The Romantics is a 2023 documentary series, created by Smriti Mundhra and Michael T Vollmann. The four-part series explores the impact of Yash Chopra, his son Aditya Chopra, and their company Yash Raj Films on Hindi Cinema.
List of films featured Episode 1: The Boy from Jalandhar Year Film Cast Notes 1957 Naya Daur Dilip KumarVyjayanthimala 1959 Dhool Ka Phool Ashok Kumar Directorial debut of Yash ChopraRajendra KumarMala SinhaNanda 1961 Dharmputra Shashi KapoorMala Sinha1965WaqtRaaj Kumar Sunil Dutt Shashi KapoorSadhana Sharmila Tagore 1973 Daag Rajesh Khanna Sharmila TagoreRaakhee 1975 Deewaar Amitabh Bachchan Considered a "landmark" in Hindi Cinema;'Deewaar' Turns 50: Amitabh Bachchan, Salim-Javed, and the Birth of the New Bollywood Hero Shashi KapoorNeetu SinghParveen Babi1976Kabhi KabhieAmitabh BachchanShashi KapoorRaakhee GulzarWaheeda RehmanRishi KapoorNeetu Singh 1981 Silsila Shashi Kapoor Amitabh BachchanJaya Bachchan Rekha 1984 Mashaal Dilip KumarAnil KapoorSaeed Jaffrey 1985 Faasle Sunil Dutt Rekha1988 Vijay Rajesh KhannaHema MaliniRishi KapoorAnil KapoorSaeed JaffreyAnupam Kher1989 Chandni Sridevi Rishi KapoorVinod Khanna
Episode 2: Prodigal Son Year Film Cast Notes1991 Lamhe Sridevi Anil KapoorWaheeda Rehman Anupam Kher1993 Darr Sunny Deol Juhi Chawla Shah Rukh Khan1995 Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge Shah Rukh Khan Directorial debut of Aditya ChopraKajol
Episode 3: The New Guard Year Film Cast Notes2000 Mohabbatein Shah Rukh Khan Rebooted Amitabh Bachchan's career; directed by Aditya ChopraAmitabh BachchanAishwarya RaiUday ChopraJugal HansrajJimmy Sheirgill 2002 Mujhse Dosti Karoge! Hrithik Roshan Rani MukerjiKareena Kapoor KhanUday Chopra2004 Hum Tum Saif Ali KhanRani MukerjiRishi KapoorJimmy Sheirgill2004Dhoom Abhishek BachchanJohn AbrahamUday Chopra2004Veer-Zaara Shah Rukh Khan Rani MukerjiPreity ZintaAmitabh BachchanHema Malini2005 Bunty Aur Babli Amitabh Bachchan Abhishek BachchanRani Mukerji2007 Chak De! India Shah Rukh Khan The film's theme song is frequently played, or sung by fans, at sports events in India.Vidya MalvadeShilpa ShuklaSagarika GhatgeAnaitha NairSeema Azmi
Episode 4: Legacy Year Film Stars Notes2008 Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi Shah Rukh KhanDirected by Aditya Chopra Special appearances in the song "Phir Milenge Chalte Chalte"
Preity Zinta as Sharmila Tagore Kajol as Nargis Rani Mukerji as Neetu Singh Bipasha Basu as Sadhana Shivdasani Lara Dutta as HelenAnushka Sharma2012 Jab Tak Hai Jaan Shah Rukh Khan Final film of Yash ChopraAnushka SharmaKatrina KaifAnupam KherNeetu SinghRishi Kapoor
Featured interviews Actors, Director, and Producer Chopra family Yash Chopra (archival footage) Aditya Chopra Pamela Chopra Uday Chopra Rani Mukerji Karan Johar
Other Actors Dharmendra Deol Amitabh Bachchan Vinod Khanna Mithun Chakraborty Rishi Kapoor Sunny Deol Anil Kapoor Juhi Chawla Jackie Shroff Mohnish Bahl Madhuri Dixit Arjun Rampal Ajay Devgn Saif Ali Khan Salman Khan Aamir Khan Shah Rukh Khan Hrithik Roshan Karishma Kapoor Abhishek Bachchan Sanjay Dutt Govinda Ahuja Manisha Koirala Sunil Shetty Arshad Warsi Sushmita Sen Bobby Deol Akshaye Khanna Dino Morea Aftab Shivdasani Namrata Shirodkar Vivek Oberoi Tusshar Kapoor Kajol Devgn Aishwarya Rai Bachchan John Abraham Emraan Hashmi Zayed Khan Shahid Kapoor Ameesha Patel Kareena Kapoor Khan Imran Khan Neil Nitin Mukesh Jugal Hansraj Jimmy Shergill Bipasha Basu Lara Dutta Dia Mirza Isha Koppikar Neha Dhupia Ranbir Kapoor Ranveer Singh Katrina Kaif Deepika Padukone Arjun Kapoor Anushka Sharma Ayushmann Khurrana Bhumi Pednekar Neetu Singh Sooraj Barjatya Ashutosh Rana Anupam Kher Akshay Kumar Preity Zinta
Filmmakers, choreographers, and writers Vijay Krishna Acharya Sooraj Barjatya Anupama Chopra Salim Khan Manish Malhotra Vaibhavi Merchant Namrata Rao Maneesh Sharma Lilly Singh
Reception
Suchin Mehrotra of Hindustan Times in his review stated "The Romantics works best when it uses the YRF filmography merely as a stepping-off point to discuss Hindi cinema as a whole. The show comes to us at a time when it feels like filmmakers are looking back and celebrating what was." A reviewer for Indian Express stated "It’s all rah-rah, hardly any nose-digs, but then you don’t really expect any in a series like this, about the biggest, most storied production house in Hindi cinema." Renuka Vyavahare of The Times of India rated the first season 4 stars out of 5 and remarked "The Romantics is a treat to watch if you love Hindi cinema and Yash Chopra, which are pretty much synonymous." Shubham Kulkarni from Koimoi rated 4/5 and wrote "The Romantics is an ode to the man who defined Hindi cinema for decades and even died with his director’s hat on."
See also Angry Young Men (2024) The Roshans (2025)
References
External links
"Netflix’s ‘The Romantics’ Is Essential — and Unprecedented — Hindi Film History"- IndieWire