5 things Yash Chopra gave us that no other filmmaker can…

The romantic songs that we still love!

It wouldn’t be wrong in saying that Yash Chopra had an good ear for music. All of his projects had the best of music. Be it ‘Aye Meri Zohra Jabeen’ from ‘Waqt’, ‘Mere Dil Mein Aaj Kya Hai’ from ‘Daag’, ‘Kabhi Kabhie Mere Dil Mein’ from ‘Kabhi Kabhie’, ‘Dekha Ek Khwab’ and ‘Neela Aasman So Gaya’ from ‘Silsila’, ‘Mitwa’ from ‘Chandni’ to ‘Do Pal’ from ‘Veer-Zaara’, each and every song immortalised the feeling of love. Yash Chopra made sure that his films had amazing music that can be remembered for ages.

A storyteller way ahead of his time!

There’s no doubt that when it comes to storytelling, Yash Chopra was way ahead of his times. In his directorial debut ‘Dhool Ka Phool’ (1959) itself, the director dealt with the problem of pre-marital affairs and the social status of an illegitimate child in a so-called civilised society. The film starred Mala Sinha and Rajendra Kumar playing the lead roles. Further, his 1981 released 'Silsila' too dealt with extramarital affair. The film featured Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan and Rekha in the lead roles. Even Yash Chopra's finest film ‘Lamhe’ (1991) can definitely be called ahead of its time. ‘Lamhe’ had a young man (Anil Kapoor) falling for a much older woman (Sridevi) but then end up raising her daughter after her death. The daughter (also Sridevi - double role) later finds herself blindly in love with Anil Kapoor’s character. Indeed, Yash Chopra was great at bringing such topics on big screens and therefore he is among those filmmakers who were way ahead of their times.

The depiction of women characters!

Yash Chopra was one of the few filmmakers in Hindi cinema who used to stress a lot on the female characters in his films. Be it Raakhee from ‘Kabhi Kabhie’, Rekha in ‘Silsila’, Sridevi in ‘Chandni’ and ‘Lamhe’, Madhuri Dixit Nene in ‘Dil Toh Pagal Hai’, Juhi Chawla in ‘Darr’ or Preity Zinta in ‘Veer Zaara’, every character is still remembered for their finely nuanced performances. There’s no doubt that in Yash Chopra’s films, the women characters were always central and crucial to the plot and were never taken for granted.

Set the trend of Chiffon sarees

Not only did Yash Chopra leave his legendary stamp with his every movie, every costume that his leading lady draped also became iconic in its own way. He was the one to set the trend of chiffon sarees by getting his film's leading ladies wear one. Sadhana, Rekha, Sridevi, Madhuri Dixit Nene and Juhi Chawla all have been the 'Yash Chopra' heroine and all have set some fabulous fashion trends.

The way Yash Chopra captured Switzerland

The picturesque landscapes of Switzerland had attracted Indian filmmakers in the past too. But, it was Yash Chopra who captured these beautiful landscapes in the most romantic and dreamy way possible. It all started with the release of his 1989 musical romantic drama ‘Chandni’ which went on to redefine romance on big screen. Seriously, who can forget those beautiful locations that added much more beauty along with the songs and the mesmerising chemistry between the lead pair of his films like Rishi Kapoor and Sridevi in ‘Chandni'. Not to miss Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla's film ‘Darr’ that showcased Switzerland in its best form.