Jithin K
Even though I grew up with Bollywood movies of the same ilk, the romantic dramas of the 90s and early 2000s starring SRK, I somehow managed not to watch this one for so long and finally got the chance to watch it in a theatre. Even though I've heard and loved most of the songs in it, I really didn't know how iconic this movie was. After watching this, a great portion of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai feels like a parody of more heartfelt scenes from this movie. Watching all the songs on the big screen was such a satisfying experience. The three-hour runtime didn't feel stretched at all because of the heart I felt in this movie. Surely there's no point in over-analyzing anything in this movie like most of those from that time because if you dig more than what is on the surface level, it will always be more about confirming societal norms even if the surface may look like it's against it. But that's why I used to love this kind of movie as a kid because it showed a hopeful prosperous world within the cultural confines. Even if it doesn't really have anything to do with reality, it paints a happier world existing amidst rules that are meant to make people unhappy. This type of film may have also made my own expectations of the world totally unrealistic but that may be why I'm in total love with watching something like that again for the first time.
One of the biggest takeaways for me was the fact that a lot of things from dialogues to concepts that I thought were popularized by Kuch Kuch Hota Hai were originally done by this film. And I was expecting to be mesmerized by Madhuri but it was Karishma who blew me away with her acting. Right now, this has to be my favourite among this specific type of Bollywood romance from that era.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/20/24
Full Review
yash b
Music is a big part of many Bollywood movies, but there are only a few I would truly consider to be musicals. "Dil to Pagal Hai" is one of those movies in which the strongest aspect are the songs. The first half of the movie is essentially a showcase for songs and is very entertaining. The movie evolves into a drawn out second half that is far less entertaining but still has fun moments. I think there is a great 2 hour movie trapped in a still good 3 hour one. The movie is also very cheesy and has many scenes that made my eyes roll but I also wasn't surprised to see that in a 90s Bollywood romance movie. Overall, the movie could have been terrible but because of a first rate soundtrack, it is a manageable way to spend three hours.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
abhishek s
A classic with values not seen anymore.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
03/30/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Yash Chopra's 1997 film Dil to Pagal Hai tells a story of mixed emotions and the complicated struggle between friends and lovers in a dance theater troupe. Shah Rukh Kahn stars as Rahul, the group's confident, if slightly self-absorbed director who laughs at the idea of true love, much to the dismay of Nisha (Karisma Kapoor), his top dancer and long time best friend who has some not-so-secret feelings for him. But after Nisha sustains an injury, Rahul must search for the perfect replacement to play the part of "Maya," the elusive main character he has dreamed up for his next big performance. Enter Pooja (Madhuri Dixit), who, after a few typical Bollywood-style chance encounters, Rahul realizes is the key to his grand artistic vision. While Nisha painfully competes for affection and the return to the spotlight, Rahul and Pooja begin to fall for each other - but with Pooja engaged to her own childhood best friend, we wonder if Rahul will learn to believe in the power of true love in time to act on their feelings.
The film was a smash hit just over 20 years ago when it was first released, netting a record-breaking £1 million according to Anupama Chopra, and capitalized on Shah Rukh's irresistibly cool image. And though the costumes and aesthetics are excellent, it doesn't quite stand the test of time like the iconic Yash Chopra masterpiece Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, which established Shah Rukh Kahn as Bollywood's golden boy. Shah Rukh is especially effective and convincing as a romantic hero in DDLJ, but it's a bit harder to believe in this film due to Rahul's immature attitude towards serious relationships. This fun and freewheeling love story certainly has its moments, a favorite of mine being the joint dance number with Nisha and Pooja pouring all of their unspoken tension and emotions into the performance. Where this film falls short, however, is in the emotional payoff; the moral universe has been disrupted and almost righted so many times throughout the film that by the end, it's hard to feel anything besides relief from the emotional whiplash of the previous 3 hours.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/16/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Yash Chopras's 1997 film Dil to Pagal Hai, follows Rahul (Shah Rukh Kahn), the director of a dance team, as he sets out to produce his next show that will star the yet-to-be-identified "Maya." On one hand, we think that Rahul's best friend and top female dancer in the group (who also happens to be desperately in love with Rahul) Nisha, played by Karisma Kapoor, will be tapped to play Maya. Instead, a beautiful stranger named Pooja (Madhuri Dixit) repeatedly encounters Rahul and in a classic twist of Bollywood fate, Rahul and Pooja's repeated random encounters eventually lead to the revelation that Pooja is an incredible dancer-and since Nisha has tragically injured her foot-Rahul casts Pooja as the inimitable Maya. While I enjoyed the classic fated nature of Rahul and Pooja's relationship, over the course of the film, I was continually left disappointed when the couple came to fruition. In this movie, our beloved Shah Rukh Kahn is not nearly as lovable and compelling of a hero and lover as we are used to from many of his other late 90s/early 2000s films such as DDLJ or K3G.
Anupama Chopra describes in her article "Shah Rukh Kahn: A Global Icon" our star as the one "who, in perfect proportions, blended Indian and Western cultures" in a way that made Ruhk Kahn cool and impressionable to viewers. But in this film, Shah Rukh Kahn does not achieve the same level of admirability, which I think has to do with his general disposition and demeanor as the head of his dance troupe. The best part of Dil to Pagal Hai are the sets, which mostly compromise of incredible lavish bedrooms for the young adults that are amazingly decked out in 90s style. I wanted so much to love the dance scenes-considering this is a movie all about dance-but I found that even the big group dance scenes in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham were more entertaining because they were spontaneous and grand while in this movie the dances were exactly as we would expect them to be. Sadly, the worst part of this movie for me was having to convince myself that the moral universe would be upheld through the lackluster and unconvincing chemistry of Pooja and Rahul. However, all the characters are not a lost cause: thankfully, Nisha proves to be the true hero of the movie as someone we can love and depend on to bring the moral universe together.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/03/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Dil To Pagal Hai is a love story amongst dancers in the same dance troupe. Nisha (Karisma Kapoor) is clearly in love with her best friend, Rahul (Shah Rukh Khan). However, after an injury, Rahul needs to find a dancer to replace Nisha in their upcoming performance called "Maya." After multiple coincidences, Rahul finds Pooja (Madhuri Dixit) to dance the part. Throughout the film, Rahul and Pooja fall in love but neither does anything about it until it's almost too late.
Dil To Pagal Hai and the film Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham both involved a female character who gave up her love for a man she believed would never love her back (respectively Nisha and Naina). The supportive friend is a common female character throughout many Bollywood films but in these instances, they go above and beyond. However, in Dil To Pagal Hai, Nisha becomes much more of an asset to Rahul's ultimate happiness than Naina, who pretty much left after she realized that Rahul (in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham) would never be completely happy with her. I absolutely loved the costumes throughout the film. Anupama Chopra even discusses Karan Johar's love of fashion but how Dil To Pagal Hai was just one film too early to really see Karan Johar turning it up a notch, especially with Shah Rukh Khan's costumes.
Even though the dancing in the rain with local children felt very out of place, I really loved that dance number. I found it very entertaining and exciting. However, my favorite dance number was the dance off between Pooja and Nisha. There was so much tension and the stakes were also extremely high for multiple reasons: Nisha believed that this could change Rahul's mind romantically, Nisha believed that this could change Rahul's mind in who he was casting as Maya, or Nisha could further injure herself. Overall, an entertaining film that kept me yelling at my T.V.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/22/23
Full Review
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