Dil Bole Hadippa!

Dil Bole Hadippa! (transl. The heart says hurray!) is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language sports comedy film directed by Anurag Singh and produced by Aditya Chopra under the Yash Raj Films banner.^[3] The film stars Rani Mukerji and Shahid Kapoor in lead roles, with supporting performances from Anupam Kher, Dalip Tahil, Rakhi Sawant, and Sherlyn Chopra.^[4] The narrative follows a young woman who disguises herself as a man in order to join an all-male cricket team, challenging gender norms in a traditional setting.

Dil Bole Hadippa!
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Anurag Singh[1]
Written by	Jaya-Aparajita
Produced by	Aditya Chopra
Starring	Rani Mukerji Shahid Kapoor Sherlyn Chopra Anupam Kher Dalip Tahil
Cinematography	Sudeep Chatterjee
Edited by	Ritesh Soni
Music by	Songs: Pritam Background Score: Julius Packiam
Production company	Yash Raj Films
Release date	18 September 2009 (2009-09-18)
Running time	148 minutes
Country	India
Language	Hindi
Box office	₹46.12 crore[2]

The film is an adaptation of Andy Fickman's 2006 American film She's the Man, which in turn was based on William Shakespeare’s play Twelfth Night. Principal photography took place across various locations in India.

Released theatrically on 18 September 2009, Dil Bole Hadippa! received mixed reviews from critics, who praised Mukerji's performance and the film’s core message while criticising its predictable screenplay. The film had a moderate run at the box office, grossing approximately ₹310 million (US$6.4 million) worldwide.

In conjunction with the release, ASTPL, an Indian software developer, launched a mobile video game based on the film’s cricket theme.^[5]

Plot

Veera Kaur, a spirited young woman from a small village, dreams of playing cricket at the national level. Despite her talent, she faces gender-based barriers and is denied entry to the men's team trials. Undeterred, she disguises herself as a man named "Veer" and successfully earns a place on the team.

Meanwhile, Rohan Singh, the captain of a county cricket team in England, returns to India at the request of his father, Vicky, who is desperate for India to win against Pakistan in the annual Aman Cup—a tournament in which India has lost for eight consecutive years. Rohan agrees to lead the team and begins training the selected players, including Veer.

As the tournament progresses, Rohan becomes romantically interested in Veera, unaware of her dual identity. Complications arise when he begins to suspect the truth. During the final match in Lahore, Veera’s identity is revealed after an injury exposes her disguise. Initially accused of cheating, she delivers a passionate speech on gender equality and the limitations placed on women in sports. Her performance and words earn her the respect of the crowd and her teammates.

With Veera’s help, the team secures victory. The film ends with her reunion with Rohan and widespread acknowledgment of her talent.

Cast

• Shahid Kapoor as Rohan Singh, Vicky's son
• Rani Mukerji as Veera Kaur / Veer Pratap Singh
• Anupam Kher as Chaudhary Vikramjeet Singh (Vicky), Rohan's father
• Dalip Tahil as Liyaqat Ali Khan (Lucky)
• Rakhi Sawant as Shanno Amritsari
• Sherlyn Chopra as Soniya Saluja
• Vimarsh Roshan
• Vallabh Vyas as Home Minister Parimal Chaturvedi
• Vrajesh Hirjee as Chamkila
• Poonam Dhillon as Yamini Singh (Vikram's wife)
• Shonali Nagrani as herself

Production

Principal photography for Dil Bole Hadippa! began on 17 July 2008. Shahid Kapoor’s scenes were filmed in early 2009, as he was committed to shooting Kaminey from June to December 2008.

Urmila Matondkar was initially approached for a cameo appearance in the film but ultimately did not participate in the project. The film’s title underwent a change during development; Sanjay Leela Bhansali had previously acquired the rights to the title Hadippa, and when Yash Raj Films requested to use it, Bhansali declined. The film was subsequently titled Dil Bole Hadippa!.

Reception

Box office

Dil Bole Hadippa! collected a net of ₹31.72 crore in India and was declared a "flop" by Box Office India.^[2]

Critical response

Dil Bole Hadippa! received mixed-to-negative reviews from critics. Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama rated it 2 out of 5, describing it as an "ordinary fare."^[6] Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com gave it 2.5 out of 5, stating, "Though not necessarily a bad film, it suffers from too many déjà vu-evoking distractions to wholly work."^[7]

Soundtrack

Dil Bole Hadippa!
Soundtrack album by Pritam
Released	16 August 2009
Recorded	YRF Studios Mumbai, India
Genre	Film soundtrack
Length	30:17
Label	YRF Music
Producer	Pritam
Pritam chronology
Love Khichdi (2009) Dil Bole Hadippa! (2009) All the Best: Fun Begins (2009)

The soundtrack of Dil Bole Hadippa! was composed by Pritam, with lyrics by Jaideep Sahni. The track "Ishq Hi Hai Rab" was melodically composed by UK-based music director Mukhtar Sahota. The background score was composed by Julius Packiam.

Track listing

No.	Title	Singers	Length
1.	"Gym Shim"	Joshilay	03:17
2.	"Bhangra Bistar"	Alisha Chinoy, Sunidhi Chauhan, Hard Kaur	04:45
3.	"Ishq Hi Hai Rab"	Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal, Mukhtar Sahota	05:25
4.	"Discowale Khisko"	KK, Sunidhi Chauhan, Rana Mazumder	04:26
5.	"Hadippa"	Mika Singh	04:08
6.	"Discowale Khisko" (Remix)	Master Saleem	04:14
7.	"Hadippa" (Remix)	Mika Singh, Sunidhi Chauhan	04:17

In popular culture

Following Justin Trudeau's election as Prime Minister of Canada in 2015, an earlier video of him dancing to the film's title track resurfaced online.^[8]