Best Bollywood movies of the 20th century
by lamemoviesguy | created - 25 Apr 2011 | updated - 14 Feb 2014 | PublicChosen from a variety of genres.
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1. Thirst (1957)
Not Rated | 146 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
Vijay, a talented but indigent poet, struggles for love and recognition in this selfish world.
Director: Guru Dutt | Stars: Guru Dutt, Waheeda Rehman, Mala Sinha, Rehman Khan
Votes: 7,279
Great direction, great performances, great story from the time Indian cinema was expounding on realism.
2. Mughal-E-Azam (1960)
Not Rated | 197 min | Drama, Romance, War
A 16th century prince falls in love with a court dancer and battles with his emperor father.
Director: K. Asif | Stars: Prithviraj Kapoor, Madhubala, Dilip Kumar, Durga Khote
Votes: 8,831 | Gross: $0.16M
A legend. Romanticism at its best.
3. Guide (1965)
Not Rated | 183 min | Drama, Romance
When mistaken to be a sage by some villagers, an ex-tour guide reflects on his past and lost love to search for spiritual wisdom to guide the villagers.
Director: Vijay Anand | Stars: Dev Anand, Waheeda Rehman, Leela Chitnis, Anwar Hussain
Votes: 8,593
Great performances from the lead actors, lovely music, a truly Indian story in spirit.
4. Gol Maal (1979)
Not Rated | 120 min | Comedy, Romance
A man's simple lie to secure his job escalates into more complex lies when his orthodox boss gets suspicious.
Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee | Stars: Amol Palekar, Bindiya Goswami, Deven Verma, Shobha Khote
Votes: 20,072
Hilarious! Indian comedy at its best.
5. Anand (1971)
Not Rated | 122 min | Drama, Musical
The story of a terminally ill man who wishes to live life to the fullest before the inevitable occurs, as told by his best friend.
Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee | Stars: Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Sumita Sanyal, Ramesh Deo
Votes: 35,318
New concept, great performances, great direction, moving drama.
6. Seema (1955)
140 min | Drama
An orphan gets in trouble with the law and is sent to a home for young women. There, for the first time, she finds friendship, compassion, and possibly love.
Director: Amiya Chakrabarty | Stars: Nutan, Balraj Sahni, Sunder, Pratima Devi
Votes: 132
7. Masoom (1983)
Not Rated | 165 min | Drama, Family
A happy family goes through turbulent times because of a big mistake by one of the family members.
Director: Shekhar Kapur | Stars: Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi, Jugal Hansraj, Urmila Matondkar
Votes: 4,404
8. Arth (1982)
138 min | Drama, Romance
A film-maker who is having an extra-marital affair with an actress decides to leave his wife. Arth is the story of this women's search for her identity.
Director: Mahesh Bhatt | Stars: Shabana Azmi, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Smita Patil, Raj Kiran
Votes: 1,561
Groundbreaking concept - ahead of its time, great performances, talented direction, wonderful music.
9. Damini (1993)
Not Rated | 175 min | Crime, Drama
After witnessing a rape in her own household, Damini fights for justice for the deceased victim. However, she faces a bunch of challenges until she meets a disgraced lawyer who decides to fight the case and bring the culprits to justice.
Director: Rajkumar Santoshi | Stars: Meenakshi Sheshadri, Rishi Kapoor, Sunny Deol, Amrish Puri
Votes: 4,016
10. Khamoshi (1969)
Not Rated | 127 min | Drama, Romance
Tale of a female nurse trying to maintain a balance between her professional life and her emotions who falls victim to the natural feeling of love and compassion when a person takes care of another person.
Director: Asit Sen | Stars: Rajesh Khanna, Waheeda Rehman, Nasir Hussain, Snehlata
Votes: 649
Great performances, great music, good direction, great story - food for thought.
11. Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994)
TV-14 | 206 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
Prem and Nisha meet and fall in love at the wedding of their elder siblings, but their plans to be together are put in jeopardy when Nisha's sister dies, leaving behind a baby.
Director: Sooraj R. Barjatya | Stars: Madhuri Dixit, Salman Khan, Mohnish Behl, Renuka Shahane
Votes: 22,557
A modern legend. Romance and family drama.
12. Amar Prem (1972)
Not Rated | 143 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
A village woman abandoned by her husband is forced into prostitution in Kolkata and forms nameless yet strong relations with a wealthy patron as well as an abused boy in the neighbourhood.
Director: Shakti Samanta | Stars: Rajesh Khanna, Sharmila Tagore, Sujit Kumar, Bindu Desai
Votes: 1,958
Great performances, great music, sweet Indian-spirited story.
13. Abhimaan (1973)
Not Rated | 122 min | Drama, Musical
A popular singer convinces his new wife to enter show-business, but his pride is wounded when she outshines him.
Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee | Stars: Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Govardhan Asrani, Bindu Desai
Votes: 3,009
Novel concept, great performances, great direction.
14. Mother India (1957)
Not Rated | 172 min | Action, Comedy, Drama
In this melodrama, a poverty-stricken woman raises her sons through many trials and tribulations. But no matter the struggles, she always sticks to her own moral code.
Director: Mehboob Khan | Stars: Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar Tuli, Raaj Kumar
Votes: 9,856
A touching chronicle of new India after the Raj. Pays homage to feminine strength and those traditional Indian values.
15. Waqt (1965)
178 min | Drama, Romance
Members of a family are separated in a natural disaster. Several years down the line, they aren't united but their lives are strangely interconnected.
Director: Yash Chopra | Stars: Sunil Dutt, Sadhana Shivdasani, Raaj Kumar, Shashi Kapoor
Votes: 1,529
A performance powerhouse with the wildly popular actors of the time. Brothers lost and found drama that became a trendy formula for Indian cinema for some time.
16. Bawarchi (1972)
Not Rated | 130 min | Comedy, Musical, Drama
A dysfunctional middle-class family is transformed due to the influence of their new multi-talented household servant - but he might be too good to be true.
Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee | Stars: Rajesh Khanna, Jaya Bachchan, Usha Kiran, Harindranath Chattopadhyay
Votes: 4,414
Another gem from Hrishikesh Mukherji. Simple, powerful story.
17. Woh Kaun Thi? (1964)
Not Rated | 140 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
One stormy night, a doctor offers a ride to a ghostly woman he meets on the side of the road. Later, he discovers his intended bride is identical in appearance to the ghost. Who was she and why does she haunt him?
Director: Raj Khosla | Stars: Sadhana Shivdasani, Manoj Kumar, Parveen Choudhary, K.N. Singh
Votes: 1,294
Sadhana's launch as mystery woman in Indian cinema. Beautiful music.
18. Sholay (1975)
Not Rated | 162 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
After his family is murdered by a notorious and ruthless bandit, a former police officer enlists the services of two outlaws to capture the bandit.
Director: Ramesh Sippy | Stars: Sanjeev Kumar, Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, Amjad Khan
Votes: 58,743
Indian western. Powerhouse of talented actors.
19. Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998)
Not Rated | 177 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
During their college years, Anjali was in love with her best-friend Rahul, but he had eyes only for Tina. Years later, Rahul and the now-deceased Tina's eight-year-old daughter attempts to reunite her father and Anjali.
Director: Karan Johar | Stars: Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Rani Mukerji, Sana Saeed
Votes: 57,258 | Gross: $2.10M
1990s is synonymous with college drama in Indian cinema. This was one the best.
20. Khamosh (1986)
101 min | Mystery, Thriller
When a starlet is murdered on a film location, a detective arrives to investigate the cast and crew.
Director: Vidhu Vinod Chopra | Stars: Shabana Azmi, Amol Palekar, Naseeruddin Shah, Soni Razdan
Votes: 1,155
One of the best suspense movies ever made. The actors carry their real names in the movie.
21. Kissise Na Kehna (1983)
140 min | Comedy, Romance
Kailashnath is a widower, and father of an only son, Ramesh. He feels that his son has come of age, and must get married. He goes to see a number of young ladies for him, but is ... See full summary »
Director: Hrishikesh Mukherjee | Stars: Farooq Shaikh, Deepti Naval, Utpal Dutt, Saeed Jaffrey
Votes: 729
One of those better comedy movies from the 70s and 80s. Utpal Dutt charms.
22. Ittefaq (1969)
104 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Taking place almost entirely over the course of one stormy night, a woman is terrified when an accused murderer escapes from a mental hospital and seeks refuge in her home.
Director: Yash Chopra | Stars: Rajesh Khanna, Nanda Karnataki, Sujit Kumar, Bindu Desai
Votes: 1,185
What in the world is going on? I could not tell. Can you?
23. Aap Ki Kasam (1974)
153 min | Romance, Drama
Rajesh Khanna plays Mumtaz's jealous husband who begins to doubt her fidelity when his best friend Sanjeev Kumar enters their lives. She is unable to convince Rajesh Khanna that she loves ... See full summary »
Director: J. Om Prakash | Stars: Rajesh Khanna, Mumtaz Askari, Sanjeev Kumar, Rehman Khan
Votes: 510
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