Mohabbatein

Mohabbatein (translation: Love Stories), is a 2000 Indian romantic musical film directed by Aditya Chopra. It was Chopra's second directorial venture after Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and was filmed at India and England. The film stars Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan in pivotal roles, along with six young debutantes. Aishwarya Rai appeared in flashbacks as Khan's lover. The film's soundtrack was composed by Jatin-Lalit, while the lyrics were penned by Anand Bakshi. Mohabbatein is most notable for being the first time that Bachchan and Khan appeared on-screen together.

The film went on to do well both critically and commercially. It became the second highest grossing film of the year and was thus declared a superhit. It also won several awards including the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor and the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor, given to Khan and Bachchan respectively.

Gurukul is a university run by the strict and diciplined Narayan Shankar (Amitabh Bachchan). Narayan who wants the best out of his students places an emphasis on honour, tradition and discipline. He has run the university for 25 years and forbids any kind of romance — anybody he catches falling in love will be expelled. The focus is on three boys: Sameer (Jugal Hansraj), Vicky (Uday Chopra) and Karan (Jimmy Shergill) who are all in love with three women. Sameer is in love with his childhood friend Sanjana (Kim Sharma). Vicky falls for a girl from the university next door named Ishika (Shamita Shetty). Karan becomes smitten by a girl he sees at the train station named Kiran (Preeti Jhangiani). However, they all know that if they are caught, they will be expelled and so decide not to try and confess their love for their interests.

Raj Aryan (Shah Rukh Khan) joins Gurukul as a music teacher. He is a strong believer of love — when he learns the three boys are in love, he encourages them to follow their hearts. He also slowly starts introducing changes to Gurukul much to the disgust of Narayan, who does not like changes. The boys soon end up disappointed when trying to get their love interests. Sameer learns Sanjana has a boyfriend. Vicky only makes Ishika dislike him when trying to woo her. Karan learns that Kiran is married to a pilot who is assumed dead. Raj tells the boys not to be disappointed. He believes they are lucky because Raj's love Megha (Aishwarya Rai) is dead. He says he continues to love her in the same way and believes the boys should also do the same. Raj often imagines that Megha is by his side.

Soon, Raj throws a party in Gurukul and invites the girls' school from next door — part of his plan to spread love throughout Gurukul. Narayan Shankar is furious and decides to sack Raj immediately. Raj reveals that he is Raj Aryan Malhotra. Raj was a student at Gurukul years ago and was expelled because he loved Megha, who was Narayan's only daughter. When Raj was expelled, Megha committed suicide. Raj believed that this incident would make Narayan change for the better; it only made him more stubborn. Raj promises that, before he leaves Gurukul, he will fill it with so much love that even Narayan himself will not be able to remove it. A battle now begins between love (Raj) and fear (Narayan). Narayan decides that he will keep Raj at Gurukal as a challenge.

Sameer, Vicky, and Karan soon win over the girls they love — Raj is winning the battle for the moment. Narayan does not give up so easily; when he sees the rules of Gurukul are being broken, he tightens them. The three boys continue to break the rules, which encourages the other students to do the same. Narayan decides to expel the three. Raj tries to reason with Narayan — he tells him that what the three boys did was caused by him so they should not be expelled for it. Raj also says that he feels Narayan lost the battle, because his daughter left him and now Raj (who considered Narayan an elder) is leaving him. Raj's words make Narayan realise his mistake. He publicly apologises to the students and steps down as the principal, allowing Raj to take over. Raj turns Gurukul into a love-filled university. In the end Raj, Narayan and an image of Megha walk happily towards the gates of Gurukul.

Read more

Dil To Pagal Hai

Dil To Pagal Hai (translation: The Heart Is Crazy), also known as DTPH, is a 1997 Indian musical romance film directed by Yash Chopra. The film depicts the love lives of the dancers in a musical dance troupe. It stars Shahrukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Karisma Kapoor, with Akshay Kumar in a supporting role. It was Khan's third collaboration with Chopra after Darr and Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge- to be precise third as producer and second as director. The soundtrack was composed by Uttam Singh, while the lyrics were penned by Anand Bakshi.

It was the first Bollywood film to be shot in Baden-Baden and Europa Park, both German tourist attractions. Dil To Pagal Hai was the second biggest hit of 1997, as well as receiving much praise for its storyline and soundtrack. Additionally, the film won three National Film Awards and sevenFilmfare Awards. The film has attained classic status over the years and is regarded as one of Chopra's best.

Rahul (Shah Rukh Khan) and Nisha (Karisma Kapoor) are members of a massive dance troupe. They are the best of friends, although Nisha is secretly in love with Rahul. Rahul announces his desire to direct a musical named Maya. The members of the troupe, including Nisha, have their doubts about the title character when Rahul cannot describe her to them. Pooja (Madhuri Dixit) also has a passion for dancing. Having been orphaned at a young age, she has been raised by close friends of her parents.

Rahul and Nisha go shopping for clothes one day. When Rahul is trying on some clothes, he starts whistling a tune and Pooja (who is also trying on clothes) pays particular attention to this tune. Rahul soon comes up with a script for the play he wishes to direct and shows it to Nisha who still has her doubts. On Pooja’s guardian’s birthday, there is a mix up – Pooja’s family receives a parcel with sandwiches (which the dance troupe ordered) and the dance troupe receives Pooja’s guardian’s birthday cake. Rahul goes to Pooja’s house to switch the parcels and starts whistling the same tune he whistled in the clothes shop – Pooja again pays attention to this. On Valentine's Day, Rahul and Nisha attend a party with the dance troupe where Rahul expresses his disbelief in love. Nisha is upset by Rahul’s heartless attitude. Rahul accidentally calls Pooja’s house and when she disconnects the phone, Rahul starts whistling the same tune and she again listens hard to it. On Nisha’s birthday, she gets drunk and tells Rahul she loves him – he does not respond as he does not love her in return. Pooja is soon taken to Germany by her guardian’s son Ajay (Akshay Kumar) who has been in London for months. When the two return to India, just as Ajay leaves to fly to England, he proposes to Pooja and she accepts.

During rehearsals for the play, Nisha injures her leg and the doctor says she cannot dance for a few months. Rahul needs a new woman to play the lead role in the play. He comes across Pooja dancing one day and believes she is perfect for the role. He begs her to come to their rehearsals and she agrees. Rahul and Pooja become close friends. Nisha soon returns from hospital and is upset that she has been replaced. Knowing that Rahul does not reciprocate her love, she decides to leave for London. Throughout rehearsals for the play, Rahul and Pooja find themselves falling for one another. When Rahul drops Pooja home one day, he starts whistling his tune making Pooja realise that she has fallen for the man she often heard. The next day, the two go to meet Pooja’s old dance tutor Tai (Aruna Irani) who believes the two are blatantly in love. At the wedding of two members of the dance troupe, Rahul and Pooja confess their love for each other.

On the day the play is to be run for the first time, Ajay arrives and tells everyone that he is Pooja’s fiancé. Rahul is heartbroken but tries not to show it. Nisha, who has returned, notices Rahul’s devastation and explains how she too was devastated when he did not love her in return. Rahul edits the end of the play to reflect his heartbreak. On the night of the play, Ajay plays a recorded tape where Pooja described how she felt about Rahul, implying that Ajay thinks Rahul and Pooja are meant to be together. Pooja now realises she truly loves Rahul and the two confess their love on stage as the audience applauds them. Also, backstage, Ajay ends up asking Nisha whether she is already married or not (implying he wishes to start a relationship with her).

Read more

The Lion King

The Lion King is a 1994 American animated epic musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the 32nd animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. The story takes place in a kingdom of lions in Africa, and was influenced by the biblical tales of Joseph and Moses, and the Shakespeare plays Hamlet and Macbeth. The film was produced during a period known as the Disney Renaissance. The Lion King was directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Don Hahn, and has a screenplay credited toIrene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts and Linda Woolverton. The voice cast includes Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones, Moira Kelly,Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Rowan Atkinson, Robert Guillaume, Madge Sinclair, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin and Jim Cummings. It tells the story of Simba, a young lion who is to take his father Mufasa's place as king. However, after Simba's uncle Scar kills Mufasa, he must stop his uncle from conquering the Pride Lands and avenge his father.

Development of The Lion King began in 1988 during a meeting between Jeffrey Katzenberg, Roy E. Disney and Peter Schneider while promotingOliver & Company in Europe. Thomas Disch wrote a film treatment, and Woolverton developed the first scripts while George Scribner was signed on as director, being later joined by Allers. Production began in 1991, with most of the animators inexperienced or uninterested in animals as most of the Disney team wanted to work on Pocahontas instead. Some time after the staff traveled to Hell's Gate National Park to research on the film's setting and animals, Scribner left production disagreeing with the decision to turn the film into a musical, and was replaced by Minkoff. When Hahn joined the project, he was dissatisfied with the script and the story was promptly rewritten. Nearly 20 minutes of animation sequences took place atDisney-MGM Studios in Florida. Computer animation was also used in several scenes, most notably in the wildebeest stampede scene.

The Lion King was released on June 15, 1994 to a positive reaction from critics, who praised the film for its music and story. It also earned a rare "A+" rating from CinemaScore. With earnings of over US$951 million worldwide as of 2011, the film is the highest-grossing hand-drawn film in history, the highest-grossing 2D animated film in the United States, and the 21st-highest-grossing feature film. The Lion King garnered twoAcademy Awards for its achievement in music and the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. Its songs were written by composer Elton John and lyricist Tim Rice, with an original score by Hans Zimmer. The film was dedicated to Frank Wells, who died in a helicopter crash early in 1994.

A Broadway adaptation of the film opened in 1997, and won six Tony Awards, including Best Musical. As of April 2012 it is the highest grossing Broadway musical of all time. Disney followed the film with two direct-to-video productions, the sequel The Lion King II: Simba's Pride (1998) and the prequel/parallel The Lion King 1½ (2004).

Read more