Nepal has been reeling under the aftermath of massive earthquakes that hit the country in recent months. And although in recent times its been a favorite with trekkers, at one point of time, Nepal was among the most sought after locations for filmmakers worldwide. In 2001, 41 foreign films were shot in Nepal. Hollywood movies such as the ‘The Little Buddha’, ‘The Golden Child’, and the Oscar-nominated ‘Caravan’ have been shot here. Several Bollywood films have also been shot here.
Nepal offers a diverse landscape, has beautiful mountainous landscapes and lakes, has a rich cultural heritage and has several architectural splendors.
Several Hindi films have also been shot in Nepal, but somewhere down the line Nepal could not maintain its ties with Bollywood, and then for a long time no Bollywood movie was shot there. However, it seems the government of Nepal is now keen to revive its relations with the Indian film industry, to boost its ailing tourism industry.
Amitabh Bachchan’s First Foreign Visit Was to Nepal
Praying for the Nepal quake victims, Mr. Amitabh Bachchan reminisces his first trip to the Himalayan country in 1954, which was also his first ever visit to a foreign nation.
“It was my very first experience on a plane, and of course my very first visit to a foreign country. And although it was a foreign land, it had “several universal qualities like India,” Big B said.
Bachchan later returned to the country on several occasions mostly for film shoots – Khuda Gawah and Mahaan. And although there was a massive change in the country, in terms of development and landscape, the love for Indian films remained as ever.
Checkout the superhit song ‘Pyar Mein Dil Pe Maar De Goli’, featuring Amitabh Bachchan & Zeenat Aman, from the movie ‘Mahaan’, the song is composed by none other than R.D.Burman. Enjoy it right now!
Bollywood Movies Shot in Nepal
Bollywood movies shot in Nepal include Hare Ram Hare Krishna, Yudh, Khuda Gawah, Ghar Wali Bahar Wali, Mahan, Love in Nepal, Ek Hasina Ek Diwana, Bekabu.
All these movies have captured the beautiful and exotic locales of the land.
‘Khuda gawah’, which was primarily shot in the acrid mountain deserts of Afghanistan, was also shot in Nepal (some portion) because of the challenges faced when shooting in Afghanistan.
Akshay Kumar’s movie ‘Baby’ had several scenes that were shot in Nepal. The actor was greeted with thousands of fans at the market area where he was shooting. That just shows the popularity of Indian films and actors in this Himalayan country.
See the number of fans (in the picture) waiting to have a glimpse of the actor, the road is barely visible.
Ranbir Kapoor’s ‘Barfi’ was shot in and around Darjeeling, but then there are some who think that some part of the movie was probably shot in Nepal. In one of the songs, he’s seen dancing with people dressed in traditional Nepali attire, and a man is also seen playing the Panche Baja (Traditional Nepali Instrument). But then Darjeeling also has a lot of people who’re originally from Nepal.
So if you’re a Nepali, you may want to checkout the video below, especially around 00:40 seconds of the clip, and let us know if it’s some place in Nepal.
Hare Rama Hare Krishna
Dev Anand’s “Hare Rama Hare Krishna” was shot here a long time ago, and it was this movie that fueled the Indian tourist’s interest in Nepal as a travel destination, and also made several Indian filmmakers come here to use its exotic locales for shooting films.
The story goes that the idea of ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’ came to Dev Anand’s mind when he saw hippies and their fallen values in Kathmandu, Nepal. He was in Kathmandu on a break (and low in spirits), as his previous film ‘Prem Pujari’ met with a lot of protests in Calcutta and some even burnt Prem Pujari’s posters.
The film was a superhit and launched ‘Zeenat Aman’ towards stardom; she played the role of a westernized hippie in the movie.
However, the highlight of the movie is the song ‘Dum Maro Dum’. Even today, the moment this song is played, you’ll have people on the dance floor.
And why is the song such a rage? Checkout this video and hear the composer/lyricist team of R D BURMAN & Anand Bakshi talking about the song. Even Dev Anand was in complete awe of the song!
Nepalese Actors Eye Indian Entertainment Industry
The Nepalese film industry has very old ties with India. Hindi cinema’s first film, “Satya Harischandra”, was first shot in Hindi and then dubbed in Nepalese. The first really Nepalese film, “Aama”, was directed by Hira Singh, who hailed from Darjeeling in India.
Lot of Nepalese actors dream of working in Bollywood & television soaps. However, till now, only Manisha Koirala has been able to establish herself in Bollywood.
Manisha Koirala is the grandniece of four-time prime minister ‘Girija Prasad Koirala’.
Checkout Manisha Koirala’s ‘Tu Hi Re’ song from the movie ‘Bombay’ (among AR Rahman’s best compositions)
Some of them however, have been able to bag some roles in over television sopas. “Sonpari”, the teleserial for children running on STAR Plus, did have some Nepalese actors. The crew of “Sonpari” were in Nepal to shoot few episodes, as they were looking for some beautiful outdoor locations.
#nepal tourism
Nepal, at times also known as the Switzerland of Asia, is known for its snow-capped mountains, gushing rivers, temples and stupas. Its a land of diverse languages, religions and cultures.
Capital: Kathmandu
Currency: Nepalese rupee
Official language: Nepali Language
Checkout this video of Destination Nepal.
