Zee5's ‘Chintu Ka Birthday' (Star Cast, Story in Written, Reviews)

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This family drama revolves around a 6-year-old named Chintu, stuck in Iraq with his family in the times of Saddam’s fall. A simple, innocent aspiration to celebrate a child’s birthday is beautifully compared to worldly problems in this unique narrative of an endearing middle-class family tackling the extraordinary situation of the war. Will the world come together to cut the cake or rob Chintu his moment of joy? ‘Chintu Ka Birthday’ is a complete family entertainer with several thrilling moments interspersed between humor, fun, and joy, in a heartwarming drama.



Story, About the Film:
The story starts off while showcasing the life of Chintu, who is all set to celebrate his 6th birthday. His entire family comes together for one goal, to make Chintu's Birthday memorable. From baking cake, blowing balloons, new clothes, chocolates, gifts and decorating the house, Chintu's entire family leaves no stone unturned in making his special day a memorable one. In the first 20 minutes of the film, the film manages to engross you into the simple yet beautiful life of an Indian family away from their home.

Short Story: During US invasion of Iraq some illegal migrants are waiting to get back home to India. As one such family prepares to celebrate the 6th birthday of their youngest member Chintu, their kind-hearted Iraqi landlord lends them a helping hand.

Directors: Devanshu Kumar (co-director), Satyanshu Singh (co-director)

Wiki Review:
Verdict: If you're looking for something warm on a cold rainy day, then Chintu ka Birthday is the perfect package for you. The show will take you on a journey of emotions but at the end, the story as well as the characters will stay with you for a very long time.


Ratings: 3.5 stars

Chintu Ka Birthday (Chintu's Birthday) is a difficult film to review because although it has its heart at the right place the constant flipflopping between comedy and thriller made me slightly uncomfortable both as a viewer enjoying good cinema and a discerning entertainee trying to not describe such a proceeding therefore as contrived. The idea of a sweet, small Indian family of five trying to celebrate its youngest member's birthday in a war-torn Iraq soon after the fall of Saddam Hussein is a unique one.

And I love how the film takes place within the span of a few hours and yet does not lose sight of time. I don't know who comes first in acting here when you have Vinay Pathak as the father who will remind you of your own paternal figure, or the supremely talented and film festival feature usual Tillotama Shome whose one smile is enough to make you fall in love with whatever character she is playing (and she also sings in this with Seema Bhargava), or Bisha Chaturvedi the daughter whose expressions have been shot so well you will love that particular scene when she's looking at her father, that brave man who just rolled some magic into the wind because all he wants is to celebrate the birthday.

I struggled a little with the overzealous performance and slightly pretentious writing of the Iraqi character played by Khaled Masso as well as the mercuric characteristics of the two American soldiers who enter the screen sometime in the second act but when I look at the underlying message and the idea that has been used to convey that, I cannot stop singing praises of Chintu Ka Birthday, a film that is as sweet as the marvelous vertically scrolling animation snippet that takes you into itself at the beginning softly narrated by Vedant Chibber the innocent-looking young boy who plays Chintu. TN.


Negative Reviews:
Chintu Ka Birthday is a heartwarming little movie that requests you not to shed your last ounce of optimism during trying times. It's an international collaboration starring Vinay Pathak, Tilottama Shome, Seema Bhargava, Nate Scholz, Reginald L. Barnes, and a few others. Written and directed by Devanshu Kumar and Satyanshu Singh, the story revolves around an Indian family living in 2004 Iraq and how they're prepping to celebrate the birthday of six-year-old Chintu, the youngest member.

While it begins as a feel-good film with all elements in place, including cute Chintu (Vedant Chibber, who never goes overboard), his sweet sister Lakshmi, their loving parents Sudha and Madan along with Nani, the story takes a turn when their Iraqi landlord Mahdi pays a visit during the occasion, followed by Chintu's Iraqi friend Waheed. You even get a little comic-book-styled backstory of Madan's family and how they ended up in Iraq. Some laughs ensue, courtesy Waheed and his great comedic timing.

However, things get serious when two American soldiers knock on the family's doors. I appreciate the filmmakers for not toning down the language or the extremities at play in the later acts. Yes, there's a certain suspension of disbelief since nearly everything takes place within the confines of the house, but the warm performances of the ensemble carry it all the way through. While I'm quite sure that a lot of viewers may perceive the optimism displayed by Madan (Pathak) as a little excessive, it works given the circumstances that we find him in. Everyone in the movie's got a conscience.

This is a film with its heart entirely in the right place, and it was indeed touching to see the Tiwaris not giving up on wanting to celebrate Chintu's birthday, no matter what. You get a scene where the family goes through a harsh interrogation, but their bigger concern is how Chintu's birthday cake gets burnt. Several moments like these light up the film. And our hearts!

Awards:
Caleidoscope Indian Film Festival 2019

Winner Jury Award	Best Film Devanshu Kumar (director) Satyanshu Singh (director) One Two Flip Entertainment (production company)
	Best Negative Role Nate Scholz (actor)
	Technical Excellence Devanshu Kumar (director) Satyanshu Singh (director)

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Vinay Pathak was born on July 12, 1968 in Bhojpur District, Bihar, India. He is an actor and writer, known for Bheja Fry (2007), Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (2008) and My Name Is Khan (2010).

• Project Kahuta (pre-production)as Rafiq Alam
• Dilphire (post-production)as Inspector PremChand Tripathi
• Don Bhaisahab (post-production)
• The Date (Short) (post-production)as Cab Driver
• Three Dots and a Dash (completed)as Akbar Khan

Screen actress Tillotama Shome is best known for her acclaimed portrayal of Alice in Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding. She played a pivotal role as Deepa in director Florian Gallenberger's epic Shadows of Time (Schatten der Zeit) and appeared as Lara in Meneka Das's Little Box of Sweets; Jaya in Afia Nathaniel's short film Long After; and Miraal in Tanuj Chopra's ****erfly.

When previously based in New York, in addition to her on-screen acting accomplishments, Tillotama Shome worked as a teaching artist at Creative Arts Team/City University of New York. CUNY/CAT uses theatre as a medium to promote social, emotional and intellectual growth in communities throughout New York City to explore a wide range of issues including peer pressure, violence, ***uality, substance abuse, parenting, and HIV/AIDS prevention. Her work in particular also involved working with prison inmates at Rikers Island and women in domestic shelters. Tillotama Shome has bachelors and masters degrees in English literature from India and a second masters from New York University in Educational Theatre.

• Angrezi Medium as A1 Consultancy 2020
• Mentalhood (TV Series)

Seema Bhargava is an actress and director, known for Bareilly Ki Barfi (2017), Shubh Mangal Savdhan (2017) and Wazir (2016).



Nathan (Nate) Andrew Scholz was born in Vancouver, Washington. His mother, Carrol Scholz, trains horses and runs an animal communication business. His father, Rein Scholz, is a commercial airline pilot. He has an older brother, Matthew, older sister, Rachelle, and a younger brother, Nick.

Nate comes from a business and marketing background. He attended Washington State University. During his senior year, he competed in the National Collegiate Sales Competition (NCSC) - a 2-day elimination-style tournament where the top 88 marketing students from 44 universities square off. When the competition was over, Nate was named the "2007 NCSC Overall Champion". A few months later, he graduated top of his class, Summa Cum Laude, and was poised to take off into a lucrative marketing career.

His victory at the NCSC yielded numerous job offers from the tournament's 30 corporate sponsors. Nate picked a company and relocated to Los Angeles just 2 weeks after graduating. Within a few months he broke multiple company records, and even became the face of their national recruiting effort. Despite all this success, Nate felt unfulfilled; by the end of the first year, he found himself lost and searching for a greater purpose. It was around that time a close friend introduced him to famous writer, Leslie Dixon. She needed a new assistant and he needed a new direction. They decided to meet and discuss the prospect of working together. During the meeting, Leslie noticed something special in Nate. She convinced him that he was meant to be on camera and should pursue a career in acting. At that moment, his life changed forever. He had finally found the purpose he was looking for. Without hesitation Nate left a successful career in marketing to become an actor at the age of 24.

He recalls: "No decision had ever felt so right. When I saw Star Wars for the first time as kid, all I wanted to do was be an actor and create new worlds to live in. But, I grew up in a small town. I never thought it was possible; so, I pursued other interests. Plus, I played a lot of sports back then, and probably would have kicked my own ass if I said I wanted to do theatre."

Nate continues to apply the same work ethic, drive, and tenacity that made him successful in business to his acting career. To date he has acted in nearly 50 commercials, 30 films (short & feature length), 15 television shows, and numerous other internet and new media projects. In addition to his acting Nate is co-creating a new science fiction series.

• Agenda X (TV Movie) (completed) as Detective Steve Bradley
• Bedlam (TV Movie) (completed) as Steven Fife
• Chintu Ka Birthday

Reginald L. Barnes was born on September 28, 1980 in Omaha, Nebraska, USA as Reginald Leon Barnes. He is known for his work on Blue Bloods (2010), Chintu Ka Birthday (2019) and Wu-Tang: An American Saga (2019).

• Russian Room (post-production) as Tariq
• West Side Story (post-production) as Detective #2 (uncredited)
• Who Will Cry for the Sociopath (Short) (completed) as Correction Officer

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ZEE5, the largest creator of original content in India, announces its next Original film ‘Chintu Ka Birthday’, providing the audience with an unparalleled cinematic experience at home.



After augmentative popularity and making headlines with the last three direct-to-digital releases with ‘Bamfaad’, ‘Ghoomketu’ and ‘Ateet’, ZEE5, the largest creator of original content in India, announces its next Original film ‘Chintu Ka Birthday’, providing the audience with an unparalleled cinematic experience at home with new back-to-back releases and keeping the entertainment quotient high.

This family drama revolves around a 6-year-old named Chintu, stuck in Iraq with his family in the times of Saddam’s fall. A simple, innocent aspiration to celebrate a child’s birthday is beautifully compared to worldly problems in this unique narrative of an endearing middle-class family tackling the extraordinary situation of the war. Will the world come together to cut the cake or rob Chintu his moment of joy? ‘Chintu Ka Birthday’ is a complete family entertainer with several thrilling moments interspersed between humor, fun, and joy, in a heartwarming drama.

The film was screened in 18 cities during the Jagran Film Festival in 2019, and met with overwhelming response everywhere, eventually winning the Best Film (Viewer’s Choice Award).

Actors from India, the US, and the Middle-East play key roles in the film. It is backed by a brilliant and acclaimed crew: DOP Siddharth Diwan (‘Queen’, ‘Trapped’), Editor Charu Shree Roy (‘Chhichhore’, ‘Sui-Dhaaga’), Sound Designer Bishwadeep Chatterjee (‘3 Idiots’, ‘Bajirao Mastani’, ‘Madras Cafe’), Production Designer Sukant Panigrahy (‘Dev D’, ‘Drishyam’), and Background Music Naran-Benedict (‘Newton’, ‘Udta Punjab’).

Vinay Pathak portraying the role of Chintu's father says, “Chintu Ka Birthday’ is the most important film of my career, as well as my association with the new immensely talented director duo Satyanshu and Devanshu Singh. They’ve written an amazingly crafty and sensitive film with gentle humor and huge hearts. It’s surprising to learn that it’s their first full length feature film. ZEE5’s decision to release it on their platform is visionary and praiseworthy. It’s a film any platform would be proud to have in their kitty.

Once you’ve watched it, you’d know how true and worth every praise is for the film. It’s an ensemble film, about a family, about being a family in dire circumstances, even if it means being stuck in a place for an indefinite time. I take immense pride and great pleasure to invite you all to attend ‘Chintu ka Birthday’ on the 5th of June, on ZEE5, a humane celebration of life you’d savior forever.”

Aparna Acharekar, Programming head, ZEE5 India shares, "This film is special and we are proud to be associated with it. The storyline is brilliant, packed with impactful performances. This film is about hope and everyone will definitely relate to it. Since the lockdown, we have been consistently providing fresh content to consumers across genres and languages and Chintu Ka Birthday is our latest offering. Join us for Chintu’s birthday on 5th June.”

Directed by National Award-winning filmmakers Satyanshu & Devanshu Singh and produced by First Draft Ent., this film will be exclusively released on ZEE5 on 5 th June.

“We have grown up watching how our parents put our needs above theirs, sacrificing for us in ways big and small,” Devanshu recalls. “The grandparents narrating stories to their grandchildren, the love of the elder sibling for the younger one, how a neighbour is also a part of the family.” “The film for us is a beautiful confluence of two realities – the family life we have lived back home in Bihar and the influence of world cinema,”

Satyanshu says. “We were also deeply inspired by Sooraj Barjatyawhen we were growing up. He showed the commonplace details of weddings. We did that with a birthday. Singing an impromptu song, blowing balloons, fighting and cajoling among loved ones – this is all Sooraj ji.” Tillotama Shome, essaying the character of Chintu's mother says, “As Chintu's mother, I invite you, to Chintu ka Birthday. A film about a birthday in the midst of a lockdown. A film about a family that manages to choose hope amidst chaos. Zaroor aaiyega, humaare saath birthday manaane.”

Chintu Ka Birthday premieres 5 th June, exclusively on ZEE5

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Chintu Ka Birthday is a heart-touching film that is sure to enlighten you and gives out a message of cherishing what you have. In the perfect weather, famous names from the industry and members of the media fraternity came together to watch the film. Here’s what they have to say:



Chintu Ka Birthday is a heart-touching film that is sure to enlighten you and gives out a message of cherishing what you have. The film had its screening at Jagran Film Festival in Mumbai. In the perfect weather, famous names from the industry and members of the media fraternity came together to watch the film. Here’s what they have to say:

Actor Ishaan Khatter who got the opportunity to watch the film before it was ready to be released shared, “I actually had the privilege to watch this film much before a lot of people did and I'm so glad I did. Isn't it amazing? It's brilliant"

Abish Mathew, a famous comedian said, "This movie has blown my mind. But I'm also sorry jealous that I know them, they're friends and colleagues and now I'm a fan. That's how good the movie is"

• Kunal Kamra expressed, "Go and watch the film it was superb. I enjoyed a lot, amazing performances"
• Rahul Subramanian added, "I think one of the most heart robbing movies I've seen in recent times"
• Ranveer Allahbadia with sheer excitement said, "Like anything that comes out of the AIB production house has a lot of heart"
• Srishti Dixit loved Chintu a lot and said, "Chitu is very cute, I don't know how to adopt him but I want to adopt him"
• Rithvik Dhanjani with a warm heart said, "All our voices put together. This film has to reach out as many people as possible. This touches your heart in a way that you cannot imagine"
• Anand Tiwari concluded by expressing, "I think it's one of the most fantastic films we have made as an industry"

With such positive reactions and warm messages, one is sure to enjoy this film to their fullest. The film has been receiving rave reviews from those who have watched it. Everyone should have this film in their watch list as it's sure to connect with you.

The story revolves around a small boy named Chintu who is all excited to celebrate his 6th birthday with his family and is all excited to call his friends over. But what happens next will shock you. How will the movie end? Will Chintu be able to celebrate his birthday or his wish would stay incomplete, robbing him off his joyous day?

The film is directed by National Award-winning filmmakers Satyanshu & Devanshu Singh. Produced by First Draft Ent, Tulsea and Cinemese Twins. The film has a promising star cast of Vedant Raj Chibber as Chintu, Vinay Pathak as Chintu's father, Tillotama Shome as Chintu's Mother, Bisha Chaturvedi as Laxmi (Chintu's Sister), Seema Pahwa as Chintu's grandmother, Khalid Massou and Mir Mehroos.

Join Chintu on his unconventional journey, as ‘Chintu Ka Birthday’ premieres on 5th June 2020, exclusively on ZEE5!

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ZEE5 is all set for the release of it's upcoming web film, 'Chintu ka Birthday' which premieres on 5th June 2020. We at India Forums got in touch with the Director Duo Satyanshu & Devanshu Singh where they spoke to us about their experience, casting, writing the script, challenges faced and much more.



ZEE5 is all set for the release of it's upcoming web film, 'Chintu ka Birthday' which premieres on 5th June 2020. The film is directed and written by National Award-winning filmmakers Satyanshu & Devanshu Singh. Produced by First Draft Ent, Tulsea and Cinemese Twins. The film has a promising star cast of Vedant Raj Chibber, Vinay Pathak, Tillotama Shome, Bisha Chaturvedi and Seema Pahwa amongst others.

We at India Forums got in touch with the Director Duo Satyanshu & Devanshu Singh where they spoke to us about their experience, casting, writing the script, challenges faced and much more.

Even though the film depicts the lives of a family in a war torn country, it still manages to maintain it's innocence. Was it challenging to keep that essence of innocence while shooting the film?
I don't think that it was difficult to maintain the innocence because we were surrounded by such brilliant cast like Vinay Pathak, Seema Pahwa ji and Tillotama. There are also these other actors from US and other places and we prepared so much with them that this experience of shooting with the Actors was incredible and if you have such amazingly cute kids on your set, half of the time you're laughing and having a good time with them. So I would say, working with the Actors was a very good experience, I think writing a thing like this on paper was a more difficult act.
Writing a film like this is very tough, once you've written it well then it becomes easy. Execution will never be as tough as writing.

What was the thought behind writing the script and how did you come up with the concept?
We come from Bihar and we love world cinema and that is how it began. We wondered if we could place a Bihari family in a sense, a middle class, normal people from Bihar in a situation that is of international relevance where we can have people from different races and speaking different languages. So I believe it is our childhood meets world cinema, that is what the film is.


How was the entire experience shooting with the cast? Because on one side you're shooting with a Veteran Actor, Vinay Pathak and on the other side, there is Chintu, Vedant. So how was that like?
For us, casting is sacred. After writing and rewriting a script, casting becomes our priority. We made sure that we chose the right side actors for the film, obviously Vinay Pathak, Seema Pahwa and Tillotama, their talent and their experience can't be debated, they are just brilliant at what they do. What they bring on set apart from being such talented and experienced Actors is that they bring in a lot of love. They made sure that the kids have a good time.They would crack jokes, they would sing songs together, they would make sure that the kids are with them and that they feel at home.

Fortunately, when we cast kids, we also look at the family and the background that the kids come from. We look at making a nice bond with the family of the child actor as well. So all of us were like a family, the parents of the kids would talk to our actors, everybody was having a good time. We made sure that when the kids came to Bombay to shoot, Vinay and Tillotama meet them and have an equation with them and it went on and the film became a party eventually but the kids were comfortable not only by the crew but also by the cast. Afterall, our way of directing Actors is very simple, they read the script and all we request from them is to bring the truth alive on the screen.

What was the most challenging part about shooting this web film?
I think the most challenging part is that we are first time filmmakers so, half of the time we didn't know what was going on. I mean we knew but we are surrounded by incredible cast and crew and we have a great script on our hand, everything was fine but how good or bad we are as filmmakers that was the biggest challenge. I'm pretty sure nothing was bigger than that.

Making the film the right way, the way it should have been made, that was the challenge. There was no other challenge as such, I believe. It was one of those films where you are inside the set and all the actors and cast and crew are reaching there and shooting in a certain order everyday. So, I mean we had a great time shooting.

The film also portrays a very strong & beautiful bond between a father and a son, where he is ready to give up everything for the happiness of his son, what's your take on that?
This is what we've seen in life. A good family is where people think for each other, they care for each other, and we have seen this around us and this is the reality. It doesn't get more real than this. The parents are always there for the kids and it shows. It shows in real life, it shows in films and that's how it came along.