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Baghban (2003) More at IMDbPro »

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11 out of 15 people found the following comment useful :-
A relevant movie for the times, 19 October 2003
Author: gb-1

Lately, Bollywood has churned out movies with tremendous show of skin and exhibitionism, but this movie is such a stark contrast and is one of the reasons that it works. In this movie they have dealt with the age-old issue of children not willing to take the responsibility of their parents when the parents are considered "useless" by their children. Although we have seen such movies in the past like Avtar and Amrit, but what is different about this movie is the way they have shown the romance of an old couple. I can't remember seeing such romance in any other Hindi movie, so it is refreshing to see that even an old couple can have youthful romance.

This is one of those movies that makes you think and analyze your relationship with your parents. As one's parents get older their habits get formed and many times members of the younger generation (myself included) get angry at them and I felt how important it is to overlook the immediate state of your parents, and instead to reflect on how they have toiled in bringing you up. Another question that arose in my mind after watching the movie was whether parents have children so that they have someone to take care of them or do they have children without any ulterior motive. After having discussions with my Mom (in relation to this movie) I realized that, yes, everyone does have expectations, but that's not the reason that they work so hard to build a child's future. In fact, as a child, we have expectations from our parents through our dependence on them, so why should we accuse them of wrongdoing when we have similar expectations. It is human to want to be loved, and that's the least we can do for our parents. Well, after reading this lengthy philosophical discussion you can see how thought-provoking this movie is. Let me get back to the movie. After a long time I have enjoyed watching Amitabh Bachchan, and Hema Malini's performance was so subtle and yet she gave a powerful performance. There is one scene in particular, where she tells Amitabh to have his medicine (right before they get separated) and one moment she has her eyes shut and the next moment her eyes are filled with tears. In this movie I didn't find much melodrama and the dialogues are hard-hitting and are to the point. Finally, the performance of Paresh Rawal, is, as usual, very good. I hope everyone watches this movie with their families.

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
an old story comes a time when it really has to be retold, 13 October 2003
Author: jungleking from london

Baghban - the first curiosity came with what the name rely meant. And the second curiosity was that could Hema still look so stunning!! The second one was yes she can!!! And as for the first one it came after watching the movie. I understood why its meant to mean the caretaker or Guardian. The movie is trying make a metaphoric relationship between an individual and their family and comparing it to a garden. Your family are like a garden, you have to slave over it and look after it for it to flourish and thrive, and any neglect will result in a weeded unattractive piece of earth. But the relationship that one has with their garden is very interactive - the gardener will put all their effort in trying to get a thriving garden and in turn the garden will reward the gardener with a sense of achievement, and fruits of labour.

This is the topic that Baghban is tackling - family life, and more specifically the life of the elderly. All their lives, our parents thrive the give us the best, to ensure all our wishes and dreams are achieved, to ensure that our lives are given more priority over theirs. But in this modern world what is excepted in return? Maybe the saying is true - nothing is free is this world - not even the love from your parents. Can we say that there is an expectation from our parents that we should look after them in their old age? Is it a sense of duty? NO - it is essence of humanity and gratitude that we should foster and love those that have loved us - and should not be obliged to do so but cause we want to do so. If we look around us there are so many children that have been abandoned, abused or neglected - so we should be grateful that we are not one of them and its are parents that are responsible for it.

The essence of this story has been integrated into Baghban with Amitabh and Hema being the head of the household. Both churning out wonderful performances. It was great to see Hema after such a long time and looking still fab as memory recollects from the 70's. Amitabh delivered a wonderful performance as a hurt, angry and confined old man, and its good to see such roles being written for him. The pair together brought a sense of love and comfort not seen onscreen for quite some time. Their four sons and their families give out appropriate performances and help to pull the movie along. Also the guest appearances are good and adequate. The show stealer has to be Paresh Rawal. Indirectly or intentionally the guest appearances and Paresh characters iterate the fact that friends you can choose, but family you can't - and in times of need it is your friends that stand by you and not your family.

The story has been told many a times before but maybe because it is made now at a time when such a message has to be iterated again, or it was the combination of direction and acting that made this a memorable experience. The movie has its down points, but they are thin and varied and can be expected when tacking such a subject in a such a short time. In all it is not a good movie, it's a great movie, but remember take your box of Kleenex with you.

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5 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
very emotional movie, 1 December 2006

Author: Greenpanni Kumar from United States

this movie is very emotional....children should learn to give love for their parents and not separate them.

"Parents are not the ladders to children to grow up but are roots of children's success" these are small things which often neglected ...in the movie the children separate the parents and at the age where they need love they are denied...righteously they deserve the punishment...

Amitabh and Hema Malini excelled in their respective roles and emotions shown by them were able to bring tears in my eyes, especially when they are separated.

Baghban, should be shown to every child to let them know the value of parents.

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2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Great Story Bad Execution, 19 January 2009

Author: dhruvsha from United States

OK first of all i loved the story, but the acting was overdone to the point of suffocation. Seriously, though it may depict probably real life experience, it was very unrealistic with what seemed to be very old Bollywood acting (most of the films in the 90s were more realistic executed).

I must admit, however, that this suffocating exaggeration worked with the film and depicted the emotions well. Whether someone was happy, sad, or angry, it captured it well. Still this is the 21st century. Get real.

I really don't think this is a movie worth paying for, but if your into the old romanticized film, this is the movie for you.

All in all, great story but they could have seriously toned down the ancient bollywood acting (im ignorant here i really haven't watched that many Bollywood movies that were made before the 1990s).

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3 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
brilliant, 10 January 2006

Author: chicray from United Kingdom

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Being one of the first Indian movies I have ever watched, I didn't know what to expect.I have to admit I was enchanted and awed beyond my expectation by the way the brilliant storyline, the excellent acting by Amitabh, Hema and the others, plus the superb editing and production combined, to create the most near perfect film that not only Indian families can relate to but every family from every culture, race and nation, which is excellent in itself.I cried like a baby! Indian movies have a new big fan in me because of this excellent production, Baghban.

The main focus of the story line centred around an elderly couple and the manner in which situations faced by elderly people nowadays and experienced everywhere in the world were presented touched me deeply. Great piece of work!

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5 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
A Film Based on Truth, 19 October 2003
Author: Zeeshan Kazi

Last week I watched BAGHBAN and I found film based on truth. Sir Amitabh with his legendary performances has once again proved that he is the star of all the times and the legend of the new millenium. What should I say about Madam Hema Mailini, she really knows the magic how to grasp time in her hand and as time has passed she has really become more beautiful. Madam Hema Malini's performances were also fabulous. And about Salman Khan, this is the first film where I have liked his performances.

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Mixed feelings: sometimes moving, sometimes overdone, 9 July 2009

Author: peter_young from Australia

Baghban is generally good, thought-provoking and moving, but it's never outstanding. This is the story of Raj and Pooja (Bachchan and Malini) who are married for over 40 years and have four sons living in India and one adopted son living abroad. The first half portrays the love of the entire family and particularly the longstanding love of the elderly parents. But then, when Raj retires and asks their children to take care for him and his wife, they get a shocking reply: the sons offer them to live separately, each spouse with another son, and change residence every half a year to another son. This is quite unbelievable and unrealistic. Would any son have had enough courage to act so cheap with his parents and separate them despite knowing how much they love each other? I don't think so. I was surprised that after all, the parents decide to accept their children's conditions and do that. I wonder, how is it possible? Why wouldn't they stay together in their house and forget about their children? Well if they had done this, this film probably wouldn't have been made, so that's pretty sums it up.

And that's what the story is about: the first six months they live separately, Raj in the house of the second son, and Pooja in the house of the elder son. The film portrays their loneliness and suffering without each other, but most importantly shows how they discover the true colours of their children. Their children don't care for them, treat them badly and don't show any respect. Their wives are even worse. This part of the film is quite well-done. The main problem with all this story is that you get to wonder how come they never get to meet during these six months. Before they moved, they always had parties and dinners with the entire family and now they suddenly don't? The savior comes in the form of Salman Khan, their adopted son who literally worships them. I did not really understand the need to show such an enormous love from Salman to his parents. It was, though intelligently ironic, extremely cheesy.

Despite all the flaws, the film manages to touch your heart with several scenes and great moments. For instance, the Diwali phone conversation between the couple; there is nothing to eat in the fridge and Raj pretends to be eating, yet his wife understands that he is lying. The scene is moving. I loved the scene in which Hema asks her son how he can be moved by his wife's tears but doesn't give a damn for his mother's tears. Hema Malini was spectacular in both the mentioned scenes. I also liked the nice interaction between Raj and the new people he gets to meet in the restaurant in which he spends most of his time, including all the youngsters and particularly the owners of the restaurant, a childless couple played by Paresh Rawal and Lillete Dubey.

Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini, who have worked together many times, bring so much experience, sensitivity and talent to their respective roles that their almost fictitious love becomes convincing. Paresh Rawal and Lillete Dubey play their roles to perfection and make for an extremely sympathetic couple. Slaman and Mahima are wasted, and all the four sons, their wives and children are average. The film belongs to the main lead and it's nice to see an out-and-out commercial Bollywood film in which the lead pair are 60 years old.

Baghban works in parts. Sometimes it's exciting, but sometimes it's boring and unwatchable. It generally works as an entertainer. The story had been tackled in Bollywood too many times before in films like Avtaar. Yet there is something very refreshing and new about the way it's presented in a modern-day India. The irony the film presents is too evident: strangers treat them better than their own children. I guess this was made to shock the audience and convey a striking message. The music is average, but the fact that Bachchan performs his own songs is good for the film. The ending is dramatic, overdone, but still somehow works on you. Maybe it's the best thing about this film; the film's story and good acting are stronger than any of its weaknesses.

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1 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Nice Movie, but Overdone, 20 July 2006

Author: starstruck52 from United States

Watching this movie was like watching a drama which is the only complaint I have. The movie is very old fashioned however a pretty good movie. Because of that the movie tends to get boring. This is one of the first movies I have seen, which has the lead couple older than their 50's. But that adds a freshness in the movie. Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini share excellent chemistry. Amitabh Bachchan gives a good performance which is nowhere near Mohabbatein but still ranks high. In this movie you see a new side where he is not the person with negativity in the family. Hema Malini is also good. She dances very nicely and surprisingly looks like daughter Esha Deol. She made an excellent comeback and continued well in Veer-Zaara. Salman Khan performs well, but either his acting or character seemed to unbelievable which is sad because this role could have been ranked high. Mahima Chuadary looks beautiful and performs well. Rimi Sen may not look as beautiful as she normally does in other films, but performs very well. Unlike Salman's character, her character is written very well. But someone needed to recast her because she does not look like Suman's daughter. The rest of the cast performs well. The best of the children had to be Suman as the daughter-in-law who has the mother mainly because Divya Dutta overacts. Samir Soni who plays Divya's husband performs very well and was better because Aman Verma overacts. The songs are decent, but quite boring. Chali Chali (Came) was my favorite because of its amazing dancing. Meri Makhna was okay because the song was overrated to me. Main Yahaan Tu Wahan (I'm Here, You're There) was good, but got a little boring. The background music and Pehle Kabhi (First Time) were pleasant songs, but also got a little boring. The movie is worth a watch due to the acting of Amitabh-Hema, but don't expect anything brilliant.

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2 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
A movie that depicts real life REALLY!!!, 19 October 2003

Author: bhela1979

First of all, I would like to take this opportunity to agree with jungleking. He has told it like it is.

I'll admit there are a few movies that will make me ball out and this is one of them. This is movie is reality in its true colours.

Great performances by the whole cast and great work by the crew.

I believe that Baghban should be made into a book, but that is my view.

If you haven't seen Baghban, watch it as soon as possible. It is worth the time.

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3 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
Excellent movie!, 17 August 2006

Author: virindra from Netherlands

What a great movie! I don't have to tell you that. Yes, the movie is somehow a little bit overdone, but the story is very new and refreshing. Two parents who have brought up 5 sons and at the end they only can depend on one, an adopted son.

I didn't like all of the sons as actors. The four men who came directly out of soap series, don't have it in them to play in a big Bollywood movie. They don't act confident although they try very hard. Even Salman Khan acted badly at the end of his speech for his father. What was he doing? Crying or something? I like him more in movies where he plays a mental patient like in Tere naam or Kyon ki? Not because I think Salman is a retard, but he is very great in such roles. The little boy who played the grandson was ridiculous to see. I have seen much better young actors of his age.

The whole movie was built on a big fundament called all together Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Paresh Rawal, Lillette Dubey and of course Sharat Saxena! Great songs, and well done dancing.

The end of Amitabh's speech where he thanks his wife is stolen directly from the movie A beautiful mind. A pity, but still Amitabh can make such a boring speech so interesting. Talking about boring, maybe one of the reporters in the movie has been sleeping when he asked: "If it would have been your own experience, what would you have done?" If he had listened to the speech he would have known that Baghban really was his life story.

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