Karan Johar turns 53: Awaara, Sholay, Lamhe, Masoom, Lagaan and 5 other favourite movies of the celebrated filmmaker

Karan Johar picked Raj Kapoor and Yash Chopra as the two major influences on his filmography. He hailed Awaara as the best screenplay ever written in the history of Hindi cinema, and lauded the romance of Raj Kapoor and Nargis’ characters.

Raj Kapoor and Nargis in Awaara.

Sholay (1975)

Johar shared Ramesh Sippy’s 1975 blockbuster potboiler is a textbook more than a film. He said the screenplay by Salim-Javed still seems so fresh that many of the film’s scenes come across as contemporary even today.

Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan in a still from Sholay.

Kabhi Kabhie (1976)

Karan Johar revealed that the nuances in the romance and interpersonal relationships that Yash Chopra attempted in the Amitabh Bachchan and Rakhee-starrer is what inspired his 2006 film Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna.

Amitabh Bachchan and Rakhee Gulzar in a still from Kabhi Kabhie.

Masoom (1984)

Johar recalled weeping throughout the screening of Shekhar Kapur’s directorial debut to an extent that his mother Hiroo Johar had to escort him out of the theatre.

Jugal Hansraj and Naseeruddin Shah in Masoom.

Lamhe (1991)

Karan Johar shared that though Yash Chopra’s age-gap romance didn’t click with the audience then, both him and Chopra considered the Sridevi and Anil Kapoor-starrer as the late legendary filmmaker’s lesser loved baby.

Anil Kapoor and Sridevi in a still from Lamhe. (Photo: YRF)

Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994)

Karan Johar recalled how he was in two minds about becoming a director when Aditya Chopra invited him to a special screening of the extended version of Sooraj Barjatya’s sophomore feature. Johar was blown away by the director’s conviction in the musical romance.

Madhuri Dixit and Salman Khan in Hum Aapke Hain Koun.

Satya (1998)

Johar admitted while he and Ram Gopal Varma don’t always get along, that doesn’t stop the former from appreciating the latter’s seminal gangster film. The filmmaker called Manoj Bajpayee’s performance as Bhiku Mhatre his career’s best.

Manoj Bajpayee in Ram Gopal Varma’s film Satya. (File Photo)

Lagaan (2001)

Karan Johar was confident no film would be able to challenge the supremacy of his mega-budget family drama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, until he watched Ashutosh Gowariker’s period sports drama, which changed the rules of Hindi cinema.

Aamir Khan and Daya Shankar Pandey in a still from Lagaan.

Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006)

Johar thinks of Rajkumar Hirani’s cult comedy as a hark back to the cinema of Hrishikesh Mukherjee, which effortlessly blended family-friendly entertainment with important social messaging. He also lauded the Sanjay Dutt-starrer for redefining Mahatma Gandhi to an entire generation.

Sanjay Dutt and Boman Irani in film Lage Raho Munna Bhai. (Express archive photo)

Also Read: Karan Johar’s Dhadak 2 cleared with U/A certificate by CBFC after 16 cuts related to caste-based references, slurs, and violence

Chak De! India (2007)

Shah Rukh Khan in a still from Chak De! India.

Karan Johar claimed that Shah Rukh Khan’s performance as the girls hockey team coach Kabir Khan is his best. He also lauded the film’s writer Jaideep Sahni for incorporating themes like women empowerment and national unity in Shimit Amin’s sports drama.