Preity Zinta says ‘there was no place for a hero or heroine’ in Dil Chahta Hai as film celebrates 21 years

Actor Preity Zinta has posted a note as her film Dil Chahta Hai clocked 21 years of its release. Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Preity also shared a brief clip from the film that also starred Aamir Khan. The video showed their characters Akash and Shalini meeting on a flight to Sydney. Dil Chahta Hai (2001) is a coming-of-age romance film written and directed by Farhan Akhtar. (Also Read | Farhan Akhtar performs in Goa, crowd sings along to Dil Chahta Hai title song)

Sharing the clip, Preity captioned the post, “Dil Chahta Hai turns a year older today. A film where there was no place for a hero or heroine – just relatable characters that we could reach out and touch and laugh out aloud with.”

She also added, “It will always have a very special place in my heart. Thank you to the entire cast n crew & the audience for all the love #ting #21yearsofdilchahtahai @faroutakhtar @aamirkhanproductions #AkshayeKhanna #SaifAliKhan #DimpleKapadia @sonalikul @shankarehsaanloy @ritesh_sid @excelmovies.”

Earlier, Farhan shared a clip from the film and wrote a note on Instagram. He said, “The film that started it all, turns 21 today. Thank you to the cast and the crew who believed in it. Thank you to the audiences who continue to give it so much love. Dil jitna chahta tha usse bahaut zyaada milaa hai aapse. Love you all.”

Reacting to the post, Kunal Nayyar commented, “Will watch tonight in honour of this great feat!” Many celebs like Siddhant Chaturvedi, Zoya Akhtar, Radhika Apte, and Amrita Arora dropped red heart emojis. Actor Ishaan Khatter said, “The film that feels like a best friend.” TV personality and actor Shibani Dandekar wrote, “Iconic.” Filmmaker Farah Khan posted, “Feels like yesterday.” Veteran actor Shabana Azmi’s comment read, “It will always remain an iconic film…”

Dil Chahta Hai was produced by Ritesh Sidhwani and released under the banner of Excel Entertainment. Apart from Aamir and Preity, the film features Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Sonali Kulkarni, and Dimple Kapadia. The movie was produced on a budget of ₹80 million ($1 million), and filming took place in both India and Australia.