Bollywood's King Of Romance, Yash Chopra, Is No More (1932-2012)

This is terribly sad news.

Yash Chopra, the man who changed an entire nation's vision of on-screen romance, has died at the age of 80, after a brief bout with Dengue Fever. Chopra's career in Bollywood goes back over fifty years, as director of many of India's most beloved romantic epics. From the '60s to today, not a decade has passed without at least one, and often many more, acknowledged classics coming under his direction. In addition to his massively successful career as a director, he also founded one of India's most iconic production companies, Yash Raj Films, in 1976. The studio has gone on to major international success in the years since, even recently opening a Los Angeles office, from which they've already begun production on two English language films.

I will admit that the films of Yash Chopra are not typically the kind of films that ScreenAnarchy would cover, but not reporting on this news would be like ignoring the death of a major Hollywood producer/director, and would be disrespectful to Chopra's legacy. The fact is, ScreenAnarchy has covered at least one of Chopra's directorial efforts in 1993's Darr, possibly my favorite Indian film of the 1990s. There are many more to go along with that. He helped build the careers of such major Bollywood stars as Amitabh Bachchan (Deewar, Kabhi Kabhie, Silsila, Kaala Patthar, Trishul), Rishi Kapoor (Chandni), Anil Kapoor (Lamhe, Mashaal), and Shah Rukh Khan (Darr, Dil To Pagal Hai, Veer-Zaara).

Yash Chopra had recently completed shooting on Jab Tak Hai Jaan with Shah Rukh Khan, which he had mentioned would be his final film in interviews over the last few months. The film co-stars Katrina Kaif (Ek Tha Tiger, Singh Is Kinng) and Anushka Sharma (Band Baaja Baarat, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi), and features music and lyrics from Academy Award winners A.R. Rahman and Gulzar. This is going to be a massive film with incredible talent at every turn, and it's a tragedy that Chopra won't be around to see it come to life for his audiences. I've included the trailer below, and I will be reviewing the film when it releases this Diwali, November 13.