Baazigar
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Baazigar'' () is a 1993 Indian romantic
crime thriller film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...
directed by
Abbas–Mustan Abbas–Mustan is an Indian filmmaking duo consisting of brothers Abbas Alibhai Burmawalla and Mustan Alibhai Burmawalla, known for directing stylish suspense, action and romantic thrillers in Bollywood with dark-lighted themes. The duo directed ...
and produced by Venus Movies. It stars Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in lead roles, while
Raakhee Raakhee Gulzar (born Rakhee Majumdar on 15 August 1947 and known as Raakhee) is an Indian actress who has appeared in many Hindi films and Bengali films as well. In four decades of acting, she has won three Filmfare Awards and one National Fil ...
,
Shilpa Shetty Shilpa Shetty Kundra (born Ashwini Shetty; Née Shetty; 8 June 1975) is an Indian actress who works mainly in Hindi-language films. Shetty made her screen debut in the thriller ''Baazigar'' (1993) which garnered her nominations for two Filmfare ...
,
Dalip Tahil Dalip Tahil (born as Dalip Tahilramani; 30 October 1952) is an Indian film, television and theatre actor. He studied at Sherwood College in Nainital, India. After attending Aligarh Muslim University for a year, he graduated from St. Xavier's C ...
,
Siddharth Ray Siddharth Ray (19 July 1963– 8 March 2004), born Sushant Ray, was a film actor in Hindi and Marathi films. He also appeared in a few south Indian films. He was the grandson of filmmaker V. Shantaram. Personal life Siddharth Ray was born i ...
, and
Johnny Lever Johnny Lever (born John Prakash Rao Janumala; 14 August 1957) is an Indian actor and popular comedian who is known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is one of the first stand-up comedians in India. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, in ...
appear in supporting roles, with the soundtrack composed by
Anu Malik Anwar Sardar "Anu" Malik (born 2 November 1960) is an Indian music composer, singer, music arranger and score composer. He is an Indian National Award and Filmfare Award winning musician, who primarily composes music for the Hindi film indus ...
. The film is about a young man seeking to avenge the fall of his family. The story is loosely based on
Ira Levin Ira Marvin Levin (August 27, 1929 – November 12, 2007) was an American novelist, playwright, and songwriter. His works include the novels ''A Kiss Before Dying (novel), A Kiss Before Dying'' (1953), ''Rosemary's Baby (novel), Rosemary's Baby'' ...
's 1953 novel '' A Kiss Before Dying'' and its 1991 film adaptation of the same name. This was Khan's breakthrough role as the sole lead (his first as an
anti-hero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform action ...
), along with being his eighth film out of eighty throughout his 30-year career, Kajol's first commercial success and Shetty's film debut. ''Baazigar'' was released on 12 November 1993, coinciding with the festival of
Diwali Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali ( IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It is ...
. Made on a budget of 40 million, the film was declared a success at the box office with a worldwide gross of 320 million. Apart from emerging as a major financial success, the film has become a
cult film A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage ...
over years due to its suspense, story, screenplay, soundtrack and performances of the cast. It was the first collaboration between Khan and Kajol, who went on to become one of India's most iconic on-screen couples. It helped establish Khan, Kajol, Shetty and Malik in Hindi films, and the soundtrack sold over 10million units, thus becoming the highest-selling album of the year. At the 39th Filmfare Awards, ''Baazigar'' received 10 nominations, including
Best Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
, Best Supporting Actress and Best Female Debut (both for Shetty), and won 4 awards, including Best Actor (Khan) and Best Music Director (Malik). A
Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...
remake, ''Vetagadu'', was released in 1995, before a
Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...
remake, '' Samrat'', was released in 1997 and a
Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
remake, ''
Nagarahavu ''Naagarahaavu'' () is a 1972 Indian Kannada-language film directed by Puttanna Kanagal, based on T. R. Subba Rao's three novels ''Nagarahavu'', ''Ondu Gandu Eradu Hennu'' and ''Sarpa Mathsara'', and starring Vishnuvardhan, Aarathi , K. S. A ...
'', was released in 2002.


Plot

Ajay Sharma is a young boy who grows up to seek revenge for his father's death caused by Madan Chopra, a rich businessman. Chopra has two daughters: Seema and Priya. Ajay begins a secret relationship with Seema. Chopra takes part in his last car race in
Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
, only to learn that another participant, Vicky Malhotra, who Ajay assumes the role as, let him win on purpose to meet him. Chopra is impressed with 'Vicky', and Priya falls in love with him. This way, Ajay manages to date both Seema and Priya using different identities. Later, Ajay convinces Seema to commit suicide with him, when her father arranges her marriage with someone else. They write and sign suicide notes, but he then lies that he was simply testing her and rips up his note while keeping hers. They make plans to get married at the registrar's office the next day. However, while waiting for the office to open, Ajay takes Seema to the roof of the building and pushes her off, murdering her. He then discreetly mails her suicide note to her house. Chopra hastily orders the case closed to prevent further embarrassment should the suicide note be discovered. Suspecting that her sister didn't commit suicide, Priya secretly continues the investigation with the help of police inspector Karan Saxena, an old friend from college. Ravi, a college friend of Seema who had a crush on her, tells Priya that he has a photo of Seema and Ajay together at a birthday party back at his hostel. Before Priya can reach Ravi to see the photo, Ajay finds out about this and murders Ravi. In their struggle, Ajay forces him to sign a suicide note, which makes it appear as though Ravi is Seema's murderer. Thus, the investigation is halted a second time. Meanwhile, Ajay, posing as 'Vicky', slowly wins Chopra's confidence. Chopra decides to get 'Vicky' and Priya engaged. It is revealed through a flashback that Chopra had been a project manager in the company run by Ajay's late father Mr. Sharma, but when Sharma discovered that he was embezzling money, he had Chopra imprisoned for three years. After Madan completed his jail term, he asked for forgiveness, and Sharma's wife persuaded her husband to re-employ him. However, unbeknownst to anyone, Chopra had returned to exact revenge. One day, Sharma had to go on a business trip, so he handed the power of attorney to Chopra, who used the opportunity to become the company's owner. Sharma learned of this after returning, but it was too late. His family was ejected from their palatial home after Chopra took a loan on Sharma's name. Ajay witnessed Chopra eve-teasing his mother when she came to ask for their home back, and she subsequently cursed him to tragedy and helplessness later on in life. Heartbroken, Ajay vowed to make Chopra pay. Back in the present, Seema's friend Anjali meets Priya and Ajay at a jewellery shop. She also discovers a photo of Seema and Ajay at her birthday party. 'Vicky' and Priya get engaged that evening. Anjali phones the Chopra residence during Ajay's engagement party to warn them that Ajay and 'Vicky' look the same, to which Babulal, head servant of the Chopra household, answers. As Babulal tries to inform Priya about this, Ajay intercepts the phone call, arrives at Anjali's place, and kills her, stuffing her body in a suitcase and throwing it in a river. History repeats itself with Chopra handing over the power of attorney to 'Vicky' when he has to go on a business trip. However, a man and his dog find Anjali's body soon after on a beach, and when Priya and Inspector Karan hear about this, they realize that the murderer is still alive. Ajay decides to hasten his plans on realizing that Priya and Karan are hellbent on finding the killer, and that he has fallen in love with Priya. His plans hit a glitch when he and Priya run into the real Vicky Malhotra, Ajay's friend, whose identity he had taken, which makes Priya suspicious. After Chopra returns from his business trip, he is shocked to find that the company is run by the Sharma group. Ajay reveals the truth of his desire to seek revenge and kicks Chopra out. Priya learns of Ajay's true identity from his friend, Vicky and rushes to Ajay's home in Panvel. She is shocked to see a marriage locket with photos of him with her sister. Ajay comes home, where she confronts him with his misdeeds. He then tells her his story and also tells her that due to the poverty her father forced his family into, his father died of a heart attack, and his younger sister died of illness. His mother went into a state of shock as a result of the loss of her husband and daughter, and in her mental instability, she is unable to recognize Ajay as her son. Priya realizes that it is her father who is at fault as Ajay introduces her to his mother. Chopra arrives at his home, shoots Ajay in the arm, and has his goons beat him up. Soon his mother comes back to her senses, and when trying to intervene, Chopra injures her, angering Ajay. He fights the goons viciously and chases Chopra to the top of a wall at some ruins. He is about to kill Chopra when he is persuaded by police inspector Karan to have mercy for his mother's sake. Chopra takes the opportunity to
impale Impalement, as a method of torture and execution, is the penetration of a human by an object such as a stake, pole, spear, or hook, often by the complete or partial perforation of the torso. It was particularly used in response to "crimes aga ...
him with a rod and laughs maniacally. Ajay laughs back and hugs Chopra, impaling him fatally with the same rod, and they both fall off the wall. He tells his mother that he has regained everything and collapses in her arms. Priya, Inspector Karan, and his mother watch despondently as Ajay succumbs to his injuries, finally at peace.


Cast

* Shah Rukh Khan as Ajay Sharma (Vicky Malhotra) ** Sumeet Pathak as Young Ajay * Kajol as Priya Chopra *
Shilpa Shetty Shilpa Shetty Kundra (born Ashwini Shetty; Née Shetty; 8 June 1975) is an Indian actress who works mainly in Hindi-language films. Shetty made her screen debut in the thriller ''Baazigar'' (1993) which garnered her nominations for two Filmfare ...
as Seema Chopra *
Raakhee Raakhee Gulzar (born Rakhee Majumdar on 15 August 1947 and known as Raakhee) is an Indian actress who has appeared in many Hindi films and Bengali films as well. In four decades of acting, she has won three Filmfare Awards and one National Fil ...
as Shobha Sharma *
Dalip Tahil Dalip Tahil (born as Dalip Tahilramani; 30 October 1952) is an Indian film, television and theatre actor. He studied at Sherwood College in Nainital, India. After attending Aligarh Muslim University for a year, he graduated from St. Xavier's C ...
as Madan Chopra *
Siddharth Ray Siddharth Ray (19 July 1963– 8 March 2004), born Sushant Ray, was a film actor in Hindi and Marathi films. He also appeared in a few south Indian films. He was the grandson of filmmaker V. Shantaram. Personal life Siddharth Ray was born i ...
as Inspector Karan Saxena *
Johnny Lever Johnny Lever (born John Prakash Rao Janumala; 14 August 1957) is an Indian actor and popular comedian who is known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is one of the first stand-up comedians in India. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, in ...
as Babulal *
Anant Mahadevan Anant Mahadevan (born 28 August 1950), also credited as Ananth Narayan Mahadevan, is an Indian screenwriter, actor, and film director of Malayalam, Hindi, Marathi, Tamil films and television shows. Having been an integral part of the Indi ...
as Vishwanath Sharma *
Prithvi Zutshi Prithvi or Prithvi Mata ( Sanskrit: पृथ्वी, ', also पृथिवी, ', "the Vast One") is the Sanskrit name for the earth, as well as the name of a devi (goddess) in Hinduism and some branches of Buddhism. In the Vedas, he ...
as Suresh Desai *
Resham Tipnis Resham Tipnis is an Indian television actress. She did a small role of Anjali Sinha in Shah Rukh Khan starrer film ''Baazigar'' in 1993. She was a contestant of Bigg Boss Marathi Season 1. She is now seen Sony Entertainment Television's Punyas ...
as Anjali Sinha *
Daboo Malik Israr Sardar "Daboo" Malik is an Indian music director, composer, singer, actor and scriptwriter in the Indian Music Industry. Malik was born in Bombay, Maharashtra to the veteran music director Sardar Malik. Discography • By Daboo's MWM E ...
as Ravi Shukla *
Dinesh Hingoo Dinesh Hingoo (born 13 April 1940) is an Indian actor who plays comic & supporting roles in Hindi films. He had appeared in over 300 films, from ''Taqdeer (1967)'' to ''Be Careful (2011)'', and is known for his laughter and impersonations inclu ...
as Seth Bajodia *Manmauji as Taalia *
Sharad Sankla Sharad/Sarath/Sharath ( sa, शरद्)is the autumn season or ritu in the Hindu calendar. It roughly corresponds to the western months of mid-September to mid-November. Sharad is preceded by Varsha and followed by Hemant. The Hindu calendar c ...
as Charlie *
Raju Srivastav Satya Prakash Srivastav (25 December 1963 – 21 September 2022), known professionally as Raju Srivastav and often credited as Gajodhar, was an Indian comedian, actor and politician. He had been a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party since 201 ...
as Charlie's friend *
Harpal Singh Harpal Singh (born 15 September 1981) is an English former professional footballer. During his career he played for various clubs including Leeds United, Stockport County, Sligo Rovers, Bohemians and Dundalk. Career Singh was born in Bradf ...
as Cook Motu *Amrut Patel as Seema's driver *
Anu Malik Anwar Sardar "Anu" Malik (born 2 November 1960) is an Indian music composer, singer, music arranger and score composer. He is an Indian National Award and Filmfare Award winning musician, who primarily composes music for the Hindi film indus ...
as himself the musician and host at the engagement. (special appearance) *
Vinod Rathod Vinod Rathod (born 12 September 1962) is an Indian playback singer who primarily sings in Bollywood films. Rathod is the son of late classical musician, Pandit Chaturbhuj Rathod. Music career His career started when Usha Khanna after listeni ...
as himself the singer at the engagement. (special appearance)


Production

The film's premise is a subversion of a concept loosely inspired by a Hollywood film, '' A Kiss Before Dying'' (1991), which itself was based on a novel of the same name. While it borrows the basic premise, ''Baazigar'' tells a different, subversive story. While
Matt Dillon Matthew Raymond Dillon (born February 18, 1964) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including an Oscar and Grammy nomination. Dillon made his feature film debut in '' Over the Edge'' (1979) and established himself as a te ...
's character in ''A Kiss Before Dying'' is a
villain A villain (also known as a " black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character ...
who murders for money, ''Baazigar'' subverts this, with
Shahrukh Khan Shah Rukh Khan (; born 2 November 1965), also known by the initialism SRK, is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. Referred to in the media as the " Baadshah of Bollywood", "King of Bollywood" ...
's character instead being a sympathetic
anti-hero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform action ...
seeking vengeance for the brutal injustices done to his family. Several A-list Bollywood stars were approached for the lead role, but they turned it down, due to the character being a murderous, negative anti-hero.
Anil Kapoor Anil Kapoor (born 24 December 1956) is an Indian actor and producer who works primarily in Hindi films, besides television and international films and television. In a career spanning over 40 years as an actor and since 2005 as a producer, Kapo ...
was the first choice to play the leading role. He however turned it down due to unavailability for the dates assigned.
Salman Khan Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan (; 27 December 1965) is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. In a film career spanning over thirty years, Khan has received numerous awards, including two Nation ...
was then approached, but he was removed, with his father
Salim Khan Salim Abdul Rashid Khan (born 24 November 1935) is an Indian actor, film producer and screenwriter. As a screenwriter, he wrote the screenplays, stories and scripts for numerous Bollywood films. Khan is one half of the prolific screenwriting d ...
saying Salman was not ready for such a gamble.
Akshay Kumar Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia (born 9 September 1967), known professionally as Akshay Kumar (), is an Indian-born naturalised Canadian Quote: "(Former prime minister Stephen) Harper campaigned in 2011 alongside one of Modi's biggest celebrity backer ...
was the next choice, but he too rejected the offer, as it went against his "heroic" on-screen image. Shahrukh eventually convinced producer Ratan Jain and Ganesh Jain that only he could pull off the role; Jain liked his confidence, and cast him in the role. However, his casting was criticized by trade pundits who incorrectly predicted that "a boy with cute dimples" would never be accepted as an anti-hero. Initially, Sridevi was supposed to play both female roles (as twin sisters) as did
Sean Young Mary Sean Young (born November 20, 1959) is an American actress. She is particularly known for working in sci-fi films, although she has performed roles in a variety of genres. Young's early roles include the independent romance '' Jane Aust ...
in the original film, but the director realized that due of her popularity, the audience would not sympathize with the hero, if he kills the character played by Sridevi, hence they decided to cast different actresses.


Music

The music was composed by
Anu Malik Anwar Sardar "Anu" Malik (born 2 November 1960) is an Indian music composer, singer, music arranger and score composer. He is an Indian National Award and Filmfare Award winning musician, who primarily composes music for the Hindi film indus ...
and won him the
Filmfare Award for Best Music Director The Filmfare Best Music Album Award is given by the '' Filmfare'' magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to the best composer/arranger of a soundtrack. This category was first presented in 1954. Naushad Ali was the fir ...
. The song "Yeh Kaali Kaali Aankhein" earned singer
Kumar Sanu Kedarnath Bhattacharya (born 20 October 1957), better known as Kumar Sanu, is an Indian playback singer. He is known as the King of Melody in Bollywood. He is famous for singing thousands of Bollywood Hindi songs. Apart from Hindi, he has al ...
his fourth consecutive
Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer The Filmfare Best Male Playback Singer Award is given by Indian film magazine ''Filmfare'' as a part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to recognise a male playback singer who has delivered an outstanding performance in a film song. ...
after ''
Aashiqui Aashiqui () is a 1990 Indian Hindi musical romantic drama film and first installment of Aashiqui series directed by Mahesh Bhatt, starring Rahul Roy, Anu Aggarwal and Deepak Tijori in pivotal roles. The film was known for its music, by com ...
'', ''
Saajan ''Saajan'' () is a 1991 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by Lawrence D'Souza and produced by Sudhakar Bokade. It stars Sanjay Dutt, Madhuri Dixit and Salman Khan in lead roles, with Kader Khan, Reema Lagoo and Laxmikant Berde ...
'' and '' Deewana''. Other singers featured in the album are
Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian  playback singer, entrepreneur and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in th ...
,
Pankaj Udhas Pankaj Udhas (born 17 May 1951) is an Indian ghazal and playback singer. He started his career with a release of a ghazal album titled ''Aahat'' in 1980 and subsequently recorded many hits like ''Mukarar'' in 1981, ''Tarrannum'' in 1982, ''Mehf ...
, Alka Yagnik,
Vinod Rathod Vinod Rathod (born 12 September 1962) is an Indian playback singer who primarily sings in Bollywood films. Rathod is the son of late classical musician, Pandit Chaturbhuj Rathod. Music career His career started when Usha Khanna after listeni ...
and Sonali Vajpai. Lyrics by Gauhar Kanpuri, Rani Mallik, Zafar Gorakhpuri, Zameer Kazmi, Nawab Arzoo &
Dev Kohli Dev Kohli (2 November 1942) is an Indian Hindustani poet and lyricist. He penned hundreds of songs in Bollywood films and churned out numerous hit songs such as ''Maaye Ni Maaye'', ''Yeh Kaali Kaali Aankhen'', ''Geet Gaata Hoon'',''O Saki Saki' ...
. The soundtrack was released by Venus Music. Dr. Alban's song "It's My Life" was also featured. A soundtrack was also released in Marathi. The film's soundtrack album sold 10million units, making it the best-selling
Bollywood soundtrack Hindi film songs, more formally known as Hindi Geet or filmi songs and informally known as Bollywood music, are songs featured in Hindi films. Derived from the song-and-dance routines common in Indian films, Bollywood songs, along with da ...
album of 1993. The soundtrack "Yeh Kaali Kaali Aankhein" samples the African hit "Yeke Yeke" and others.


Track listing


Box office

''Baazigar'' was a commercial success and the fourth highest-grossing Indian film of 1993, behind another Shah Rukh Khan-starrer, ''
Darr ''Darr: A Violent Love Story'' ( ''Fear'') is a 1993 Indian romantic psychological thriller film directed and produced by Yash Chopra under his banner Yash Raj Films. The film stars Juhi Chawla, Sunny Deol and Shah Rukh Khan with Anupam ...
''. ''Baazigar''s collections in India were net and gross, equivalent to adjusted for inflation.


Accolades


Influence

The later American films ''
Almost Famous ''Almost Famous'' is a 2000 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Cameron Crowe, and starring Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, and Patrick Fugit. It tells the story of a teenage journalist writing for ''Rolling Stone ...
'' (2000) and ''
Baywatch ''Baywatch'' is an American action drama television series about lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, and Hawaii, starring David Hasselhoff. It was created by Michael Berk, Douglas Schwartz, and Gregory J. Bo ...
'' (2017) had strikingly similar posters to ''Baazigar''. The posters of the two films feature
Kate Hudson Kate Garry Hudson (born April 19, 1979) is an American actress and businesswoman. She has received numerous awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe Award, a Critics' Choice Movie Award and a Satellite Award, as well as nominations f ...
and
Priyanka Chopra Priyanka Chopra Jonas (; ; born 18 July 1982) is an Indian actress and producer. The winner of the Miss World 2000 pageant, Chopra is one of India's highest-paid actresses and has received numerous accolades, including two National Film Awar ...
, respectively, wearing sunglasses that reflect other cast members, similar to the sunglasses Shah Rukh Khan wears on the poster for ''Baazigar''.


References


External links

* {{Authority control 1990s Hindi-language films 1990s romantic thriller films 1993 crime thriller films 1993 films Films about identity theft Films based on American novels Films based on thriller novels Films based on works by Ira Levin Films directed by Abbas–Mustan Films scored by Anu Malik Films set in Mumbai Films shot in Mumbai Films with screenplays by Akash Khurana Films with screenplays by Robin Bhatt Hindi films remade in other languages Indian crime thriller films Indian films about revenge Indian remakes of American films Indian romantic thriller films Romantic crime films