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Mohabbatein () is a 2000 Indian Hindi-language Musical film Romance film film written and directed by Aditya Chopra, and produced by Yash Chopra under the banner of Yash Raj Films. The ensemble cast is led by Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai, with supporting roles by Uday Chopra, Shamita Shetty, Jugal Hansraj, Kim Sharma, Jimmy Sheirgill, and Preeti Jhangiani. Loosely inspired by the American film Dead Poets Society (1989), the narrative centres on Narayan, the authoritarian principal of Gurukul, a prestigious all-boys college, who strictly forbids romantic relationships. After his daughter Megha takes her own life due to his opposition to her romance with a student, Raj, the latter returns years later as a music teacher and inspires three students to challenge Narayan’s rules and pursue love.
Originally intended to mark Aditya Chopra’s directorial debut, Mohabbatein became his second film following the success of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995). The film was shot primarily in the United Kingdom between October 1999 and July 2000, with cinematography by Manmohan Singh. The sets were designed by Sharmishta Roy, while Karan Johar handled costume design. The soundtrack was composed by Jatin–Lalit with lyrics by Anand Bakshi.
Released theatrically on 27 October 2000, Mohabbatein received mixed-to-positive reviews, with praise directed at its performances, music, and production design, although its length and pacing were criticised. The film went on to become a major commercial success, grossing ₹900 million (US$20 million) worldwide, and emerged as the highest-grossing Hindi film of the year. At the 46th Filmfare Awards, it won four awards including Best Supporting Actor (Bachchan) and Best Actor (Critics) (Khan). It also received accolades at the IIFA Awards, Zee Cine Awards, Screen Awards, and Sansui Viewers' Choice Movie Awards.
At the backdrop of this battle are three students, Sameer, Vicky and Karan, all of whom are in love. Sameer is in love with his childhood sweetheart, Sanjana, who is already in a relationship with Deepak. Raj manages to get Sameer a job as a waiter in a cafe outside of Gurukal so he can be closer to Sanjana. However, when Deepak mistreats Sanjana, she realizes that Sameer is her true soulmate and the two get together. Vicky is in love with Ishika, a student from the neighbouring girls' school. Though Ishika initially dislikes Vicky, when the two are paired for a dance competition, they fall in love though Vicky lies to her about his family’s class status to impress her. He eventually tells Ishika the truth and she accepts him. Karan falls in love with a widowed woman named Kiran; with Raj's help, he manages to get a job as a piano teacher for Kiran's nephew and slowly wins over Kiran's love, despite her initially being distant.
Narayan realises that Sameer, Vicky and Karan are forcing students to break the rules. In retaliation, he decides to tighten the rules. However, Raj continues to encourage the boys to fall in love. Eventually, the three boys face expulsion as Narayan views their actions as the reason for the other boys rebelling. Raj speaks out on their behalf, persuading Narayan that what they did was Raj's fault, begging Narayan to not expel them. Narayan agrees, but on the condition that Raj leaves after telling the student body he had misguided them in an attempt to persuade Raj that he has won. However, Raj reminds Narayan of how his daughter left him and how Raj himself, who considered Narayan an elder, is now also leaving him. Reflecting on Raj's words, Narayan now realises that his anti-romance policies have been misguided and also caused the death of his own daughter. The following morning, Narayan openly apologises to his students and steps down as principal, asking Raj to take over and spread his beliefs of love to all the students.
Writing resumed following the release of Dil To Pagal Hai (1997), with Chopra aiming to explore themes beyond conventional romance. According to the Encyclopaedia of Hindi Cinema, the narrative was inspired by the 1989 American coming-of-age drama Dead Poets Society. (2026). 9788179910665, Popular Prakashan. ISBN 9788179910665 Chopra presented the story to his father, producer Yash Chopra, who was impressed and agreed to produce the film under the Yash Raj Films banner. In an interview with Screen, Yash Chopra described the project as “a modern film, a film about today,” adding that it upheld Indian values while appealing to a broad audience.
The film was officially announced in June 1999 on the Yash Raj Films website.
To portray the six student characters, Chopra sought out new talent. His brother Uday Chopra was cast in one of the male lead roles marking his acting debut, and a national search was conducted to find five additional newcomers. The final ensemble included Shamita Shetty, Jugal Hansraj, Kim Sharma, Jimmy Sheirgill, and Preeti Jhangiani. Aditya Chopra also wrote the screenplay and dialogues for the film.
Filming concluded between August and September 2000. The film was edited by V. Karnik, with sound design by Anuj Mathur and Kunal Mehta.
The soundtrack album comprises seven original songs and two instrumental tracks, and was released on 21 January 2000 by Saregama, which acquired the music rights for ₹75 million (US$1.67 million). Although critical reception was mixed, the album was a major commercial success, becoming the highest-selling Bollywood soundtrack of the year with over five million units sold.
Jatin–Lalit received a nomination for Best Music Director at the 46th Filmfare Awards, and were also nominated in the same category at the Bollywood Movie Awards, the IIFA Awards and the Screen Awards.
The film was released theatrically on 27 October 2000, coinciding with the Diwali festival weekend. It opened alongside Vidhu Vinod Chopra's thriller Mission Kashmir and K. S. Ravikumar's Tamil language-language comedy-drama Thenali, resulting in a highly competitive box-office period. Due to its extended running time of over three and a half hours, theatres limited screenings to three shows per day instead of the usual four.
Other critics were less favorable. Vinayak Chakravorty of the Hindustan Times described the film as "a veritable lesson to any budding filmmaker on how not to make a film," citing issues with scripting and directorial treatment. Vinaya Hagde of Zee Next gave a scathing review, calling the film "dumb" and criticising the underutilisation of supporting actors such as Anupam Kher and Archana Puran Singh. The Hindu’s Savitha Padmanabhan expressed dissatisfaction with the film’s length and its structure, saying the confrontational sequences were "always interrupted by the love stories of the ."
A Filmfare reviewer, however, praised the lead performances, stating that both Bachchan and Khan "excelled in their respective roles." Nikhat Kazmi referred to the film as emblematic of the "inglorious uncertainties of cinema," while Khalid Mohamed likened it to "a rich, multi-layered, vibgyor cake"—though he noted that "only a few slices tickle the taste-buds." Suman Tarafdar, also writing for Filmfare, felt many cast members appeared "unconvinced about their roles and performed accordingly."
Screen acknowledged Chopra’s "untiring efforts," highlighting his "mastery over screenplay" in the film’s first half. Comparing the film to Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995), Dinesh Raheja of India Today remarked that Mohabbatein had "too many diverse strands" and a "disappointingly pat and oversimplified" story.
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