The Indian film industry is rekindling its romance with Kashmir, a destination that was once a favorite of filmmakers and audiences alike. Soon, the valley will have the cameras set on its blooming tulips, placid lakes, coniferous trees and Dal Lake.
On Sunday, Jammu and Kashmir LG Manoj Sinha met with Bollywood filmmakers such as Ekta Kapoor, Dinesh Vijan, Imtiaz Ali, Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari and Nitesh Tiwari, among others in Mumbai. He invited them to film in the Valley and also talked about how movie making can be conducive to business in the Union Territory.
Bollywood’s love affair with picturesque Kashmir dates back to the 1960s and 1970s. Back then, dozens of films were set against the backdrop of the beautiful Valley locations. Some of the most romantic and perennial songs were performed in the snow-covered hills and lush green places of Jammu and Kashmir. In 1961, Shammi Kapoor had an affair with Saira Banu in the snowy mountains of Srinagar while singing “Chahe koi mujhe junglee kahe”. He immortalized the ‘shikara’ at Dal Lake in the song “Tareef karun kya uski” while courting a beautiful Sharmila Tagore in Kashmir Ki Kali (1964).
Movies such as Jab Jab Phool Khile (1965), Aarzoo (1965), Janwar (1965), Roti (1974) and Mere Sanam (1965) recorded a beautiful image of the valley and, for those growing up in urban India, visiting Kashmir, the ‘paradise on earth’ became a dream. The filmmakers captured nature in all its glory and ultimately gave the tourism industry a boost. People who were unable to visit the picturesque Sonamarg meadows, Mughal gardens, Gulmarg or Pahalgam, enjoyed their serenity through the lens of the filmmakers.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, moviegoers witnessed Yash Chopra’s love affair with the seductive Kashmiri beauty in superheroes like Kabhi Kabhie (1976), Noorie (1979), and Silsila (1981). However, in the 1990s, the region witnessed some of the most violent moments. And, Kashmir found a new narrative in the cinema. The stories were consumed by the tension in the Valley. Mani Ratnam’s Roja (1992) and Dil Se (1998) is set in the context of the political turmoil in Kashmir. Mission Kashmir (2000) and Yahaan (2005) also showed the unrest in the region. However, growing tensions there forced the filmmakers to film elsewhere, even when they apparently showed Kashmir, an example of this is Red. Mani Ratnam had planned to shoot the film in Kashmir, but ended up moving it to Coonoor, Ooty and Manali.
Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha in Yash Chopra’s 1981 film SIlsila. (Express file photo)
Over time, film producers and directors were reluctant to move to the Valley when a sense of fear and uncertainty enveloped the once-favorite Bollywood setting. They preferred to shoot in various other regions of the country and also on foreign shores. Ooty’s exquisite venues were the backdrop for many other Bollywood films such as Hum Aapke Hain Koun !, Maine Pyar Kiya, Deewana, and Dil Se. In addition, the tourist landmarks of London, Paris, New York and Switzerland replaced Sonamarg, Srinagar, Gulmarg and Pahalgam.
But, now that film directors and producers plan to return to the bay, we review some recent films that were shot in Kashmir.
Jab Tak Hai Jaan (2012)
Anushka Sharma in a frame from the song “Jiya Re”
Veteran filmmaker Yash Chopra, who seemed to have a special connection to Kashmir, shot his latest film there. It was also actor Shah Rukh Khan’s first visit to the Valley, after which he expected “more filmmakers to come to Kashmir.” The saga of love brought back the romantic essence of the valley. It had Anushka Sharma dancing on a shikara at Dal Lake in the song “Jiya Re”. Various other parts of the film were shot in the serene locations of Kashmir, including the lush locations of Aru, a hill station north of Pahalgam.
Highway (2014)
Alia Bhatt ina still from Imtiaz Ali’s Highway.
Filmmaker Imtiaz Ali is known for making his films aesthetically beautiful. He did something similar with Alia Bhatt and Randeep Hooda’s road film Highway. Few scenes of the film were shot in Gujjar Basti, Aru in Pahalgam of Kashmir. Ali was also one of the first directors to relive Bollywood’s lost relationship with Kashmir with his film Rockstar in 2011.
Haider (2014)
Shahid Kapoor in Haider’s song “Bismil”, which was filmed at Martand Sun Temple.
Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj attempted to show Kashmir from the “inside” in his film adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. “It was the political upheaval and the 25-year Kashmir tragedy” that forced Bhardwaj to set his film in the valley. The protagonist of Shahid Kapoor, Tabu and Shraddha Kapoor was filmed in Pahalgam, Kehribal area in Anantnag, Mattan, Aishan Sahab Zaina Kadal Bridge in old Srinagar, Nishat Bagh, Qazigund, Martand Sun Temple, Naseem Bagh (in the garden of the University of Kashmir), Hazratbal and Sonamarg.
Perhaps, alongside movies like Hamid and Lost Fathers of Kashmir, it also addressed the demand that Kashmir, when rendered through the lens of Bollywood, show Kashmir as a place of pristine beauty without showing its truths. The film went beyond the stories set in Kashmir.
Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015)
KASHMIR bahut AMEER in natural beauty… Maashallah Maashallah pic.twitter.com/y6r6n78rTv
– Salman Khan (@BeingSalmanKhan) May 19, 2015
Kabir Khan’s director Bajrangi Bhaijaan, starring Salman Khan in the title role, was filmed in scenic locations in the valley, including the famous resorts of Pahalgam and Gulmarg. The song “Bhar Do Jholi Meri” was filmed at a famous shrine in the Ashmuqam area of the Anantnag district in southern Kashmir. While filming the movie, Salman had written on Twitter: “KASHMIR bahut AMEER in natural beauty … Maashallah Maashallah.” The climax of Bajrangi Bhaijaan was filmed in Sonmarg near the Thajiwas glacier.
Raazi (2018)
Alia Bhatt and Meghna Gulzar clicked during the filming of Raazi in Kashmir.
Set during the 1971 India-Pakistan War and based on the book ‘Calling Sehmat’, Meghna Gulzar’s Raazi was filmed in parts of Kashmir. For Meghna, it was like reliving memories of her childhood visiting the sets of her father Gulazar’s films. Speaking about the destination, Meghna had shared: “Going back to Kashmir, the connection is explainable. I don’t know if it’s because the place is so beautiful or because the people here are so beautiful. “
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Eric is a professional news editor, writer, and blogger for the last 10 years. He is working with NewsGater as an off-beat news editor cum writer.