Corporate Dvd

Corporate is an Indian Hindi business drama film released in July 2006. The film directed by Madhur Bhandarkar stars Bipasha Basu, Kay Kay Menon, Payal Rohatgi, Minissha Lamba and Raj Babbar. The movie revolves around the power game between two powerful industrialists. And based on the Pesticides issue in India on 2003 when Delhi non-profit Centre for Science and Environment published a disputed report finding pesticide levels in Coke and Pepsi soft drinks sold in India at levels 30 times that considered safe by the European Economic Commission. The movie received universal critical acclaim. It grossed 163.8 million at box office, well above its 40 million budget.

The Creatives and Post Production were done by Ajeet Ghorpade.

Plot

Corporate centers around the power games between two industrialists, The Sehgal Group of Industries (SGI) owned by Vinay Sehgal (Rajat Kapoor) and the Marwah Group of Industries (MGI) owned by Dharmesh Marwah (Raj Babbar). The two companies are traditional rivals in the food & beverages products business. Bipasha Basu plays Nishigandha Dasgupta aka Nishi, vice president of SGI, while Vinay Sehgal’s brother-in-law Ritesh (Kay Kay Menon) joins in later as senior vice president.

Ashwini, a politician backed by Sehgal, become the Union Finance Minister, which helps the Sehgal Group to enter a lucrative partnership with international food products giants Friscon.

In a CII meeting, the state Finance Minister Gulabrao declares that a public sector unit (PSU) is for sale. Both the companies pounce into the competition using every tactic they have to outperform each other. But last-minute politicking by Marwah with Gulabrao leads to the PSU going to the Marwah Group, leaving Sehgal disappointed.

However, Nishi charms Marwah Group’s CEO Pervez, and is then able to steal critical information from his laptop computer: she finds out that Marwah had been misleading the media that they were planning to manufacture mineral water in the plant, whereas in reality they were planning to manufacture a mint-based soft drink. The Sehgal Group publicly announces that they will be launching their own mint-based soft drink, which they’ve named “Just Chill”, pre-empting the Marwah Group’s planned launch. Marwah traces the leak to Pervez and fires him.

Ten days before the launch of the drink, Sehgal learns that the FDA has found the presence of a large amount of pesticides in the drink. But Sehgal, cold-heartedly, decides to launch the product by bribing the FDA agents. However, CEO Naveen resigns from the SGI. The drink is a great success. However, another of SGI’s executive is unhappy that Ritesh is being made the CEO, and he gives Marwah the information that SGI’s product contains pesticides. Marwah along with Gulabrao blow up the issue in the media, leading to a raid on the SGI plants and a case on the Sehgals. Sehgal decides that the only solution is for an employee of SGI who is not a member of the Sehgal family to take the blame for the blunder. Nishi is chosen for that role.

Ritesh is called on by his sister Chayya Sehgal, where she asks him to convince Nishi to sacrifice for the company. Initially disagreeing, Ritesh agrees to convince Nishi on the insistence of Sehgal as he promises that Nishi would be released by the Enquiry Commission soon. A foreign investor holding major stake in Friscon, urges Ashwini to settle the dispute between the two as this would lead to capital flight and foreign investors will pull back their investments, causing serious havoc in the business market. Ashwini discusses the issue with Gulabrao and both the ministers mediates between Marwah and Sehgal to settle down the issue. Marwah agrees to withdraw all the allegations suited through NGO’s and drawing their limitations in Friscon company. However, Gulabrao refuses to release Nishi as it would dent his chances of chief minister-ship as elections roars near.

Meanwhile, Ritesh comes to know that Nishi is pregnant with his baby. Ritesh, angry about it, threatens to expose Sehgal in front of the media if Nishi is not released within 48 hours. The next day he is found dead, having fallen from the terrace of his apartment building. It is assumed to be suicide but some think otherwise. The movie ends the narrator of the story concluding that Marwah and Sehgal are living happily in their world, whereas there is no place of emotions in corporate world as Nishi is the victim of the corporate tactics. The movie shows Nishi still fighting the case after two years of the incident with her child.

Cast

Bipasha Basu as Nishigandha Dasgupta
Kay Kay Menon as Ritesh Sahani
Rajat Kapoor as Vinay Sehgal
Raj Babbar as Dharmesh Marwah
Minissha Lamba as Megha Apte
Sameer Dattani as Anmol Rawat
Harsh Chhaya as Naveen Shroff
Bharat Dabholkar as Joe Rajan
Sandeep Mehta as Parvez Merchant
Achint Kaur as Vinay Sehgal’s wife
Lilette Dubey as Devyani bakshi
Ashok Pandit as Ashok Pandit (journalist)
Manoj Joshi as Monty (movie director)
Shweta Menon as Archana
Anil Nagrath as Ballu
Amar Talwar as Anand Ruia
Vinay Apte as Gulabrao
Mukesh Tyagi
Viju Khote as Megha’s father
Navni Parihar as Dharmesh’s wife
Dolly Thakore
Suhas Avchat
Brinda Parekh
Hamsa Nandini
Sunayana Fauzdar
Bikramjeet Kanwarpal
Girish Oak as Ashwini Dayal
Shweta Menon as Archana
Manohar Kanungo in a Special Appearance
Kailash Kher as Special Appearance in song, “O Sikander”
Javed Akhtar as Himself
Pralhad Kakkar in a Special Appearance
Vasundhara Das as Herself
Payal Rohatgi as Item number
Atul Kulkarni as Narrator