BollyCurry returns with its popular section of Retro Review of the Week and this time, the movie under the scanner is the popular coming of age film, Dil Chahta Hai (2001). The film went on to become a blockbuster hit and is still considered to be one of the must-watch films of Bollywood.

Released on the 24th of July, 2001, Dil Chahta Hai boasted of an extremely talented star-cast including Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan, A

kshaye Khanna, Preity Zinta, Sonali Kulkarni and Dimple Kapadia. This film marked the debut of the talented Farhan Akhtar as a writer-director and went on to become a commercial and critical success in times to come.

Dil Chahta Hai revolves around the story of three childhood friends, Sid (Akshaye Khanna), Sam (Saif Ali Khan) and Aakash (Aamir Khan) and their different views on love. While Sid doesn't find any interest in trivial relationships, Sam is a die hard romantic and believes to have found his "one true love" on the corner of every street. Aakash on the other hand is a classic playboy who changes girlfriends as often as he changes his clothes. The plot goes on to revolve around how the three of them meet three different women and how their equation with these women inadvertently lands up changing the dynamics of their friendship, especially that of Sid and Aakash. What is it that causes the rift in their friendship and whether or not the three friends ever unite is what makes up for the climax of the film.

The movie boasted of fine performances by some of the most talented actors of the 2000s. This, coupled with a unique plot and excellent direction, catapulted this film into an overnight success. In the midst of all the family dramas, action thrillers and slapstick comedies, Dil Chahta Hai was like a breath of fresh air, welcomed warmly by one and all.

The music of Dil Chahta Hai was composed by the talented trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy while its lyrics were penned by the immensely talented Javed Akhtar. The music was widely appreciated by all and went on to become the turning point of the trio's career. Songs such as"Jaane Kyun" and "Tanhaayee" are two award winning songs from the soundtrack which have been sung by the maestros Udit Narayan and Sonu Niigam respectively.

Dil Chahta Hai has earned over 140 million rupees and was declared a super hit at the box office. It also went on to win numerous awards, including two National Awards and seven Filmfare awards.

Dil Chahta Hai remains one of the most critically and commercially acclaimed Bollywood film till date, and it is only because of the fresh plot, talented acting and brilliant direction did the movie reach such heights. The movie truly got the ball rolling for a much needed change in Bollywood and set a benchmark for many other coming-of-age films to come.

Did You Know?

Farhan Akhtar had initially approached A.R. Rahman to compose the music for this film, but he had to opt out due to a conflict in schedules. Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy were then brought on board and the rest, as they say, is history.
Hrithik Roshan and Abhishek Bachchan were offered the role of Sid, but the two chose to opt out for personal reasons. The role then went to Akshaye Khanna, who went on to win the prestigious Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor (Critics).
The role of Pooja was initially offered to Hrishita Bhatt (fame Shararat) and Eesha Koppikar, but both opted out of the film citing personal issues. The role eventually was played by the talented yet underrated Sonali Kulkarni.
Dil Chahta Hai has been listed as one of top ten must watch Bollywood movies and has an aggregate rating of 8.6 on 10 on Rotten Tomatoes, which is comparable to films such as Swades.