Valentine’s Day is over, but love is still in the air if you’re a movie buff who adores Bollywood flicks. Indian cinema’s longest-running film ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ (The Brave Hearted Will Take The Bride) is enjoying a theatrical revival for around the world as part of Valentine’s Day celebrations. And here’s the good news: the cult rom-com is showing in Dubai all weekend.
The Shahrukh Khan-starer, which initially released in 1997, defined what romance (and idyllic Euro train trips) looks like for an entire generation of movie-goers and Bollywood (Indian film industry) fans. Now it’s back on the silver screens at Dubai’s VOX cinemas exuding its golden charm.
Such is Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge’s (DDLJ) enduring hold on the psyche of movie lovers world over, it’s been adapted into a Broadway musical. It catapulted the leads Shahrukh Khan (Raj) and Kajol (Simran) to legendary #couplegoals status before social media even existed, romanticised mustard flower fields and the Swiss Alps, and single-handedly cemented ‘Raj’ as a boy baby name of choice for years after.
But why, you ask? Here’s a quick summary. Star-crossed lovers Raj and Simran decide to convince Simran’s traditional dad, who has already arranged her marriage to another man. Their decision to seek their families’ blessings instead of eloping defied conventional rom-com plots in Indian cinema. That combined with comedic misadventures, larger-than-life song and dance routines, quotable dialogues and actor Shahrukh Khan’s (who’s also the UAE’s brand ambassador) signature open arms pose created a cult hit.
To this day, the romantic hit continues to draw in massive crowds at Mumbai’s Maratha Mandir theatre, where it has played continuously every day from 1995 to 2020 until the Covid-19 pandemic. Watching ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ on the big single screen in Maratha Mandir is a cinematic pilgrimage for cinephiles and die-fans of the movie, but you can get close enough to doing the same in Dubai.
VOX cinemas has multiple showings at select locations in Dubai and Sharjah running today, February 18 and February 19 for you to immerse yourself in the magical tale of rebellious lovers Raj and Simran.