Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999)

As with nearly all my viewing, this was recommended by a reader.I admit that I am not as familiar with these films as I should be. Just based on popularity and persistence, they need to be understood. Gosh, it about 1 1/2 hours straight of two people falling in love before any drama sets in. Then it shifts to Budapest posing as Italy; I guess the audience would not know the difference.

The negatives are obvious. It is just too long for the trivial story. There are cultural stereotypes whose behavior must be essential to the pleasure of the thing, stereotypes I did not know. There is a ton of singing and dancing but like an Andrew Lloyd Weber musical, it all sounded and looked much the same. The girl who is such a beauty that she causes two good men to fall in love dangerously deep... she's a petulant, selfish brat.

But the colors and the staging are so lush that I got a sugar high and was just about sad to see it end. I don't know anything like this in the west where the simple show is so dominant and so well done. And this is well done. There is a kite-flying scene that just took my breath away. I replayed it a few times. One of the few dramatic moments is when the couple has to be permanently separated. She hears about it an rushes through the house; her dress catches fire and she doesn't even notice, the dancing colors adding to the way the environment tells us what is going on.

I won't ruin the ending. Anywhere else I would gag, but here it was a reward — truly romantic. Now I have to look up more of this fellow's work. The way he uses the environment reminds me of a young Yimou Zhang.

Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 3: Has some interesting elements.

Fmovies: The movie is simply awesome. Everything is well thought and blends. I was always a great fan of Ajay Devgan but it was Salman Khan whose performance in this movie influenced me the most. Every emotion is well captured. Salman's comedy and emotional roles are fantastic. Ajay Devgan and Aishwarya Rai's roles are also superb. I just couldn't pick any flaw. The music is breath taking. Ismail Darbar has, like Sanjay Leela Bhansali, used every talent to its very best. KK's song Tadap Tadap is perhaps the best song in Indian Cinema. I am saying this not only in terms of singing and music but also with respect to picturisation and the way it has been broken to pieces and placed according to the scene in the movie. Just perfect.....10/10.

I missed the first half which was supposed to be the "comedy" section I suppose.There were no subtitles and since I speak no Hindi,it took me some time till the first commercial to find the title and look up what the plot was supposed to be. By that time,I was already aware that Salman Khan had broken his teacher,student relationship and been banished,that he loved Nandini,that she was allowed to break things willy nilly but not to refuse marriage with a man she didn't love. The comedy part escaped me. I was about to change channels when I realized the husband was played by the young man who did such a good job in the recent movie about a young Sikh freedom fighter. When he,playing Raj, and Nandini, left for Hungary,I thought it was for a belated honeymoon. Remember-no subtitles. But THAT was supposed to be Italy????? My only complaint was that the hotel staff on the phone spoke English with an Italian accent when they were so obviously Hungarian. Silly me. I don't understand the lure of Italy perhaps when Hungary is so distinctive and charming. Why couldn't Sameer be half Hungarian? I'll buy the movie for my kids,since they ARE half Indian and half Hungarian and it was nice to hear the language and see how well the people fit in. I loved the Hungarian dance sequence. Maybe they'll redub it and take out the reference to Italy.It just wasn't right.

Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam fmovies. This movie is one of the best Hindi movies i have ever watched. Aishwarya Rai as Nandini was simply wonderful, Salman Khan as Samir added a little comedy in the film. The story is a romance and drama. Samir(Salman Khan) is an indo-Italian student who comes to learn to sing from Nandini's father(Vikram Gokhale)and stays a year there. In the process Nandini and Samir fall in love, but she is arranged to be married to Vanraj(Ajay Devgan). Nandini sees Samir behind her father's back. Her father finds this out and Samir is sent away. Nandini Marys Vanraj. One day she receives letters from Samir and Vanraj sees them and becomes angry. But since Vanraj loves Nandini....he takes her to Italy to find Samir. What happens next in the story....it is up to you to find out! The movie was wonderful, the locations were beautiful, the songs were the best! The acting was great!!! overall i give this movie a 9/10!

Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (English title "Straight from the Heart") is an epic story with gorgeous landscapes, singing, dancing, romance, danger, betrayal, humor, religion, family and cultural tradition all balanced and directed masterfully to produce the most beautiful film.

I saw this movie at the Berlinale International Film Festival, and I knew from the start that it was a real gem. By the end I had decided that it was the best movie I had ever seen.

Some of the backgrounds and special effects are not perfect, but I never would have paid any attention to that except that lots of people in the theater were laughing. Some people might grow tired of the singing and dancing, but they're really quite superb.

This movie is worth watching every of its 187 minutes.

This movie is one of the overall best movies I've ever seen,be it Hollywood or Bollywood.Sanjay Leela Bhansali's direction is nothing less then inspiring along with some of the most wonderful music ever heard, wonderful spirited acting, and the most beautiful sets ever seen, this is a definite DEFINITE must see!!!