Throwback: When a section of the industry speculated that Hrithik Roshan’s Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai and Aamir Khan’s Mann were based on Titanic

By Fenil Seta -

January 15, 2024 - 11:44 AM IST

The much-loved Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai completed 24 years yesterday. It was released in cinemas on January 14, 2000, and was the biggest hit of that year. Debutant Hrithik Roshan became a superstar overnight and continues to rule even today. Though the actress opposite him, Ameesha Patel, was also a newcomer, the film was in the news even before its release. In fact, more than 25 years ago, there were even rumours that the Rakesh Roshan-directorial is based on the Hollywood blockbuster, Titanic (1997)!

Throwback: When a section of the industry speculated that Hrithik Roshan’s Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai and Aamir Khan’s Mann were based on Titanic

This interesting bit of information was mentioned in Komal Nahta’s magazine Film Information dated June 27, 1998. It mentioned that as per rumours in the film industry, not just Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai but also Aamir Khan-Manisha Koirala starrer Mann (1999) was Titanic’s remake. The article debunked the myth and also said that the only similarity between the Hindi films and Titanic was that they were being shot aboard a ship. Since Titanic was also set on a ship, probably some people put two and two together and spread the speculation.

A major section of Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai was set on a ship in the first half. The film was the story of Rohit (Hrithik Roshan) and Sonia (Ameesha Patel) who meet in Mumbai and later on a cruise ship. Due to an interesting turn of events, both are stranded on an island where they fall in love. In an interview to Komal Nahta’s Film Information magazine dated December 5, 1998, Rakesh Roshan spoke in detail about why he chose the Star Clipper ship of the USA and the challenges he faced in shooting on board and taking the aerial shots mid-sea. Bollywood Hungama published excerpts of this interview on January 14.

Mann, meanwhile, directed by Indra Kumar was about Dev (Aamir Khan) and Priya (Manisha Koirala). Both meet each other on a cruise and though they were engaged to their respective partners, sparks flew between them. The musical entertainer was shot on Sun Cruises in Singapore.

As for Titanic, it was directed by James Cameron and told the story of Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio), a poor artist and his love affair with Rose (Kate Winslet) aboard an ill-fated ship in 1912. It was based on accounts of the sinking of RMS Titanic though it was also extensively fictionalized. The disaster film was a blockbuster across the world. In India, it stunned one and all as it did exceedingly well despite not being dubbed in Hindi for almost a year.

As per the Film Information issue dated August 22, 1998, Titanic was the first ever English film to have completed 25 weeks in more than 10 centres in India. It recorded footfalls of nearly 2.5 crores which is higher than many of the big hits of today. The report stated, “It has also been the first English film to have run to full houses for its first 10 weeks. What is more remarkable is the fact that Titanic achieved such a huge success despite having only 86 prints in circulation, and all in the original (English) version! In fact, the collections of Titanic in India are the fourth highest in the whole of Asia, after Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.”