Bollywood90”s Decade is a goldmine of sweet nostalgia for a certain #generation.
Was the 1990s kitsch or pop? Pure cringe-fest or plain, unadulterated nostalgia? It doesn’t matter if you look at the 90s as awful or awesome because the impact (for better or for worse) of that decade is so deep-rooted within us – especially the 30-somethings reading this – that we remain very much a product of that decade even though many world cinema-exposed cineastes and urban sophiscates now seem to be in utter denial about the 90s. Did it even exist? Yes, it did. Yes, before Netflix, there were the video parlours (early training ground for filmmakers as varied as Anurag Kashyap and Madhur Bhandarkar). Yes, we could tell our Nadeem-Shravans from Jatin-Lalits and Mahesh Bhatts from David Dhawans (no right-minded 90s guy can ever confuse Mahesh Bhatt’s cinema with David Dhawan’s). Yes, Doordarshan was a bestseller and we flocked to that one family in the building that owned a TV set for our weekly fix (in our case, we were that family unfortunately). Yes, we waited for weeks to catch movies of our favourite stars, in many cases pre-booking it by physically paying a visit to the theater. Yes, there once existed the ubiquitous Munna/Pakya-type black marketer (refer to Aamir Khan in Rangeela) outside Maratha Mandir, Minerva, Geeta, Gaiety-Galaxy and Chandan among others.
Yes, there were no cell phones and only landlines with their heart patient-killing ring tones. And yes, there was the fashion, as epitomised by larger-than-life hits such as Hum Aapke Hain Koun…! and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. The rich kids went designer post Kuch Kuch Hota Hai while those enjoying the thug life, one supposes, found solace in the candy-coloured Rangeela. Thousands of diehard Salman Khanand Madhuri Dixit fans emulated the wedding look of Hum Aapke Hain Koun…!, some compulsively wearing it as a uniform. The Khans emerged as the romantic stars of the 90s but the decade equally belonged to action stars like Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, Sanjay Dutt, Sunny Deol and Suniel Shetty. Of the heroines, Karisma Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Raveena Tandon, Kajol, Rani Mukerji, Manisha Koirala and Shilpa Shetty commanded large followings. Govinda was a special breed, with his own cottage industry of the silly and the slapstick.
ACTORS
Dharmendra Deol
NAKABANDI, TAHALKA, KSHATRIYA, POLICEWALA GUNDA, PYAR KIYA TOH DARNA KYA,KOHRAAM, FARISTAY, PAAP KI ANDHI,LOHA, HIMMATVAAR, HUMLAA, LOHPURUSH, FAUJI, HUM SAB CHOR HAI, WAQT KA BAADSHAH, MAST KALANDAR
Amitabh Bachchan
AAJ KA ARJUN, HUM, KHUDA GAWAH, BADE MIYAN CHOTE MIYAN, HINDUSTAN KI KASAM, MAJOR SAAB, SOORYAVANSHAM,
MRITYUDAATA, LAAL BAADSHAH, AGNEEPATH,KOHRAM,INSANIYAT,AJOOBA,INDRAJEEET,AKAYLA.
Nana Patekar – नाना पाटेकर
KRANTIVEER, TIRANGAA, RAJU BAN GAYA GENTLEMAN, AGNI SAKSHI, ANGAAR, GHULAM E MUSTHAFA, YESHWANT
Mithun Chakraborty
RAAVAN RAAZ, CHEETAH, DALAAL, JAALAD, MUQADAR, SHAPATH, CHANDAAL, SHER E HINDUSTAN
Sunny Deol
DAMINI, GHAYAL, GHATAK, NARSIMHA, VISHWATMA, JEET, BORDER, ZIDDI, DARR, SALAKHEIN, LOOTERE, ARJUN PANDIT, KSHATRIYA, VEERTA, HIMMAT, ANGRAKSHAK, QAHAR, AJAY, VISHNU DEVA, IMTIHAAN
Govinda
SWARG, HUM, DULHE RAJA, ANARI NO.1, HERO NO.1, COOLIE NO.1, DEEWANA MASTANA, MUQABLA, IZZATDAAR, SAAJAN CHALE SASURAL, ANDOLAN, KHUDDAR, DULARA, RAJA BABU, APMAN KI AAG, AANKHEIN, SHOLA AUR SHABNAM, BADE MIYAN CHOTE MIYAN
Anil S Kapoor
BETA, JAMAI RAJA, BENAAM BAADSHAH, TAAL, KISHAN KANHIYA, GHAR HO TOH AISA, HUMARA DIL AAPKE PASS HAI, HUM AAPKE DIL MEIN REHTE HAI, BIWI NO.1, DEEWANA MASTANA, VIRASAT, JUDAAI, LOAFER, LAADLA, ANDAZ
Sanjay Dutt
SAAJAN, SADAK, KHALNAYAK, KSHATRIYA, VAASTAV, THANEDAAR, HASEENA MAAN JAYEGI, KHUBSOORAT, ZAMANE SE KYA DARNA, DAAG THE FIRE, JAI VIKRANTA, AATISH, ANDOLAN, ADHARM
RISHIKAPOOR
DEEWANA, DAMINI, BOL RADHA BOL, HEENA, SAAJAN KA GHAR, HUM DONO
Jackie Shroff
RANGEELA, AGNI SAKSHI, BORDER, SHAPATH, BANDHAN, KHALNAYAK, BAAP NUMBARI BETA DUS NUMBARI, ANGAAR, 100 DAYS, IZZAT, POLICE OFFICER, GARDISH
Akshay Kumar
ELAAN, YEH DILLAGI, JAI KISHEN, MOHRA, MAIN KHILADI TU ANARI, SUHAAG, ZAALIM, SABSE BADA KHILADI, KHILADI OF KA KHILADI, DIL TOH PAGAL HAI, JAANWAR
Ajay Devgn
PHOOL AUR KANTE, JIGAR, SUHAAG, DILWALE, SHAKTIMAN, VIJAYPATH, HAQEEQAT, JAAN, DILJALE, ISHQ, MAJOR SAAB, PYAAR TOH HONA HI THA, KACHCHE DHAAGE, HOGI PYAR KI JEET, HUM DIL DE CHUKE SANAM, HINDUSTAN KI KASAM, NAAJAYAZ
Suniel V Shetty
BALWAAN, DIWALE, ANTH, MOHRA, GOPI KISHAN, KRISHNA, BORDER, JUDGE MUJRIM, BHAI, QAHAR
Salman Khan
HUM AAPKE HAI KAUN, HUM SAATH SAATH HAI, KARAN ARJUN, BAAGHI, SANAM BEWAFA, PATHAR KE PHOOL, SAAJAN, KARAN ARJUN, JEET, JUDWA, PYAR KIYA TOH DARNA KYA, BANDHAN, KUCH KUCH HOTA HAI, JAB PYAAR KISI SE HOTA HAI, HUM TUMHARE HAI SANAM, BIWI NO.1, HUM DIL DE CHUKE SANAM
Shah Rukh Khan
DEEWANA, RAJU BAN GAYA GENTLEMAN, BAAZIGAR, DARR, ANZAAM, CHAMATKAR, KABHI HAA KABHI NAA, KARAN ARJUN, DILWALE DULHANIYA LE JAAYENGE, ARMY, YES BOSS, PARDES, DIL TOH PAGAL HAI, HUM TUMHARE HAI SANAM, KUCH KUCH HOTA HAI
AAMIRKHAN
TUM MERE HO, DIL, DIL HAI KE MANTA NAHI, JO JEETA WOHI SIKANDAR, RANGEELA, GHULAM, SARFAROSH, AFSANA PYAR KA, HUM HAI RAHI PYAAR KE, ISHQ, RAJA HINDUSTANI, MANN
Saif Ali Khan
MAIN KHILADI TU ANARI, IMTIHAAN, KACHCHE DHAAGE, YEH DILLAGI, HUM SAATH SAATH HAI
ACTRESSES
#SRIDEVI
LAADLA, JUDAI, GUMRAH, ARMY, KHUDA GAWAH, FARISHTAY, NAKABANDI, KHUDA GAWAH
Madhuri Dixit – Nene
KISHAN KANHIYA, IZZATDAAR, THANEDAAR, DIL, BETA, HUM AAPKE HAI KAUN, DIL TOH PAGAL HAI, JAMAI RAJA, ANZAAM, RAJA, KHALNAYAK, 100 DAYS, SAAJAN, HUM TUMHARE HAI SANAM
Juhi Chawla | Actress
SWARG, BOL RADHA BOL, ANDAZ, DARR, SAJAN GHAR JAANA HAI, BENAM BADSHAH, YES BOSS, NAAJAYAZ, LOAFER, MR & MRS KHILADI, DEEWANA MASTANA, ISHQ
KARISHMAKAPOOR
PREM QAIDI, JIGAR, DULARA, MUQABLA, ANARI, RAJA BABU, JEET, KRISHNA, RAJA HINDUSTANI, DIL TOH PAGAL HAI, JUDWAA, KHUDDAR, AATISH, SUHAAG, GOPI KISHAN, COOLIE NO.1, HERO NO.1, SAAJAN CAHLE SASURAL, AJAY, BIWI NO.1, HASEENA MAAN JAYEGI, HUM SAATH SAATH HAI, JAANWAR, ANDAZ
Raveena R Tandon
AATISH, DULHE RAJA, MOHRA, IMTIHAAN, KHILADIYO KA KHILADI, GULAM E MUSTHAFA, ANARI NO.1, GHARWALI BAHARWALI, ZIDDI, LAADLA, DILWALE, ZAMANE SE KYA DARNA
MAMTAKULKARNI
SABSE BADA KHILADI, POLICEWALA GUNDA, ANDOLAN, POLICEWALA GUNDA, KRANTIVEER
Kajol
BAAZIGAR, YEH DILLAGI, KARAN ARJUN, DILWALE DULHANIYA LE JAAYENGE, HUMARA DIL AAPKE PASS HAI, KUCH KUCH HOTA HAI, PYAR TOH HONA HI THA, GUPT, ISHQ, PYAAR KIYA TOH DARNA KYA
Urmila Matondkar
NARSIMHA, CHAMATKAR, RAANGELA, KHUBSOORAT, SATYA, JUDAAI, AA GALE LAG JA
Tabu
CHACHI 420, HUM SAATH SAATH HAI, BIWI NO.1, BORDER, VIRASAT, MACHIS, JEET, SAAJAN CHALE SASURAL, VIJAYPATH, HIMMAT
Pooja Bhatt
DIL HAI KI MANTA NAHI, SADAK, ANGRAKSHAK, BORDER, HUM DONO
DIVYABHARTI
SHOLA AUR SHABNAM, VISHWATMA, DEEWANA, BALWAAN, KSHATRIYA
Shilpa Shetty Kundra
BAAZIGAR, HIMMAT, JAANWAR, MAIN KHILADI TU ANARI
SUPPORTING ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
KADER KHAN, PREM CHOPDA, AMRISH PURI, OM PURI, ALOK NATH, MOHNISH BEHL, PARESH RAWAL, GULSHAN GROVER, SADASHIV AMARPURKAR,DANNY DENZONGPA, SAEED JAFRREY, ASHISH VIDYARTHI, RANJEET, SHAKTI KAPOOR, LAXMIKANT BERDE, DEEPAK TIJORI, RAZA MURAAD, ANUPAM KHER, RAMI REDDY, SATISH SHAH, SATISH KAUSHIK, DALIP TAHIL, MUKESH RISHI, RAKESH BEDI, JOHNNY LEVER, MUKESH KHANNA, KIRAN KUMAR, NASEERUDDIN SHAH, ARUN BAKSHI, TINU ANAND, MOHAN JOSHI, REEMA LAGOO, FARIDA JALAAL, RAKHEE GULJAAR, ANJANA MUMTAAZ, BINDU, ARUNA IRANI, RENUKA SHAHANE, HIMANI SHIVPURI, SUSHMA SETH
SINGERS
KUMAR SANU, UDIT NARAYAN, SP BALASUBRAHMANYAM, VINOD RATHOD, ABHIJEET BHATTACHARYA, BAPPI LAHIRI, ANU MALIK, HARIHARAN, JAGJIT SINGH, PANKAJ UDHAS, SONU NIGAM, SHAAN, KK, LUCKY ALI, PALASH SEN, BAABUL SUPRIYO, ALKA YAGNIK, ANURADHA PAUDWAL, SADHNA SARGAM, KAVITA KRISHNAMURTHY, FALGUNI PATHAK, ALISHA CHINAI
Note – I include movies ( 1990–1999 ) in this list on basis of – average, above average, semi hit, hit, superhit, blockbuster, all time blockbuster.