Dilwale Dulhania le Jayenge (BFI Film Classics)

Aditya Chopra’s 1995 romantic drama, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, follows the journey of Raj and Simran, who fall in love on a trip to Europe but must fight societal expectations as Simran is betrothed to marry someone else in an arranged marriage. It is one of the most commercially successful and longest-running films in Indian cinema history, shown consistently for over 25 years in Mumbai's Maratha Mandir theatre.

Anupama Chopra’s study of the film explores is cult status, analysing its mise-en- scène, soundtrack, and star-making performances by Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol. She argues that it is a paradoxical film which at once affirms the power of love to transcend societal norms and expectations, while also upholding old-fashioned values of pre-marital chastity and family authority, affirming the idea that Westernisation need not affect an essential Indian identity.