Kyaa Kool Hai Hum (क्या कूल हैं हम)
Kyaa Kool Hai Hum (क्या कूल हैं हम) is a 2005 Hindi-language adult comedy film directed by Sangeeth Sivan and produced by Ekta Kapoor and Shobha Kapoor under the Balaji Motion Pictures banner, starring Tusshar Kapoor, Riteish Deshmukh, Isha Koppikar, and Neha Dhupia1. Released on 6 May 2005, it was panned by most critics but became one of the top ten Hindi films of that year, and it is credited with helping establish the adult comedy genre in Hindi cinema2. It spawned two sequels, Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum (2012) and Kyaa Kool Hai Hum 3 (2016)3.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 6 May 2005; runtime 172 minutes; genre comedy; Hindi language1 |
| Production | Balaji Motion Pictures; producers Ekta Kapoor and Shobha Kapoor; director Sangeeth Sivan1 |
| Writers and music | Story, screenplay, and dialogue by Sachin Yardi and Pankaj Trivedi; music by Anu Malik; lyrics by Sameer1 |
| Lead cast | Tusshar Kapoor (Rahul), Riteish Deshmukh (Karan), Isha Koppikar (Inspector Urmila Martodkar), Neha Dhupia (Rekha)1 |
| Box office | Budget ₹50 million (₹5 crore); India nett ₹153.4 million (₹15.34 crore); India gross ₹219.8 million (₹21.98 crore); worldwide gross ₹228.5 million (₹22.85 crore); verdict Hit4 |
| Certification | Adults-only (A) certificate in India5 |
| Audience score | 6.1/10 on IMDb from about 4,200 votes6 |
| Sequels | Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum (2012) and Kyaa Kool Hai Hum 3 (2016)3 |
Spoilers
Plot and cast
The story follows two flatmates in Mumbai, Karan (Riteish Deshmukh) and Rahul (Tusshar Kapoor), who are unable to pay the rent and are dramatically evicted, only to sneak back into their building within hours while it is being renovated5. IMDb summarizes the pair as fashion designers who survive on food from other people's functions until twists and confusion change their lives6. Isha Koppikar plays Inspector Urmila Martodkar and Neha Dhupia plays Rekha; the supporting cast includes Anupam Kher as Dr. Screwala, Shoma Anand as Parvati Screwala, Raj Zutshi as D.K. Bose, and Rajpal Yadav1.
A subplot drew later scholarly attention: Kiran, a gender non-normative, queer-identifying character played by Bobby Darling, eventually unites with her boyfriend D.K. toward the end of the film, making her story a significant thread alongside the main heterosexual plotlines9.
Genre significance and sequels
The film's commercial success helped open Hindi cinema to the adult comedy. A Times of India retrospective on 2005 described that year as bringing India's first attempts at "the American Pie brand of cinema: sex comedies," noting that Ekta Kapoor "decided to shed her saas-bahu soapiness" for the film, and that it "clicked and opened the floodgates for similar box-office busters like No Entry, Garam Masala, Shaadi No 1"13.
Balaji's own annual report describes Kyaa Kool Hai Hum and its 2012 sequel as "trendsetters at the box office"3. Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum, directed by Sachin Yardi, reunited Tusshar Kapoor and Riteish Deshmukh after seven years and released with an A certificate on 27 July 201214. A third installment, Kyaa Kool Hai Hum 3, directed by Umesh Ghadge, followed in January 20163.
Production background
The film marked a turning point for its producers. Ekta Kapoor had built a dominant position in Indian television with her soap operas, but her first three feature films, Kyun Kii... Main Jhuth Nahin Bolta, Kucch To Hai, and Krishna Cottage, all failed at the ticket window7. A doctoral study of Balaji Telefilms notes that these early failures taught the company that success in television did not translate automatically to cinema, prompting a rethink of its film strategy2.
Director Sangeeth Sivan described the film's positioning plainly: "We have been saying from the beginning that Kya Kool is a sex comedy. No one has done this before. We were trying something new." He said the team was sure of its target audience between the ages of 18 and 35 and aimed the film at multiplexes8.
Box office
The film opened strongly and kept going. Box Office India records a first day of ₹92,00,000, a first weekend of ₹3,21,00,000, and a first week of ₹53,200,000 against a budget of ₹5,00,00,000, with a final India nett gross of ₹15,34,00,000, an India gross of ₹21,98,00,000, and a worldwide gross of ₹228,500,000 from about 4,467,000 footfalls; the site's verdict is Hit4. The overseas gross was $200,0004.
Bollywood Hungama reported within a week of release that the business was upbeat and that the mother-and-daughter producing team had reason to be pleased, while conceding the film was "no path-breaking cinema" but entertained thoroughly7. The IIT Indore study puts the earnings at ₹215 million (₹21.5 crore; roughly US$2.6 million) and lists the film among the top ten of 20052. In a later retrospective of the sex-comedy genre, Bollywood Hungama classified the film as a Super-Hit, noting that it "combined brazen sexual humour within its naughty theme and stood tall among the biggest hits of that year despite being certified for adults only"10.
Critical reception
Most critics rejected the film. Rediff reported that it was "panned by most critics" even as it became a hit8. Raja Sen's Rediff review, titled "Kya Lukewarm Hai Hum," called the film "expectedly juvenile, puerile, over-the-top, loaded with entendres so singular in meaning it's a shame to call them double," and noted it had been promoted as "a Masti kind of movie"11. Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama was more favorable, rating it 3/5 and calling it "a refreshing, fun-filled entertainer targeted at the youth mainly," a rib-tickling comedy on the lines of Masti and American Pie12.
The gap between reviews and receipts became part of the film's story. The IIT Indore study concludes that the film demonstrated Balaji Telefilms was capable of making work audiences wanted to watch even when critics did not agree2.
Availability
The film carries an A (adults) rating in India and currently streams there on Amazon Prime Video, Hungama Play, and JioHotstar (the latter two also free with ads)5.
References
- Kyaa Kool Hai Hum cast and crew, Box Office India
- Mahima Singh, doctoral thesis on Balaji Telefilms, IIT Indore
- Balaji Telefilms Limited Annual Report 2015-16, Management Discussion & Analysis
- Kyaa Kool Hai Hum box office, Box Office India
- Kyaa Kool Hai Hum streaming, JustWatch India
- Kyaa Kool Hai Hum (2005), IMDb
- Kya Kool Hai Business!, Bollywood Hungama, 12 May 2005
- Why Kya Kool is a hit!, Rediff.com, 18 May 2005
- Hussain 101, University of Strathclyde thesis
- The rise and fall of sex comedies, Bollywood Hungama
- Kya Lukewarm Hai Hum, Rediff.com review, 6 May 2005
- Kyaa Kool Hai Hum review by Taran Adarsh, Bollywood Hungama
- Kya Kool Hain Hum, The Times of India editorial, 2 January 2006
- Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum: A sex comedy, India Today, 27 July 2012
Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Indian films (individual works) › Hindi films of the 2000s › Comedy films
Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026
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