10 Iconic Namaste and Aadab Moments in Hindi Films

|By- Dhruv Chhabra|

In the times when COVID-19 has taken over the world, we as Indians are finding a silver lining in this grey cloud. That is, the popular usage of Namaste(s) and Aadab(s) instead of handshakes. Indian style of greeting is trending now more than ever and hence we thought about finding out how well Bollywood has used our traditional greeting styles. Here is a look at the 10 iconic moments in context of their respective films and scenes in Bollywood (in no particular order):

1. Kangana Ranaut in Tanu Weds Manu Returns: London return Tanu comes out dressed in a towel and quite expectedly, every jaw in the room drops and then she elegantly bends for a traditional Indian Namaste. The way she ruined her own sister’s matchmaking by declaring the guy as boredom on her chest, that scene led to an explosion of laughter and thoughts. One word- Hilarious.

Source: Eros Now (Kangana Ranaut in Tanu Weds Manu Returns)

2. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil: Aishwara Rai Bachchan has had a number of notable onscreen aadabs such as Bunty Aur Bubli but this one is even more special. Her iconic aadab after the wink pulled Ranbir Kapoor towards her, with ‘Bulleya’ playing in the backdrop sums up their love/lust story perfectly. Yes, it had that magical effect. The most beautiful woman in a Karan Johar movie, what else do you need for it to be iconic?

3. Madhuri Dixit in Devdas: The queen of expressions had all of us swooning over the unreal beauty of Chandramukhi in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Devdas’. In the beginning of song ‘Maar Daala’ comes a moment when Chandramukhi looks at Devdas with the expression of desire and says, “Huyi dil mei dastak, yahan kon aaya.”And bows for an aadab acknowledging his arrival…. Yes, I know you also want to go back and watch the song again. BRB!

4. Akshay Kumar in Namaste London: In the much discussed scene from Namaste London, with Katrina Kaif as his translator, Akshay Kumar explains to a bunch of ignorant British men mocking India at a party that why his country is significant by throwing a number of facts and figures at them in a rousing speech beginning with a Namaste. A patriotic moment indeed.

GIF Credits: GIFSKEY (Akshay Kumar in Namaste London)

5. Aishwarya Rai in Kajra Re from Bunty Aur Babli: Big B, Junior Bachchan and Aishwarya came together for this chartbuster number ‘Kajra Re’. Aishwarya’s aadab and her cameo in the film Bunty Aur Babli as a bar dancer stole all the attention and yet again made every eye pop out.

6. Deepika Padukone in Bajirao Mastani: Bajirao Mastani was an experience of beauty all across. Deepika Padukone enters as Mastani in a golden outfit with that gorgeous face and surprised Bajirao with her arrival at a point when she was least expected to appear, leaving behind her home for the sake of love. The graceful aadab is followed by the iconic song ‘Deewani Mastani’. The way Deepika and Ranveer talk through their eyes makes this one extra special.

7. Rekha in Umrao Jaan: Rekha is known for her elegance and Umrao Jaan is a film in which she exuded finesse. Her beauty had no bounds and every time she bows for an aadab, you just stare at that unreal, graceful stature of this woman. It is difficult to choose one particular moment from this film when she doesn’t leave us spellbound.

8. Ayushmann Khurrana in Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan: In one the most special scenes IMO of his latest release, he folds his hands in Namaste in front of Shankar Tripathi after the latter beats him up to end the disease of homosexuality. I live for a good romance and his resilience to homophobia makes this Namaste a special one.

9. Madhubala in Mughal-e-azam: Mughal-e-Azam is undeniably iconic. So is the song ‘Teri Mehfil Mein Qismat’. It’s a battle between voice of Lata Mangeshkar and Shamshad Begum. It’s a battle between beauty of Madhubala and Nigar Sultana. It’s a battle between Anarkali and Bahar. In the end, like Salim, we are all left with no words. Timeless is the beauty of Madhubala who, every time, when aadabs to Salim, you wish that a love story like this should be made today.

10. Alia Bhatt in Badrinath Ki Dulhania: Alia Bhatt played an ambitious girl, Vaidehi in this film which surprisingly had more to it than what people expected from it. In one of the funniest scenes, she politely (savagely) refuses Badri’s proposal and folds her hands in a Namaste. I found this to be an iconic one.