From Junglee to Haider: Bollywood's love for Kashmir
The Kashmir valley was an integral part of Hindi films through the sixties, seventies and most of the eighties. Kashmir and the romantic stuff that the industry specialised in went well together. With the arrival of 90’s, Kashmir’s insurgency problems made it dangerous to shoot films in the valley. But Bollywood did not stop making films about the state and neither did it stop shooting there, the latest case in point being Haider. Here’s a look at films made in or inspired by Kashmir.
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Vishal Bharadwaj’s Hamlet adaptation, Haider is set in the politically turbulent region of Kashmir. While this film is a Shakespearean adaptation it also speaks about the social anomalies of the valley. As we gear up for the release of this Shahid Kapoor starrer, take a look at other Bollywood films based in and inspired by Kashmir.
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Kashmir provided the perfect setting for Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone’s characters to bond in Ayan Mukherji’s film, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. However, Mukherji, instead of giving Kashmir any courtesy called it Manali in the film. Omar Abdullah was obviously not amused. Abdullah went on a rant spree, and wrote on his Twitter wall, “It’s irritating when we roll out the red carpet & facilitate the shoot only to have people believe its Manali. Artistic Licence #YJHD”.
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Kashmir was one of the six states, along with Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Himachal, where Imtiaz Ali’s Highway was filmed. However, it was the final destination where Veera (Alia Bhatt) and Mahabir (Randeep Hooda) wanted to finally settle down and surround themselves in idyllic blissfulness. In this beautifully shot Imtiaz Ali film, we get a beautiful view of Kashmir’s picturesque countryside.
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Jab Tak Hai Jaan is Yash Chopra’s last film to be shot in Kashmir. A fan of the valley, the filmmaker went back there with most of his films. While the beautiful hills made the perfect backdrop for Chopra’s escapist romances, in Jab Tak Hai Jaan, Chopra used the state to establish Khan’s character as the man who never dies, despite being an Army bomb disposal expert and disposing several bombs on a daily basis in a valley threatened by terrorism.
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Imtiaz Ali’s hugely successful film , Rockstar was not only shot in Kashmir but also had a Kashmiri character as its heroine. Heer (Nargis Fakhri), a girl from a rich Kashmiri family based in Delhi goes back to the valley to get married in her ancestral home. However, before the wedding, as she indulges in secret escapades with her friend, Janardhan Jakhar (Ranbir Kapoor), she realises that she has fallen for him. However, Heer ties the knot with a rich businessman in a beautiful Kashmiri wedding ceremony and leaves India soon after.
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Mission Kashmir, directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra dealt with issues of insurgencies and portrayed the turbulent political situation in Kashmir during the 90’s. Although the entire film was set in Kashmir, Chopra shot most of it in studio. Reportedly, when the film was being shot in Kashmir, Roshan’s first film, Kaho Naa.. Pyaar Hai was yet to release and he was not allowed on the sets by the security guards as they thought he was actually a Kashmiri and not part of the film cast and crew.
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While Roja portrayed the insurgency problems of Kashmir, few might know that the film was not actually shot in the valley. Due to extreme terrorist activities in the region, the shooting of the film was actually done in Ooty. The film traces the journey of Rishi Kumar (Arvind Swamy) and his wife Roja (Madhu), after Kumar is taken hostage by Kashmiri militants.
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While there has been many films that were based on Kargil war, Farhan Akhtar’s Lakshya starring Hrithik Roshan is perhaps the most popular one. The film’s climax traces the Kargil war and Roshan plays the role of a Lieutenant in the Indian army.
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This film immortalised Shammi Kapoor’s Yahoo dance in the snowy peaks of Kashmir. Humourless Chandrashekhar (Shammi Kapoor) finds happiness and love in the valley after he meets the beautiful Kashmiri girl Rajkumari (Saira Banoo) in the film.
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The beautiful Sharmila Tagore (Champa) with her dimpled smile is aptly the Kashmir Ki Kali in the film by the same name. The actress won many heart as she played the role of a simple flower girl from Kashmir opposite Shammi Kapoor who played the rich spoilt brat, Rajiv. A particular song from the film, Yeh Chand Sa Roshan Chehera that was picturised on shikaras has been wildly popular ever since the release of the film.
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Shashi Kapoor played the handsome Kashmiri boathouse owner, Raja who falls in love with rich heiress Rita (Nanda) in Jab Jab Phool Khile. This film is Kapoor’s claim to fame and reportedly during the shoot of the film the actor spent hours studying mannerisms of boatmen and often ate his meals with them.
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