# Chandni (चाँदनी)
**Chandni** (चाँदनी) is a 1989 Hindi-language romantic musical drama directed and produced by Yash Chopra for Yash Raj Films, starring Sridevi in the title role alongside [Rishi Kapoor](https://www.edgepedia.org/rishi-kapoor) and [Vinod Khanna](https://www.edgepedia.org/vinod-khanna). Released on 14 September 1989, it tells the story of a young woman whose fiancé Rohit disappears from her life after an accident, her friendship with Lalit, and Rohit's return just as her life takes a new direction.[1](https://www.yashrajfilms.com/movies/chandni) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097045/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 14 September 1989, Hindi language, produced by Yash Raj Films[1](https://www.yashrajfilms.com/movies/chandni) |
| Director / producer | Yash Chopra, who also produced the film[1](https://www.yashrajfilms.com/movies/chandni) |
| Lead cast | Sridevi as Chandni Mathur, Rishi Kapoor as Rohit Gupta, Vinod Khanna as Lalit Khanna, with Waheeda Rehman as Mrs. Khanna[3](https://in.bookmyshow.com/chennai/movies/chandni-1989/ET00060854) |
| Music | Composed by Shiv-Hari, lyrics by Anand Bakshi, choreography by Saroj Khan[1](https://www.yashrajfilms.com/movies/chandni) |
| Runtime | 3h 6m per IMDb; 180 minutes on streaming platforms[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097045/) • [4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/chandni) |
| Reception | IMDb 6.7/10 from about 2,400 votes; Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer 78% from one review, with 500+ audience ratings[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097045/) • [5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chandni-moonlight) |
| Availability | Streaming on Netflix, with rental or purchase on Apple TV in several markets[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/chandni) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Rohit, from a wealthy family, meets the lively Chandni at a family friend's wedding and falls in love with her during the mehendi ceremony. Because Chandni comes from a poorer family, Rohit's family does not welcome the match. When Rohit falls from a helicopter while scattering rose petals for Chandni, he is paralyzed from the waist down; his family blames her and humiliates her, and Rohit, not wanting to be a burden, asks her to leave his life. A heartbroken Chandni moves to another city and starts working.[6](https://www.indianfilmhistory.com/movie/chandni-1)
There she meets Lalit, who is fighting the demons of his own tragic memories, and the two find solace in a new friendship. Lalit's affection gives her life a new direction, and he falls in love with her, until the day Rohit, having recovered, knocks on her door.[1](https://www.yashrajfilms.com/movies/chandni) • [6](https://www.indianfilmhistory.com/movie/chandni-1)
## Production
**Origins.** The film came at a point when [Yash Chopra](https://www.edgepedia.org/yash-chopra), the maker of *Deewaar*, *Trishul*, and *Kaala Patthar*, was disenchanted with violence and action films. He has said the idea for *Chandni* was primarily to make a film with songs as the highlight, just as action had been the mainstay of many of his 1970s hits.[7](https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/film-of-the-month-yash-chopra-chandni-sridevi-5994218/lite/) The story was written by Kamna Chandra, with a screenplay by Umesh Kalbagh and Arun Kaul and dialogues by Sagar Sarhadi.[1](https://www.yashrajfilms.com/movies/chandni)
**Crew.** [Manmohan Singh](https://www.edgepedia.org/manmohan-singh) served as director of photography, Keshav Naidu as editor, and V. M. Gaekwad as art director; the costume team included Bhanu Athaiya and Neeta Lulla among others.[1](https://www.yashrajfilms.com/movies/chandni) The film also marks the start of [Aditya Chopra](https://www.edgepedia.org/aditya-chopra)'s film career, as he worked on it as an assistant director.[8](https://www.abplive.com/entertainment/bollywood/chandni-turns-35-years-vinod-khanna-rishi-kapoor-sridevi-movie-yash-chopra-film-box-office-ott-unknown-facts-2783179)
## Reception and significance
The Tuli Research Centre describes *Chandni* as marking a grand return to romance in [Hindi cinema](https://www.edgepedia.org/hindi-cinema), reviving the genre and asserting Yash Chopra's commercially successful comeback amid the action-packed films of the 1980s. Together with *Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak* and *Maine Pyaar Kiya*, it revived the romantic musical genre associated with the golden age of 1960s Hindi cinema.[9](https://www.tuliresearchcentre.org/chandni-1989)
Commentators have singled out Sridevi's character. A [Hindustan Times](https://www.edgepedia.org/hindustan-times) retrospective argued that the film offers the most complete example of the quintessential "Yash Chopra woman", a flesh-and-blood heroine far removed from the filmi tropes of the time, such as the spoilt rich girl or the self-sacrificing martyr.[10](https://macrobyraghu.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/HT-2023-03-19-HT_DELH-HT_DELH-7_06.pdf) An academic study of romance in Chopra's films describes Chandni as a bright and spirited soul, the antithesis of the damsel in distress.[11](https://ir.mica.ac.in/bitstreams/8e61e545-8504-48f9-90e2-73223c5ad117/download)
The National Film Award catalog records that Yash Chopra received other awards for *Chandni* (1989) and *Darr* (1994), in addition to [National Film Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/national-film-awards) for popular and wholesome entertainment.[12](https://nfaindia.org/images/pdf/43rd%20National%20Film%20Award%20Catalogue.pdf) IMDb lists 2 wins and 6 nominations in total for the film.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097045/)
## Legacy
*Chandni* is regularly grouped with *Silsila* (1981), *Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge* (1995), and *Mohabbatein* (2000) as part of the run of popular love stories through which Yash Chopra led audiences weaned on action films into a new era of romance.[13](https://time.com/6255756/bollywood-the-romantics-netflix/) A later survey of the Bollywood musical-romance template lists it among the films that aided the industry's growth in that mode, alongside *Saajan*, *Hum Aapke Hain Kaun*, and *Dil To Pagal Hai*.[14](https://www.the-criterion.com/V13/n2/FL01.pdf) The film remains in circulation on streaming services; as of recent checks it streams on Netflix in the United States, the United Kingdom, and India, with rental and purchase options on Apple TV.[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/chandni)
## References
1. [Chandni – Movie, Video Songs, Trailer, Cast & Crew Details, Yash Raj Films](https://www.yashrajfilms.com/movies/chandni)
2. [Chandni (1989) – IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097045/)
3. [Chandni (1989) – Cast, Reviews & Release Date, BookMyShow](https://in.bookmyshow.com/chennai/movies/chandni-1989/ET00060854)
4. [Chandni streaming: where to watch movie online, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/chandni)
5. [Chandni – Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chandni-moonlight)
6. [Chandni (1989) – Synopsis, Indian Film History](https://www.indianfilmhistory.com/movie/chandni-1)
7. [Film of the Month: Yash Chopra's Chandni foreshadowed Bollywood gloss, The Indian Express](https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/film-of-the-month-yash-chopra-chandni-sridevi-5994218/lite/)
8. [Chandni turns 35 years: unknown facts, ABP Live](https://www.abplive.com/entertainment/bollywood/chandni-turns-35-years-vinod-khanna-rishi-kapoor-sridevi-movie-yash-chopra-film-box-office-ott-unknown-facts-2783179)
9. [Chandni (1989), Tuli Research Centre for India Studies](https://www.tuliresearchcentre.org/chandni-1989)
10. [Hindustan Times retrospective on Chandni (19 March 2023)](https://macrobyraghu.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/HT-2023-03-19-HT_DELH-HT_DELH-7_06.pdf)
11. [Romance in Indian Cinema – A Case Study of Yash Chopra Films, MICA](https://ir.mica.ac.in/bitstreams/8e61e545-8504-48f9-90e2-73223c5ad117/download)
12. [43rd National Film Award Catalogue, National Film Archive of India](https://nfaindia.org/images/pdf/43rd%20National%20Film%20Award%20Catalogue.pdf)
13. [Netflix's The Romantics Aims to Give Bollywood the Homage It Deserves, TIME](https://time.com/6255756/bollywood-the-romantics-netflix/)
14. [The Criterion, Vol. 13, Issue-II, April 2022](https://www.the-criterion.com/V13/n2/FL01.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Indian films (individual works) › Hindi films of the 1980s*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license