# Koyla (कोयला)
**Koyla** (कोयला, "Coal") is a 1997 Hindi-language action revenge drama directed and produced by [Rakesh Roshan](https://www.edgepedia.org/rakesh-roshan) under his banner Filmkraft, starring [Shah Rukh Khan](https://www.edgepedia.org/shah-rukh-khan) as a mute servant named Shankar, Madhuri Dixit as Gauri, and [Amrish Puri](https://www.edgepedia.org/amrish-puri) as the villainous Raja Saab.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/koyla) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0136352) The film follows a man silenced in childhood by burning coal, who regains his voice and takes revenge on the master who destroyed his family.[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 18 April 1997 (Hindi); some databases give 7 April or 17 April[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) • [4](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662) • [5](https://www.digit.in/digit-binge/movies/koyla-135721.html) |
| Director / producer | Rakesh Roshan, Filmkraft Productions Pvt. Ltd.[4](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662) |
| Lead cast | Shah Rukh Khan (Shankar), Madhuri Dixit (Gauri), Amrish Puri (Raja Saab)[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/koyla) |
| Music | Rajesh Roshan; lyrics by Indeevar[4](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662) • [6](https://cinemaazi.com/public/film/koyla) |
| Certification | CBFC "A" (adults only)[7](https://filmi.ai/film/koyla-1997/) |
| IMDb rating | 6.2/10 from about 11,000 votes; unweighted mean 7.1[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0136352/ratings/) |
| Reported box office | ₹14,88,00,000, with a trade verdict of "Average"[9](https://teamshahrukhkhan.com/movie-details/koyla/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
The story, as summarized in the trade paper Film Information, begins in a coal mine: a money-hungry villain has a laborer and his wife killed for money, and, so that their only child cannot identify the killers, he shoves burning coal down the boy's throat and makes him mute.[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) The villain then raises the mute child as his bonded laborer, unaware of his own guilt, and the boy grows devoted enough to lay down his life for his master.[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/)
**The marriage deception.** The master, Raja Saab, is fond of girls a third of his age and decides to marry Gauri, a young villager.[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) When she asks for a photograph of her prospective husband, Raja sends her a picture of his mute servant Shankar instead, and she agrees to the marriage.[4](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662) Discovering the deception, Gauri attempts suicide; Shankar saves her, and the two flee together.[10](https://www.zee5.com/movies/details/koyla/0-0-275837) Raja's men hunt them down, Shankar is brutally beaten and his throat is cut, and Gauri is taken back.[10](https://www.zee5.com/movies/details/koyla/0-0-275837)
**Revenge.** A healer saves Shankar and operates on his throat, restoring his voice.[11](https://play.google.com/store/movies/details/Koyla?hl=en&id=Gc-QeuTrFyc) He then learns that it was Raja Saab who killed his parents in his village years earlier, and he sets out to avenge their deaths and the atrocities committed on Gauri.[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) • [11](https://play.google.com/store/movies/details/Koyla?hl=en&id=Gc-QeuTrFyc)
## Production and crew
Rakesh Roshan directed and produced the film and wrote the story; the screenplay is credited to Sachin Bhowmick and Ravi Kapoor, with dialogues by Anwar Khan.[6](https://cinemaazi.com/public/film/koyla) Sameer Arya was the cinematographer and Sanjay Verma the editor; choreography was by [Saroj Khan](https://www.edgepedia.org/saroj-khan), Raju Khan, and Bhiku Verma, and the action sequences were designed by Bhikoo Verma.[6](https://cinemaazi.com/public/film/koyla) • [3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) The supporting cast included Ranjeet as Dilawar, Salim Ghouse as Brijwa (Raja Saab's brother), [Johnny Lever](https://www.edgepedia.org/johnny-lever) as Shankar's friend, Deepshikha Nagpal, Ashok Saraf, Mohnish Bahl, Kunika, and [Himani Shivpuri](https://www.edgepedia.org/himani-shivpuri).[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/koyla) • [4](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662)
Film Information's contemporary review singled out the camerawork and the [Arunachal Pradesh](https://www.edgepedia.org/arunachal-pradesh) locations as exceptionally good together, while criticizing the plot as lacking novelty and the comedy as crude.[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) The film was shot in the northeast of India, and is listed among the Bollywood movies of recent decades filmed there.[12](https://ijrcm.org.in/download.php?name=ijrcm-1-IJRCM-1_vol-7_2016_issue-09.pdf&path=uploaddata%2Fijrcm-1-IJRCM-1_vol-7_2016_issue-09.pdf)
## Music
The soundtrack was composed by [Rajesh Roshan](https://www.edgepedia.org/rajesh-roshan), Rakesh Roshan's brother and a frequent collaborator, with lyrics by Indeevar.[4](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662) • [6](https://cinemaazi.com/public/film/koyla) Songs listed on streaming platforms include "Badan Juda Hote" ([Kumar Sanu](https://www.edgepedia.org/kumar-sanu) and Preeti Singh), "Bhang Ke Nashe" ([Alka Yagnik](https://www.edgepedia.org/alka-yagnik)), "Dekha Tujhe Toh" (Kumar Sanu and Alka Yagnik), "Ghoongte Mein Chanda" (Udit Narayan), "Saanson Ki Mala" (Kavita Krishnamurthy), and "Tanhai Tanhai" (Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnik).[4](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662) Playback singers on the album also included Falguni Pathak and Aditya Narayan.[9](https://teamshahrukhkhan.com/movie-details/koyla/)
The Film Information review judged the music very good but noted the absence of a super-hit, evergreen number, recommending cuts to "Bhang ke nashe mein" and "Saason ki mala pe" while praising the picturization of "Hosh na khode kahin".[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) The song "Badan juda hote hain" has drawn scholarly attention: in it, the injured Shankar watches a "gypsy" girl dance and mentally substitutes his lover Gauri, a device film scholars describe as replacing a lesser performing body with [Madhuri Dixit](https://www.edgepedia.org/madhuri-dixit)'s star persona.[13](https://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/22815/1/IyerUsha_ETD_2014.pdf)
## Release and box office
Koyla opened in Bombay on 16 April 1997 at Madhuban, Dombivli, and on 18 April at Minerva and 22 other cinemas, distributed by V.I.P. Enterprises.[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) Some databases give 7 April or 17 April 1997 as the release date.[4](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662) • [5](https://www.digit.in/digit-binge/movies/koyla-135721.html) The trade reported a bumper, historic opening everywhere: over-capacity houses in East Punjab, full houses in Delhi-U.P., Bengal, C.P. Berar, and [Rajasthan](https://www.edgepedia.org/rajasthan), where the first day brought approximately ₹1,250,000 on 32 prints, and full houses in all 22 cinemas of [Hyderabad](https://www.edgepedia.org/hyderabad) and [Secunderabad](https://www.edgepedia.org/secunderabad).[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/)
The same review, however, called the film unduly high-priced and predicted that exhibitors and third parties who had paid phenomenal terms would likely lose money, since the film depended on mass patronage.[3](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/) A fan-maintained filmography records a total collection of ₹148,800,000 and a trade verdict of "Average".[9](https://teamshahrukhkhan.com/movie-details/koyla/) In the United States, Miramax released the film domestically, where it grossed $37,795.[14](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0136352/credits/)
## Reception and legacy
Audience ratings have been mixed. IMDb shows 6.2/10 from about 11,000 votes, with an unweighted mean of 7.1 and the most ratings from India, the United States, the United Kingdom, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0136352/ratings/) Rotten Tomatoes lists no certified critic reviews but a 59 percent audience score from more than 1,000 ratings.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/koyla) A Letterboxd review describes it as a larger-than-life 1990s masala entertainer whose predictable, melodrama-driven story is offset by memorable action sequences and intense performances from Khan and Dixit.[15](https://letterboxd.com/pranabchowdhury/film/koyla/)
**Behind the scenes.** ZEE5's production notes record that Rakesh Roshan's first choice for Shankar was [Sunny Deol](https://www.edgepedia.org/sunny-deol), that Shah Rukh Khan broke his leg while shooting the song "Ghunghte Mein Chanda Hai", and that Koyla was the third and final collaboration between Khan and Roshan.[10](https://www.zee5.com/movies/details/koyla/0-0-275837)
The film remains available on Indian streaming platforms, including Amazon Prime Video, ZEE5, and SonyLiv.[5](https://www.digit.in/digit-binge/movies/koyla-135721.html)
## References
1. [Koylaa | Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/koyla)
2. [Koyla (1997) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0136352)
3. [FLASHBACK | 15 April, 2022 (From our issue dated 19th April, 1997) - Film Information](https://filminformation.com/featured/flashback-15-april-2022-from-our-issue-dated-19th-april-1997/)
4. [Koyla Movie (1997) | Release Date, Review, Cast, Trailer, Watch Online at Zee5 - Gadgets 360](https://www.gadgets360.com/entertainment/koyla-movie-108662)
5. [Koyla Movie (1997) | Release Date, Cast, Trailer, Songs, Streaming Online - Digit Binge](https://www.digit.in/digit-binge/movies/koyla-135721.html)
6. [Koyla (1997) - Movie Details | Cinemaazi](https://cinemaazi.com/public/film/koyla)
7. [Koyla — filmi.ai](https://filmi.ai/film/koyla-1997/)
8. [Koyla (1997) - Ratings - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0136352/ratings/)
9. [Koyla | Team Shah Rukh Khan](https://teamshahrukhkhan.com/movie-details/koyla/)
10. [Watch Koyla (1997) Full HD Hindi Movie Online on ZEE5](https://www.zee5.com/movies/details/koyla/0-0-275837)
11. [Koyla - Movies on Google Play](https://play.google.com/store/movies/details/Koyla?hl=en&id=Gc-QeuTrFyc)
12. [VOLUME NO. 7 (2016), ISSUE NO. 09 (SEPTEMBER), IJRCM](https://ijrcm.org.in/download.php?name=ijrcm-1-IJRCM-1_vol-7_2016_issue-09.pdf&path=uploaddata%2Fijrcm-1-IJRCM-1_vol-7_2016_issue-09.pdf)
13. [Iyer, Usha (2014). PhD dissertation, University of Pittsburgh](https://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/22815/1/IyerUsha_ETD_2014.pdf)
14. [Koyla - Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0136352/credits/)
15. [‘Koyla’ review by Pranab Chowdhury • Letterboxd](https://letterboxd.com/pranabchowdhury/film/koyla/)
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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 1990s › Action and thriller films › Released 1996 to 1999*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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