Once I finished watching HAHK for the first time in 1997(3 years after its original release), I had absolutely no doubt as to why this movie became the highest grossing Hindi film of ALL TIME. HAHK is a case where everything comes perfectly together - direction, acting, music, cinematography, sets, costumes, screenplay and that extra indescribable "magic" every classic has.
HAHK’s story in itself is nothing special. Heck, it doesn’t even have much of a plot to talk about. But what keeps us hooked to this 3 hour+ saga is the way Barjatya’s executes the most essential part of any movie - story telling. In a movie where there are no conflicts, no bad guys and where everybody loves everybody else, the audience could’ve very easily been BORED. But that’s the last thing HAHK is! There isn’t a single "boring" or "lets fast fwd. this scene" moment in the movie. And that’s what HAHK ultimately is - a super entertaining musical dealing with two families and two irresistible characters in Prem(Salman Khan) and Nisha(Madhuri Dixit). These are career performances from two of Bollywood’s finest looking people. I’m no fan of Salman Khan, but this is amongst his FEW performances where the actor looks very dedicated to his work. No monekying around and no facial expressions where he seems half drunk or completely uninterested like he has been most of his career(especially post-1999). Prem is a lovable character brought to life by Salman’s infectious energy and charm. Same goes for Madhuri, who plays Nisha as if GOD made her to play this character. It’s hard to think of a more lovable female character in Hindi cinema. It’s also hard to think of a pairing that’s shared as much chemistry as Salman-Madhuri do here. Their romance develops slowly and beautifully. Every scene shared between Prem and Nisha is memorable and believe me, their magical moments will bring you back to watch this movie again. It’s a pity the 2 never starred together in a movie again. Talk abt wasting a great couple.
The strong supporting cast in HAHK definitely provides the movie with the ideal stability and mood to further enhance our impression of these sweet characters as believable. The casting crew definitely hit gold because every actor looks perfect in the role he/she is portraying. The music is BRILLIANT. All 14 songs were a rage. Barjatya somehow manages to keep the narrative flowing with each song. Which was KEY.
Bottomline: HAHK to me is the quintessential Bollywood entertainer. The movie despite all the sweetness doesn’t feel fake(something I can’t say abt Barjatya’s following release, HSSH). Every actor in the cast adds something to make the movie special. The leading stars to this day haven’t given more likable performances. If you look up the word chemistry in a Bollywood dictionary, a pic of Salman/Madhuri from HAHK should be there. And if you still haven’t seen this classic, I urge you to watch it for them.