These movies captured the scenic charm of Darjeeling in astounding ways.
Darjeeling, the spectacular hill station located in the northern region of West Bengal, has drawn the attention of Bollywood filmmakers time and again. It is home to snow-capped mountains, secluded roads, colonial architecture, vast tea plantations, stunning railways, sacred monasteries, and more which make some ideal locations for film shooting. This is why a huge number of Hindi movies have been shot here, over the last decades. Regardless of the content, the visuals seem captivating due to the sheer elegance of Darjeeling.
The Dev Anand and Asha Parekh starrer ‘Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai’ is set on the backdrops of Darjeeling. In particular, the song sequence “Jiya Ho Jiya Ho Kuchh To Boldo” popularized the town as an ultimate destination for romanticism.
Starring Shammi Kapoor and Kalpana, the Lekh Tandon directorial ‘Professor’ was shot extensively around the town of Darjeeling. The iconic song “Mai Chali Mai Chali” was shot at the Batasia Loop and Chowrasta. The movie became a huge hit and contributed a lot to the tourism of Darjeeling.
Shakti Samanta’s ‘Aradhana’ truly immortalized the Darjeeling toy train on celluloid. Well, we surely cannot forget the song sequence of “Mere Sapno Ki Rani” where Rajesh Khanna is riding an open jeep and following Sharmila Tagore on a toy train. The entire sequence was shot in the Giddapahar areas of Darjeeling.
Directed by Aziz Mirza, the 1992 superhit movie ‘Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman' revolves around a young engineering student in Darjeeling. The iconic song “Dil Hai Mera Deewana” was shot on the pristine streets of the hill station. It also provides some eye-catching visuals of the Tenzing Rock and Toy Train.
Farah Khan’s superhit action-comedy movie ‘Main Hoon Na’ is entirely set in the backdrops of this hill station. The college we see in the movie is actually St. Paul’s School in Darjeeling. Some other iconic scenes were shot at the Darjeeling Railway Station.
In Pradeep Sarkar’s ‘Parineeta’, there’s a sequence where Saif Ali Khan’s character sings the song “Kastomaza Le” on a toy train at the Darjeeling Himalayan Railways. Every time we revisit the sequence, it soothes our hearts with the mesmerizing visuals of the hill station.
The Anurag Basu directorial and Ranbir Kapoor – Priyanka Chopra – Ileana D’Cruz starrer ‘Barfi’ captured the beauty of Darjeeling in an absolutely outstanding manner. It was shot in numerous locations such as St. Paul’s school, Keventer’s, Sukna, Chowrasta, Ghoom Station, Happy Valley Tea Garden, Mayanpuri, Birch Hill Road, Tindharia, Capital Clock Tower and more.
The list also includes movies like ‘Barsaat Ki Ek Raat’, ‘Jhuk Gaya Asman’, ‘Jagga Jasoos’, etc.
