becomes suspicious of his fidelity. At Laila's suggestion, the group postpones their trip to Seville to attend the La Tomatina festival in Buñol with her and her friend Nuria. Afterward, they return to find Natasha waiting unexpectedly at their hotel. Natasha confronts Kabir but refuses to believe his explanations. After an awkward dinner, Imran and Nuria spend the night together, while Arjun and Laila walk through the city. Arjun reveals that his ambition to retire by forty stems from watching his mother struggle financially after his father's death. Laila encourages him to stop living only for the future, and the two fall in love. The following morning, the group sees Natasha off at the airport. As Laila leaves for Morocco, she chases down their car, stops it, and passionately kisses Arjun. Although Natasha returns to London convinced that Kabir remained faithful, Arjun and Imran question whether Kabir truly wants to marry her. In Seville, Arjun reveals his chosen adventure: skydiving. Imran, who fears heights, overcomes his phobia with his friends' support. Later, a prank at a bar leads to the trio's arrest. To secure their release, Imran contacts Salman, who admits that he abandoned Imran's mother because he did not want the responsibilities of marriage and fatherhood. Though hurt, Imran gains closure and sincerely apologizes to Arjun for betraying him years earlier, allowing the friends to reconcile. The journey ends in Pamplona, where Imran reveals his challenge: the running of the bulls. On the eve of the event, Kabir confesses that he never intended to propose to Natasha; she had mistaken a ring meant for his mother for an engagement ring, and he lacked the courage to correct her. Arjun realizes Kabir organized the trip hoping to find the courage to call off the wedding and encourages him to do so, even if it hurts Natasha. Before the run, the friends make one final pact: if they survive, Imran will publish his poetry, Arjun will travel to Morocco to be with Laila regardless of his job, and Kabir will end his engagement. They complete the run safely. During the closing credits, photographs reveal that Arjun and Laila have married in Morocco, Imran has published his poetry and remains in a relationship with Nuria, and Kabir has ended his engagement to Natasha, who is dating someone else, though the two remain friends.

Original title
ज़िन्दगी न मिलेगी दोबारा
Runtime
2 h 34 min
Released
2011-07-15, Worldwide
Original language
Hindi

Release history

  1. Worldwide

Cast and crew

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Production

In November 2009, director-writer Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti completed the scripting of a film after three months of work. The script had the working title Running with the Bulls, before the title Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara was finalised, the new title being an amendment of the line "Zindagi Milegi Na Dobara" from the title song of Rock On!! (2008). Akhtar and Kagti incorporated real-life observations and wrote the character of Imran for the former's brother Farhan, who wrote the dialogue for the film. Farhan produced the film with Ritesh Sidhwani under Excel Entertainment.

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