30 years of Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke: Assistants worked on Ghunghat Ki Adh Se says Juhi Chawla

A romantic-comedy, directed by Mahesh Bhatt and produced by Tahir Hussain, Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke (HHRK), was one of the biggest hits in 1993 and still remains a fan favourite. The film starred Aamir Khan and Juhi Chawla and won the National Film Award – Special Mention (Feature Film).

Other than the story and performances, the famous song Ghunghat Ki Adh Se by Nadeem-Shravan was a big hit. Recalling shooting the song in Udaipur, Rajasthan, Chawla says, “We had already shot the whole film and just this song was left. So I don’t know how but only the assistants turned up on shoot. Tahir saab, Mahesh Bhatt, Saroj Khan (Choreograher), Pravin Bhatt (Cinematographer) – everyone sent their assistants. Aamir and I and these assistants worked on the song, which turned out to be the highlight of the film. It was an unexpected thing but sometimes, you can’t explain how magic happens. This film is one of them.”

Grateful for the love, Chawla says, “If people remember the film after so many years, then it was magical. When we were making the film, none of us knew what was going on. The kids were so talented.” HHRK was shot over one and a half year and as Chawla had worked with Khan in a number of projects earlier, “there was comfort level”. “This was one of the early films, where we rehearsed scenes before it was shot. It was the first time I did anything like that. It was great fun working with Mahesh ji. I remember laughing a lot on the sets. I would want my kids to watch this film as it was funny. So many people tell me that they loved the film,” she says.

Khan was “very hands on while shooting with suggestions” as it was his father’s production, she says, adding, “In one of the scenes, he told me to jump before I started running, to give the scene a comic feel. Such suggestions really helped. Aamir had a lot of contribution in the film, including sitting on edit for a month too. He kept a poker face in scenes, knowing if he did that the situation and all of us acting would look funnier in a scene. That helped a lot, I feel now looking back.”