'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge', 'Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani' to 'Jab We Met': How trains became Bollywood’s favorite co-star

Trains have frequently served as a romantic backdrop to marked love stories in Bollywood films. A notable example is the unforgettable moment of the hand reach in the film 'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge', when Raj makes his hand reach to Simran, in the extraordinary moment when Amrish Puri's character utters the line "Ja Simran, ja, jee le apni zindagi." The actual train station ending scene has become a representation of love, tenacity, and happy beginnings.

'Chaiyya Chaiyya', from 'Dil Se'... is Bollywood's ultimate train song and perhaps the most iconic train song of all time! Shot on top of a moving train in the Nilgiri Hills, it featured Shah Rukh Khan and Malaika Arora, with choreography by Farah Khan, all set to original music by A.R. Rahman. The song captured an incredible combination of spectacle, danger, energy, romance, and insanity; nothing before and nothing after can replicate the joy or magic of experiencing such beauty in film. Everything about it from the callisthenics of the dancers balancing on the train while it raced along the tracks was cinematic art. It became more than a song. It is a global marker of Bollywood ingenuity and the global love for trains.

In Bollywood films, taking a train trip usually involves taking a leap of faith, or instigating a new start to life. In the film 'Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani', Naina gets on a train to go away on a trek; as an impulsive decision, she rides away from her past and on her journey of self-discovery. Ultimately, the trip would lead her to new friendships, love, and new ways of life. The trip leads her to friendships, love, and new perspectives on life. Trains, in such narratives, are metaphors for moving forward and embracing change.

'Jab We Met' is one of the most iconic films centered around a train. It opens with a random train run-in between the love-lorn Aditya and the vibrant Geet. The dance of emotions that follows the train ride leads to one of Bollywood's most loved and dedicated rom-coms. The train serves a powerful representation in their lives, literally and metaphorically.

In India, the train is not merely a means of transportation; it is a livelihood that connects people, cultures, and sentiments. Bollywood has taken advantage of this potent metaphor—railway platforms and compartments are where strangers can form a bond, lovers can meet, or friends can part, and all images speak to the social and cultural fabric of India, with strangers making countless non-random connections every day. Some films like 'The Burning Train' have taken it one step further and turned the train into an actual character of itself and a plot that is built around a barreling, flaming express.

'Chennai Express' turned the train into a platform for nostalgia and humor. In a sardonic allusion to 'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge', Shah Rukh Khan pulls Deepika Padukone on a moving train—he just keeps pulling others in a comical exaggeration. The scene blended action, romance, and humor, while also gently referencing one of Bollywood’s transcendent, iconic train moments, demonstrating the power of trains to transport both emotion and entertainment.