Roop Singh Rathore is a singer from Rajasthan, like his father Shambunath. When Shambunath falls ill and needs urgent care, the two move to Bombay, where Roop finds work at a hotel owned by Ajay Narang. There he attracts the attention of Reshma, Ajay's spoiled sister, who grows fixated on him, while Roop is in love with Pooja, a nurse at the hospital treating his father. Reshma's pressure and her brother's protectiveness turn Roop's life into a string of dilemmas between family duty and love.

How it was made

Chaahat was directed by Mahesh Bhatt from a screenplay by Robin Bhatt, Javed Siddiqui and Akash Khurana, with Robin Bhatt also producing. Shah Rukh Khan leads the cast alongside Pooja Bhatt, Naseeruddin Shah, Ramya Krishnan and Anupam Kher. The music was composed by Anu Malik and Amar Haldipur. The film blends romance, drama and action elements in the style of commercial Hindi cinema of the period.

Reception and legacy

The film opened in June 1996 across about 190 Indian screens and was labelled 'Below Average' by Box Office India, though it ranked among the year's top overseas earners. At the Filmfare Awards it received nominations for Best Performance in a Negative Role and Best Supporting Actor. Shah Rukh Khan later acquired its rights, and the story was remade in Odia as Prem Rogi in 2009.

Stills

More films by Mahesh Bhatt

Duplicate1998

Aashiqui1990

Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke1993

Sadak 22020 Sadak1991Sadak1991

Saaransh1984

Original Cinematopedia text based on Wikipedia (en) and Wikidata.