Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai
2000 Hindi-language musical romantic thriller From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (transl. Say It... You're In Love) is a 2000 Indian Hindi-language musical romantic thriller film written, directed and produced by Rakesh Roshan. The film stars debutants Hrithik Roshan and Ameesha Patel, alongside Anupam Kher, Dalip Tahil, Mohnish Bahl, Ashish Vidyarthi, Satish Shah, Farida Jalal, Asha Patel, Rajesh Tandon and Tannaz Irani. Upon its release on 14 January 2000, the film became an instant blockbuster and earned over ₹800 million (US$17.8 million) worldwide, becoming the second highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2000.
| Kaho Naa ... Pyaar Hai | |
|---|---|
Theatrical Poster | |
| Directed by | Rakesh Roshan |
| Written by | Rakesh Roshan |
| Screenplay by | Ravi Kapoor Honey Irani |
| Story by | Rakesh Roshan |
| Produced by | Rakesh Roshan |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Kabir Lal |
| Edited by | Sanjay Verma |
| Music by | Rajesh Roshan |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Yash Raj Films Eros International (Overseas) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 171 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹10 crore[1] |
| Box office | ₹80 crore[1] |
Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai received positive reviews from critics with praise towards Hrithik Roshan's performance and music, but criticized its "clichéd" plot. Hrithik Roshan became an overnight superstar, where his debut was termed Hrithik Mania and he has been known as the Millennial Superstar.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8] The film went on to be inducted into the Guinness World Records (2002) for being a feature film with the most awards won a total of 92 awards received in numerous ceremonies and categories.[9]
The film would be added to the Limca Book of Records for the greatest number of awards won by a Hindi film.[10] As director and producer, Rakesh Roshan collected his first ever Filmfare Award, while his son became the only actor ever to win both the Filmfare Award for Best Actor and the Filmfare Award for Best Debut for the same film. The film's core concept was inspired from the 1986 Kannada film Ratha Sapthami.[11][12][13][14] This film was re-released on January 10, 2025, coinciding with Roshan's 51st birthday and him, Patel and film completing twenty-five years in industry.[15][16][17][18]
Plot
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Perspective
Rohit, an aspiring singer working at a car showroom, struggles to support himself and his younger brother Amit after losing their parents. They live with an elderly Christian couple, Lily and Anthony. Through his job, Rohit meets Sonia, the daughter of wealthy businessman Saxena—who is connected to his boss, Shakti Malik—and the two quickly develop feelings for each other.
On a cruise arranged by Atul, Shakti’s son and Sonia’s best friend, tensions flare when Sonia becomes jealous of the attention Rohit receives from other women. To provoke him, she flirts with Atul, sparking a drunken argument that ends with both falling into a lifeboat. The vessel drifts to a deserted island, where repeated quarrels expose their clashing personalities. During one such argument, Sonia slips on a rock and falls into the ocean, deceiving Rohit into believing she cannot swim. Despite his own inability, Rohit risks his life to rescue her, and begins to drown himself, in which Sonia, in turn, saves him and in that moment, their deep love is realized as they spend several days together on the island.
They are eventually rescued by Saxena, who disapproves of their relationship due to Rohit’s modest background. Rohit loses his job, but he vows to succeed so he can be worthy of marrying Sonia. With support from Atul and other friends, he records a song to launch his musical career. However, on the night of his first concert, while picking up Amit from school, Rohit inadvertently witnesses the murder of a police commissioner by Malik and two corrupt officers, Satish Shinde and Dilip Kadam, who are targeted for exposing their illegal drug dealings. Rohit gets brutally attacked by them for this horrifying discovery but he manages to escape. Fearing exposure, Malik contacts Saxena—revealed to be the real mastermind behind a drug cartel—and orders Rohit’s death. During a frantic chase, Rohit’s bike malfunctions, and he is pushed off a bridge into the sea. Unable to swim, he dies by drowning, and his corpse is never recovered.
Devastated by Rohit’s death, Sonia falls into deep depression, prompting Saxena to send her to live with his brother in New Zealand. There, she meets Raj Chopra, her cousin Nita’s best friend, who strikingly resembles Rohit and is also a talented singer. Initially, Sonia clings to the hope that Rohit might still be alive, but she soon realizes that Raj is a completely different man who was born and brought up in New Zealand and never visited India. Though Raj falls in love with her, Sonia, still grieving, resists his advances—a situation that creates further tension with her family. After a brief confrontation by Nita, Sonia finally shows Rohit’s photos to Raj shocking him to the core about the striking resemblance.
When Sonia returns to India, Raj accompanies her despite her reluctance and accepts her rejection. At the airport, Shinde mistakenly shoots Raj, confusing him for Rohit. Fleeing together, Raj realizes that Rohit’s death was likely a murder rather than an accident due the attack on former despite no connections to India prior to this visit. Together with Sonia and Rohit’s best friend Tony, they uncover disturbing clues. Amit—who had become mute following the tragedy—finally speaks, revealing that he witnessed Rohit being attacked and that Malik, known to him as “Sirjee,” ordered the hit.
Determined to expose the truth, Raj, Sonia, Atul, and Tony stage a revival of Rohit’s concert, announcing his return from the dead to flush out the killers. The ruse creates panic among the culprits, and during the performance, Sonia confides in Saxena, revealing the secret behind Rohit’s death and the identities of those involved. As the disguised murderers attempt to silence Raj when he recounts Amit’s testimony, he narrowly survives a shooting—thanks to his body armor—but the danger escalates when Sonia is kidnapped.
Following the kidnappers’ demands, Raj infiltrates their hideout, rescues Sonia, and takes down Shinde and Kadam, avenging Rohit’s death. Malik appears and admits that Rohit was killed for witnessing the commissioner’s murder. He is just about to reveal that Saxena was the true cause of the murder, when Saxena himself murders Malik. When Anthony, Lily, Tony, and Amit arrive, Amit recognizes the dead Malik as the person who called "Sirjee." Investigating further, Raj uncovers evidence on Malik’s cellphone that confirms Saxena’s role as the cartel leader behind the crimes. As Saxena is arrested, he confesses his involvement in the Commissioner and Rohit’s murder.
In the aftermath, with justice partially served and the truth finally revealed, Raj takes Amit back to New Zealand. Sonia, having found solace and new love in Raj, confesses her feelings for him. Their engagement is celebrated by all, marking a bittersweet conclusion to their turbulent journey.
Cast
- Hrithik Roshan in a double role as:
- Rohit Kumar: Amit's brother and Sonia's love-interest who is murdered in a bike accident after witnessing Commissioner's murder
- Raj Chopra: Rohit's look-alike; Amit's adoptive brother and Sonia’s fiancé who avenges Rohit's culprits after facing attacks from them for him being assumed Rohit
- Ameesha Patel as Sonia Saxena: Rohit's love-interest and Raj's fiancée (voice dubbed by Mona Ghosh Shetty)[19]
- Anupam Kher as Mr. Saxena / Sirjee: Sonia's father who ordered Shakti to kill Rohit
- Dalip Tahil as Shakti Malik: Atul's father, Mr. Saxena's friend; Rohit's former boss and one of his and Commissioner's murderer
- Mohnish Behl as Inspector Dilip Kadam: A corrupt officer in Mr. Saxena's payroll and one of Commissioner and Rohit's murderer
- Ashish Vidyarthi as Inspector Satish Shinde: A corrupt officer in Mr. Saxena's payroll and one of Commissioner and Rohit's murderer
- Satish Shah as Anthony Rodriques: Rohit and Amit's landlord; Lily's husband
- Farida Jalal as Lily Rodriques/Aunty: Rohit and Amit's landlady; Anthony's wife
- Rajesh Tandon as Atul Malik: Shakti's son and Sonia's best-friend and Rohit's friend who helps Raj re-organise to catch Rohit's murderer
- Asha Patel as Neha Chopra: Raj's mother
- Tannaz Irani as Neeta Saxena: Sonia's cousin and Raj's best-friend
- Vrajesh Hirjee as Tony Bahl: Rohit's best-friend
- Abhishek Sharma as Amit Kumar: Rohit's younger brother and murder witness and Raj's adoptive brother
- Parzan Dastur as Mischievous Boy on Plane
- Johnny Lever as Inspector Parab Sharma
- Ram Mohan as Commissioner Verma: His murder was witnessed by Rohit leading to his own murder
- Payal Malhotra as Shobha Malvade: A girl on cruise attracted towards Rohit
- Dimple Inamdar as Dancer
- Jasveer Kaur as Dancer
Production
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Initially, when the film was announced, Shahrukh Khan was offered the lead role for the film. However, Hrithik Roshan stated that he was tired of his father doing films with the Khans and suggested him to give someone else a chance. Rakesh Roshan then agreed and gave the role to his son.[20]
The film was later launched in 1998 with Hrithik and Kareena Kapoor in lead roles. However, the latter walked out a few days after the launch, following a "misunderstanding" between the director Rakesh Roshan and Kareena's mother Babita.[21] Rakesh, who had known Ameesha Patel's family for a long time, cast her in the role within three days.[22]
The ship scenes were filmed aboard the Star Flyer.[23] The island scenes were filmed in Krabi, Thailand, in the area near Khao Phing Kan (popularly known as James Bond Island).[24] The iconic Na Tum Jano Na Hum song and additional scenes were filmed in New Zealand, namely Christchurch and Queenstown.[25]
Filming accidents
In 2001, Hrithik Roshan revealed that, "He nearly drowned while shooting Rohit's death sequence in the movie as he had to spent three hours forty-five feet deep inside the sea for same",[26] while on the occasion of film and lead actors completing twenty-five years in industry following its theatrical re-release in January 2025, Ameesha Patel too revealed the same that, "Hrithik could have drowned and lost his life while shooting Rohit's death sequence in New Zealand as he was shooting inside deep water for hours without oxygen with him"[27] along with revealing that, "While shooting climax sequence where his second character Raj had to take a leap, Hrithik broke his back as he fell while performing same and they had to rush him to hospital at 03:00 AM and film's climax shooting got delayed by six months due to him getting complete bedrest and rehab for same".[28]
Reception
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Critical reception
Kaho Naa.. Pyaar Hai received highly positive reviews from critics upon release, with particular praise directed towards Hrithik's performance and the film's soundtrack. However, most critics also criticized the film's "clichéd" storyline.
The reviewer for Filmfare rated it 3.5 out of 5, and wrote, "Rakesh Roshan has come up with a winner. A racy script, excellent product values and taut editing result in a storyline that keeps the audience hooked throughout. The music is also good, especially the title song and numbers such as "Ek Pal Ka Jeena" and "Chand Sitaare". Hrithik is very good in the action and dance sequences, and proves his acting calibre in his very first film. Patel too performs well."[29]
Sabiha Kalolwala of The Indian Express wrote, "Rakesh Roshan has been smart enough to make a film which encompasses all the facets of acting — drama, action, romance, thrill, comedy and tragedy, all of them enacted pretty well by Hrithik Roshan." Of the soundtrack, he wrote, "There is not even one song which is not enjoyable."[30] Anupama Chopra, reviewing the film for India Today wrote, "... Rakesh has taken the routine love-story, added a thriller twist and narrated it with style. KNPH isn't about path-breaking craft, it's about blockbuster presentation. Rakesh's sweat and money are apparent in every frame." She concluded writing, "What doesn't work is the tired villain track. Kher, one of Bollywood's finest, hams from frame 1. Perhaps the idea of playing disgruntled papa yet again was too tedious. His post-climax repenting is almost comical. The rest of the gang isn't much better. The plot is as stale as the performances."[31] Kanchana Suggu of Rediff.com called the film a "great entertainer" and wrote, "One must say Rakesh Roshan knew what he was doing when he cast Hrithik as the lead. The boy is good. The ease and style with which he dances, emotes, fights, makes one forget this is his debut film. He's had to essay two different characters, and he's done justice to both." Also commending the performances of other actors, she wrote praises of other departments in that the "music is good, the songs are catchy, the cinematography is appealing, the direction is unobtrusive and the story is actually 'different'."[32]
The interval twist of the movie - where the hero supposedly dies in an accident - and the second half of the film - where the heroine is sent out of her hometown to her uncle's place in order to overcome her depression, but is shell-shocked to find a lookalike in a vehicle nearby, and later catches a glimpse of him again in a discotheque dancing merrily - was reported to be based on the 1986 Kannada movie Ratha Sapthami.[33][34]
Box-office
In India, Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai was the highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2000.[35] When adjusted for inflation, it was the 11th highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time as of 2011,[36] and the sixth highest-grossing film of the 2000s.[37]
Soundtrack
The film's music was composed by Rajesh Roshan with lyrics by Ibrahim Ashk, Saawan Kumar Tak and Vijay Akela. Most of the songs were sung by Lucky Ali, Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnik meanwhile Kumar Sanu, Babul Supriyo and Asha Bhosle too having singles with Narayan and Sanu singing distinctively for character Rohit in first half of the film while Ali and Supriyo singing distinctively for character Raj in second half. The dancing sequences were choreographed by Farah Khan. The songs "Chand Sitare" and most notably, "Dil Ne Dil Ko Pukara" are inspired by the song Voices by Vangelis, with the latter song having that tune playing throughout the song.[38][39] The film's soundtrack album sold about 8.5 to 10 million units becoming one of its decades best selling Bollywood soundtrack of all time.[40]
Accolades
In popular culture
The Hindi-language musical romantic film, Na Tum Jaano Na Hum (2002) also starring Hrithik alongside Esha Deol and Saif Ali Khan, is named after a song from this film.
The song Ek Pal Ka Jeena hook-step eventually became "the signature step of Hrithik Roshan"[56][57] over years while its title song Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai hook-step too became one of the iconic hook-steps of industry and Hrithik's dance steps in Dil Ne Dil Ko Pukara too established him as one of the exceptional dancers in industry along with its other songs too becoming evergreen cult classics.[58][59]
See also
Notes
- Tied with Abhishek Bachchan for Refugee
References
External links
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