Dil Chahta Hai: Two Decades of Memories, Life Lessons and Legacy!

‘Friendship is a Strange Relationship.’ Haan sahi suna apne yeh dosti ek ajeeb rishta hai, kuch meetha, kuch khatta, kuch namkeen aur haan kuch kadwi bhi hai. But jo sabse important baat hai dosti ki wo ye hai ki, iski expiry date ni hoti. Yeh woh recharge pack h jo ek baar karo aur zindagi bhar unlimited chlti hi jaati hai.

Haan mana kabhi kabhi network kharab ho jati hai, magar iska matlab ye thodi na hai ki validity khatam ho gayi. “Once a Friend, Always a Friend.” Kuch isi phrase ko intensively sirf samajhati hi nahi balki ye kahiye experience karti hai, yeh movie jiska naam hai, “Dil Chahta Hai.” Almost two decades ho gaye hai iss movie ko release hue, magar aaj bhi ye fully refreshing, lagti hai jo sabhi era or generation k liye bani hai.

Also Read: Top Life Lessons Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani Taught

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A Trip Down Memory Lane

BFFs, Car Rides, Vacations and Girlfriends – The First Half

Ye kahani hai teen dost Sameer, Sid and Akash ki. Dost-cum-brothers from different mothers aur yun kahiye ek dusre ke jaan. Dosti itni gehri ki, mano koi 3D pic ho, infinite depth. Har baat ek dusre se share karna, ek dusre ki taang kheechna and all. Teen dosto ki group ki dosti ki baat hi kuch alag hoti, isme ek ki hamesha maje li jati hai, I mean taang kheenchi jaati hai.

Kuch isi trah ye tino bhi the. Akash sarcastically stud or yun kahiye jisme humour kut kut k bhara hua hota hai. Jo ki sirf zindagi ko khul ke jeene me believe karta hai. Bindaas and chill sort of insaan. Frank, modern, updated aur genuine banda.

Sameer, ye janaab flirt master hai, jiska dil bahut bhola hai, aur jo kisi par bhi bht jaldi aa jata hai. Aur ye hai coushning expert. Inki apni girlfriend hai magar inhe wo bojh lagti hai. Kyunki inka dil ek pe aake ni rukti na. But ye hai dil k bahut ache. Aur in tino me jo sabse serious, mature, hazirjawabi banda hai wo hai Siddharth a.k.a Sid. Jo kaafi manjhe hue artist vi hai, aur apne me khoye rhne walo main se hain. Inki toh chehre se hi sincerity jhalakti hai.

First half kafi achi dikhayi gayi hai, tino yaaro ki yaari, badmashi, mess ups, and all. Specially that Goa trip, that was my favorite part. Hum sab kabhi na kabhi ek baar Goa trip jarur plan karte hai, but unfortunately successful ni kar paate. But unhone kia, aur khub masti bhi ki. Infact that pose of three friends near the sea on the wall is named iconic Dil Chahta Hai pose. And we all want that part once in our lives.

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Break-ups and Reunions – The Second Half

Fir kahani aage badti hai, life hai to ups and downs bhi honge. Yeah, in a way Akash met with Shalini (Preity Zinta), but kahani khatam nahi hoti yahan. They meet again aur isbar apna hero Shalini ko impress kar hi leta hai. Meanwhile Sid ko apne se dugne umar ki lady se ishq ho jata hai, wo bhi sachcha aur shiddat wala. Jo baat baki dono dost ko hazam ni ho ri thi, aur bas kia unhone majak uda di, isi Baat pe ho gyi ladaai. Bas itni si baat, and they get separated for like years.

Akash never believed in the idea of love and did not get as to why people fall in love. But he ends up falling in love with Shalini, who is getting married to someone else. It is the first time that he has felt feelings of what true love could be like; something that is enduring and not like his affairs that lasted for two weeks. After all, he saw Shalini’s face in his inner conscience during the opera when he closed his eyes to see the person he loves.

He changed from the person who he once was. And, it is love that has brought this change in him. He finally understood what Sid told him earlier that, when love happens, it does not happen by thinking. It just happens, without an invitation, without any rationality. And Akash realized his mistake of not understanding Sid’s love. In the end of the movie they finally come back to each other, leaving the baggage behind. They saved their bond of friendship which makes the movie masterpiece!

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Inspirations, Legacies and Memories

As this movie approached almost two decades of its release. This stands out for its unbreakable freshness. Its emotions give wings to our teenage dreams. Dil Chahta Hai isn’t just a story about three friends, how they get separated and come back together at the end. Also it depicted the concept of loving someone irrespective of age and falling in love unknowingly and perks of arranged marriages.

The movie itself pointed out the problems of our generation, talks about life, celebrates friendship and brotherhood, says a lot about family and many more. The characters are simple, felt genuine and the drama that unfolds was shown in a very realistic manner. It also portrayed how the trio dealt with problems of their love lives, the unexpected rush into career and efforts to save their friendship from falling apart.

Dil Chahta Hai was a great movie way ahead of its time, with Farhan Akhtar’s brilliant direction, excellent performances from the cast and great music. It’s an evergreen movie on friendship and true love. And it feels there is one of us in each character of this movie, isn’t it?

A handful of movies like Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara and Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani, etc. are inspired by Dil Chahta Hai. Director Farhan Akhtar portrayed each and every character with the necessary and adequate depth with each having their own story lines dealing with their own problems, joys and relationships. In 2001, Dil Chahta Hai won the National Film Award in the Best Feature Film category.

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The Life Lessons

Friends are the reason behind a good and happy life.

Love isn’t determined by age.

First impressions are not the last impressions.

Distance doesn’t diminish the bond between friends.

It’s never too late to tell someone how you feel about them.

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The Best Dialogues

“Pyaar Sooch Samajh Kar Nahin Kiya Jaata, Bas Ho Jaata Hai.”

“Ya Toh Dosti Gehri Hai, Ya Yeh Photo 3D Hai.”

“Zaroori nahi ki hamesha ek doosre ki har baat sahi lage.”

“Kiski zindagi kiske Kahaan le jaati hai kya pata!”

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Dil Chahta Hai, always melts our hearts and makes our eyes wet and is certainly here to stay forever.

Written by Gobind Mandal (the_filmyguy_)

Also Read: Top Life Lessons ‘Tamasha’ Taught Us