Twenty years ago, a movie released ... the first movie of a rookie director, the son of an established producer-director, with fairly new, there-but-not-quite-there actors, a great supporting cast, some fabulous music, of which one song had already started making waves.
Shahrukh Khan was known already, as an actor who held promise ... but his image was more negative at the time ... Baazigar, his biggest hit, had him playing the bad guy with the heart of gold, or the good guy gone bad ... and he was becoming a rage. Small rage ... but getting there. I remembered him from a play I'd seen in Delhi, also he was from my brother's school, a fellow Delhi-ite. Had missed both his super hit TV shows ... college and work left me no time for TV serials for well over a decade. But I knew who he was, and watched Baazigar ... liked him and the SRK-Kajol Jodi.
The SRK-Kajol Jodi had been appreciated in the movie, and all concerned agreed that Kajol, despite her unconventional looks and her devil-may-care attitude towards all things feminine and graceful, was a bundle of as yet untapped talent. I'd noticed her in the Saif-Akshay-Kajol starrer, a remake of Sabrina, and loved her spark with both Saif and Akshay in the film. Liked her in Baazigar too ... a girl with spunk and determination, her character was different from the usual vapid heroines of most films those days, whose sole purpose was to exist so that the hero could fall in love with them.
Farida Jalal was an old favourite.
Amrish Puri was the quintessential bad guy, the wicked dominating father who didn't care about his wife, his family, relationships ... he cared only about his pride and his self-respect. Typecast, yes ... but he was good in his slotted roles, and his booming voice lent a lot of depth to his characters.
Anupam Kher was ... well, Anupam Kher. Versatile enough not be slotted into any category, a brilliant actor who could change from comic to tragic to emotional, and play all with equal ease.
And then came DDLJ.
And everything changed.
Shahrukh Khan was known already, as an actor who held promise ... but his image was more negative at the time ... Baazigar, his biggest hit, had him playing the bad guy with the heart of gold, or the good guy gone bad ... and he was becoming a rage. Small rage ... but getting there. I remembered him from a play I'd seen in Delhi, also he was from my brother's school, a fellow Delhi-ite. Had missed both his super hit TV shows ... college and work left me no time for TV serials for well over a decade. But I knew who he was, and watched Baazigar ... liked him and the SRK-Kajol Jodi.
The SRK-Kajol Jodi had been appreciated in the movie, and all concerned agreed that Kajol, despite her unconventional looks and her devil-may-care attitude towards all things feminine and graceful, was a bundle of as yet untapped talent. I'd noticed her in the Saif-Akshay-Kajol starrer, a remake of Sabrina, and loved her spark with both Saif and Akshay in the film. Liked her in Baazigar too ... a girl with spunk and determination, her character was different from the usual vapid heroines of most films those days, whose sole purpose was to exist so that the hero could fall in love with them.
Farida Jalal was an old favourite.
Amrish Puri was the quintessential bad guy, the wicked dominating father who didn't care about his wife, his family, relationships ... he cared only about his pride and his self-respect. Typecast, yes ... but he was good in his slotted roles, and his booming voice lent a lot of depth to his characters.
Anupam Kher was ... well, Anupam Kher. Versatile enough not be slotted into any category, a brilliant actor who could change from comic to tragic to emotional, and play all with equal ease.
And then came DDLJ.
And everything changed.
