Titled ‘Come on… fall in love. DDLJ – Musical, Broadway show to be produced by Chopra’s Yash Raj Films
When Aditya Chopra presented the love story of Raj and Simran in 1995, and now 26 years later, the story is set to be chronicled as a Broadway musical.
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Chopra announced on Saturday that he will be making his Broadway debut as a director with a musical version of the classic romance film.
The filmmakers are “very nervous and incredibly excited” about the Broadway musical and feel that “23 again (at the same age as I directed DDLJ)”. In a note he shared with the media, he said, “I am a hardcore cinema man, I have never done theater in my life and here I am trying to fulfill the craziest ambition of my life. “
Backed by Yash Raj Films, “DDLJ”, as it is known, is considered one of the landmark films in Indian cinema.
Released on October 20, 1995, this romance drama propelled its lead stars Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol to stardom and made them one of the most loved onscreen jodis.
Titled “Come… Fall in Love. DDLJ – Musical”, the Broadway show will be produced by Chopra’s Yash Raj Films.
Chopra, the musical will include the book and lyrics by Nell Benjamin, a Laurence Olivier Award winner of “Legally Blonde” and “Mean Girls” fame.
Music director duo Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani will serve as composers, while Tony and Emmy winner Rob Ashford will choreograph with associate choreographer Shruti Merchant.
Tony winner Derek MacLaine, who previously wrote “Moulin Rouge!”, “Hairspray Live!” Like working on music. and “33 Variations”, with musical supervision by Bill Sherman, will design the set. Adam Zotovich will executive produce the Broadway musical.
“Come on…Fall in Love. DDLJ – The Musical” will take the stage in the 2022–2023 Broadway season, with its world premiere at the Old Globe Theater in San Diego in September 2022. A global casting search will follow shortly after Stewart/Whitley Casting. The film will begin under the leadership of Duncan Stewart and Yash Shanu Sharma, Casting Head, Raj Films.
In his note, Chopra recalled his earliest memory of attending a Broadway show in 1985, when his filmmaker father Yash Chopra took him and his brother Uday Chopra to their “first musical theater experience”.
“The lights dimmed, the curtains lifted and what unfolded over the next 3 hours left me speechless and stunned. Now, till then, I was a kid who was an avid movie watcher and what I loved the most were big screen Indian blockbusters. “But what I saw on stage that day blew my senses. I could not believe that such a spectacle could be made live on stage,” he said.
Chopra said what resonated with him was that musical theater was similar to Indian films. “It wasn’t just the fact that the two use songs to tell a story, it was much more than that, it was the feeling they created that was exactly the same. The splash of colours, the heightened drama, the impassioned singing, the impeccable Dance, a classic story, a happy ending. It filled me with the same joy and emotion that a good Indian film does.” I realized then, that world apart, language apart, western musical theater and Indian films have been two long years. There are lost lovers who are separated by time.” The filmmaker said, “Come on… fall in love. DDLJ – Musical” is the most ambitious project of his life.
“I am reuniting two long-lost lovers, Broadway Musical and Indian Films,” he said.
Chopra also revealed that he initially wanted to make “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge” with Hollywood star Tom Cruise.
But eventually made the film in Hindi with Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol as the lead stars.
“The film created history and changed the lives of me and many others forever. But not many know that I never intended to make DDLJ in Hindi.
“As a 23-year-old young man greatly influenced by Hollywood and American pop culture, I thought I would make some Indian films and then I would head off to Hollywood and work with Tom Cruise to serve English-speaking audiences around the world. Will make DDLJ for men. Obviously it didn’t happen,” he said.
While the filmmaker is happy for his Hindi debut, which “identified” him and started an amazing journey, he said he will always be grateful for it.
“26 years later I am going back to my original vision of the story of DDLJ, the love story of an American boy and an Indian girl, a love story of two cultures… two worlds.
“But this time the medium is not cinema but theater. After 26 years I will be directing DDLJ again but this time as an English language Broadway musical for audiences across the world,” he said.
Chopra said he may be nervous but he is relying on a fantastic team that has worked to develop “this passion project” for the past three years.
“I’ve learned so much from him and discovered the incredible talent that the Broadway community has. I feel 23 again, the same age I directed DDLJ.” I’m a student once again. I am, each and every one of my team members in the world of theater is more experienced than me, I am a rookie and I am loving every moment of it. I am all set to learn, explore, create and enjoy with these amazing theater artists and the magical world of Broadway musicals,” he said.
Nell Benjamin said that “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge” was his introduction to the world of Indian cinema.
“I was overjoyed to be approached to do music and I hope my work will help everyone in love with Simran and Rog help them in their journey to love across multiple cultures. He added, “ The world could always use a little more cultural understanding, and I can’t wait to sit in the theater to share the joy and wonder of ‘Come Fall in Love: The DDLJ Musical’ with the audience.”
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