Om Shanti Om

In continuation of my last post, SRK: The Man Who Taught Us How to Love.

“Itni shiddat se maine tumhe paane ki koshish ki hai ki har zarre ne mujhe tumse milane ki saazish ki hai... Kehte hain, agar kisi cheez ko dil se chaho, to puri kaynat use tumse milane ki koshish mein lag jaati hai..”And it did happen. Watched Om Shanti Om today, my 41st solo movie on the big screen. Destiny, much like in the film, had something else quietly waiting. I’d planned to watch it on SRK’s birthday last Sunday, but life had written a Devdas moment for me instead. But then, just like SRK in every film, it made a comeback, the show appeared, and I found myself right there once again, watching him fight for love, for pride, for everything that defines him.

And as he says in the film, "Humari filmon ki tarah, humari zindagi mein bhi end mein sab theek ho jaata hai, happy endings. Aur agar theek na ho, to woh the end nahin hai doston, picture abhi baaki hai." 

A truly happy ending, after a devastating Devdas.

It turned out to be one of the best movie experiences I’ve ever had, even more magical than watching Jawan on its first day, first show with SRK Universe, after four long years of waiting for his return to the big screen. Even after all these years, the theatre was packed with energy and nostalgia, except for a few empty seats, including one right beside me, as if it was meant for ‘Her’, my ‘Shantipriya’. The one I could almost see sitting there, her eyes shining with their own light more than the glow of the screen, smiling at every scene, lips curved wide, maybe even a hint of dimples. And I sat beside her, not watching the film, but her, just like Om.

It wasn’t even his birthday, yet the theatre came alive, cheers breaking out again and again, perhaps fifty times or more, as if the film itself was a festival. Not just a few diehard fans, but almost everyone, including me. The energy was magnetic, people shouting, whistling… and then suddenly, a pin-drop silence when those emotional scenes hit. And yes, my eyes weren’t dry either. The theatre felt alive, its pulse rising with every scream and falling into silence with every heartbreak.

And then she appeared, Shantipriya. Stepping out of that yellow vintage car, draped in a pink saree, glowing as if she carried her own light. Om stood there, frozen in awe as she is waving her hands to fans. 

And then, the song begins, how can I forget this one, 'Ajab Si' by KK, 

“Aayi aisi raat hai jo bahut khushnaseeb hai, 

Chahe jise door se duniya, woh mere kareeb hai,

Kitna kuch kehna hai, phir bhi hai dil mein sawaal kahin, 

Sapno mein jo roz kaha hai, woh phir se kahun ya nahin…” 

She walks down the aisle, smiling and waving to her fans, radiant and unattainable. And then, her dupatta catches on Om’s wristband, and he starts walking with her. For that one moment, everything stops and KK’s voice takes over, as if narrating Om’s heartbeat, 

“Aankhon mein teri, ajab si ajab si adaayein hain, 

Aankhon mein teri, ajab si ajab si adaayein hain, 

Dil ko bana de jo patang, saansein yeh teri hawaayein hain…” 

Then she realises that and stops and turns back, smiles gently, untangles the fabric, and looks at Om. As he sees her this close, his eyes held hers, and the song swelled again, as if echoing everything he couldn’t say

“Tere saath saath aisa koi noor aaya hai, 

Chand teri roshni ka halka sa ek saaya hai…” 

And she walks away, but Om doesn’t move. He just stands there, hand over his chest, as if feeling it beat for the first time. And as Om is pulled back by security, she looks back one last time, their eyes meet again, and the song ends like a sigh, 

“Teri nazron ne dil ka kiya jo hashar, asar yeh hua, 

Ab inmein hi doob ke ho jaun paar, yahi hai dua, 

Aankhon mein teri, ajab si ajab si adaayein hain…” 

Those lines, they didn’t just describe her, they defined her. It felt like the lyrics were being written right there, in that very moment, for her, for him, for love itself. Whoever wrote those lines either truly understands love or is hopelessly in love with someone’s eyes. 

That’s what I love about SRK songs — they don’t just accompany a scene; they deepen it. They take the smallest feeling, the faintest glance, and turn it into something that lingers long after the moment has passed. Change even a single note or lyric, and the scene wouldn’t hold the same magic because in his films, the songs don’t accompany the story; they complete it.

Ajab Si, when Om first sees Shantipriya and his world tilts,Main Agar Kahoon, when he tries to give shape to a feeling he can barely put into words,Jag Soona Soona Lage, when he realises that the love he worshipped from a distance was never meant to be his,Deewangi Deewangi, when he celebrates a dream finally coming true,And Dastaan-E-Om Shanti Om, the grand, haunting finale where the film narrates its own soul.

These songs aren’t just placed in the film; they hold the film. They carry its nostalgia, its heartbreak, its rebirth. It’s not just cinema. It’s emotion, memory, and a kind of magic that refuses to fade.And that’s what Om Shanti Om reminded me again today — that cinema isn’t just something you watch; it’s something you feel. Something that stays with you long after the lights come on. I walked out of the theatre with the same warmth I felt just a week ago, watching him on the big screen :), the same belief that love can be gentle, destiny can be kind, and sometimes… life really does give you a second chance. Because picture abhi baaki hai, doston.

P.S. The madness was so real that people even shouted when Abhishek Bachchan appeared. Truly a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon.