Dil mera har baar ye sunne ko bekarar hai….

Delete sunne and put dekhne in its place for Hrithik Roshan, India’s very own Greek god who stormed the screen with Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai 20 years ago (on January 14) and left a generation of women drooling. Ek Pal Ka Jeena and Hrithik’s gas-pedal moves, anyone? Spray tan, sparkly shirt, killer abs and moves. Hrithik’s Rohit/Raj gave all the dudes out there impossible boyfriend goals, and the girls were certainly not complaining.

Exactly five years after director Rakesh Roshan pulled off a rebirth drama, Karan Arjun, he launched his son in the almost-rebirth romance thriller that became the smash hit of the year. Hrithik, an eye candy who could emote and dance like a dream, became a superstar overnight. So did his pretty co-star Ameesha Patel (Sonia was ditzy but endearing). The songs (Rajesh Roshan) were a rage, despite charges of plagiarism (remember the Vangelis row). Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai soon got the ultimate stamp of success of the times - actually, two. The underworld targeted Rakesh Roshan and the film joined the league of legends known by their acronyms.

To be fair, KNPH is still watchable even though the cellphone ploy in the climax, which evoked gasps back then, would make a kid of 2020 smile. The film is racy, slick and smartly turns a love story into a revenge thriller with a twist.

Rich and spoilt girl Sonia’s first love Rohit, a poor but dishy musician, inadvertently stumbles upon a drug cartel and is killed. Heartbroken Sonia gets a second chance at love when Rohit’s doppelganger Raj falls hard for her. Conveniently, he’s a billionaire’s son in New Zealand with nothing to do but impress her. So he follows her to Mumbai and helps her find Rohit’s killers, one of whom happens to be her daddy dearest, Mr Saxena (Anupam Kher is a pro at urbane menace).

Well-etched cameos by Dalip Tahil, Mohnish Bahl, Ashish Vidyarthi, Tanaaz Currim, Farida Jalal, Satish Shah give the world of Sonia, Rohit/Raj a believable feel. The bonding between Rohit and his younger brother Amit (child star Abhishek Sharma) is something that director Roshan handles well without getting mawkish. When Rohit is gone, doppelganger Raj also forms a bond with the little boy.

Twenty years on, Hrithik has had his fair share of ups and downs on screen and off it, but continues to be a top star. Hrithik’s War with another star son, Tiger Shroff, was the top grosser of 2019. But KNPH is special, the sugar rush of first love.