#17YearsOfDilSe: How Chaiyya Chaiyya travelled with us till date
Gulzar's brilliant Urdu poetry mixed with Rahman's sense of tune created this musical hit. Gulzar won the Filmfare award for Best Lyrics for this film.
Mani Ratnam's Dil Se starring Shah Rukh Khan, Manisha Koirala and Preity Zinta completes 17 years this day. Released on 21 August 1998, the film won 7 Filmfare awards and was the first movie to enter the Top 10 UK charts. Dil Se, with the backdrop of insurgency in north-east India did not earn a fancy amount at the box-office though. What the film managed is to leave its music with us.
"Chaiyya Chaiyya" is one song from the movie that travelled with us till date and still makes us join the dance floor the moment it plays. The song featured on the list of top 10 songs of all time in a poll conducted by BBC World Service. Here is why this item number is still in our dance playlists -
1. Shah Rukh Khan the Heartthrob 
Only five years old in Bollywood, the young Shah Rukh Khan in Dil Se was energetic, fun, and a passionate lover. The zestful and spirited dance he does on the top of a moving train while faintly flirting with Malaika Arora Khan is a once-in-a-lifetime affair. Singer Sukhwinder Singh won the Filmfare award for Best Playback Singer (Male) for singing this incredibly upbeat song.
2. The sexiest item number of the late 90s 
Malaika Arora Khan who is still famous for her moves in Chaiyya Chaiyya made the song a hit by her sassiness. The Khan duo dancing amid the forest of the north-east region provides a sight of relief from the otherwise serious and dramatic plot of the movie. Choreographer Farah Khan received the Filmfare award for Best Choreography for this song.
It was after Chaiyya Chaiyya that Malaika became one of the top item girls in the Bollywood industry.
3. Gulzar's poetry and Rahman's music 
Dil Se saw the collaboration of India's great lyricist and musician. It was the first time that Gulzar and Rahman worked together for a movie. Gulzar's brilliant Urdu poetry mixed with Rahman's sense of music created this musical hit. Gulzar won the Filmfare award for Best Lyrics for this film.
"Woh yaar hai jo khushboo ki tarah, jiski zubaan urdu ki tarah", the amalgamation of Urdu poetry with Hindi film music ensured the presence of this regional poetry in the linguistic circuit of India.
4. Mani Ratan's directorial vision 
The movie and the song captures the detailing that is always seen in his directorial ventures. The movie balances the serious issue of the trails of the Assamese on the India-China border and the love story between a terrorist and a government agent. Shah Rukh Khan's love for Manisha Koirla in the movie goes through the 7 shades of love such as attraction, infatuation, love, reverence, worship, obsession, and death.
The disconnect between the exotic locations, songs and the political scenario in the movie is prophetic of the tragic end of the movie.
5. Different adaptations of the song by the GenX
The young generation has come out with different versions of this song. See how they have added their flavour into it -
Here's another