Film

Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui

Name: Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui
Genre: Drama, Romance
Released: 2021
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Vaani Kapoor, Kanwaljit Singh, Gourav Sharma, Goutam Sharma

A romantic drama set in Chandigarh about a bodybuilder who falls for a Zumba instructor, then confronts a revelation that tests everything he thought he knew about love and acceptance. It's tender and funny, occasionally heavy-handed, deeply invested in its characters' growth. For anyone who wants mainstream romance with actual stakes.

TMDb rating

3.0

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like romantic comedies with gym-floor banter, loud family warmth, and a love story that wants to be taken seriously when it gets quieter.

Skip it if you want a tight, economical plot, since this one wanders at times and leans on broad, noisy comedy set pieces more than on sharp dialogue.

What it asks of you: Just under two hours, it settles in slowly, with lighter gym-and-dance scenes giving way to a more searching, heavier stretch in its second half.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Badhaai Ho2018

Warm family comedy about conservative parents in modern India. Like Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui, it finds humour and heart in generational conflict without ever mocking the people involved.

But The second half loses some narrative momentum, and it leans a little hard on sentiment in places.

Shubh Mangal Saavdhan2017

A couple navigating sexual health and shame in contemporary India. Honest, funny, and genuinely interested in desire and vulnerability beyond the standard romantic setup.

But Some dated references and jokes that haven't aged as gracefully as the core story.

Article 152019

Ayushmann Khurrana in a police procedural about caste violence and systemic injustice. Raw and urgent, with real anger beneath the craft. Shows a different register entirely.

But It's heavy going—this is not comfort viewing. The bureaucratic machinery can feel repetitive.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Courage Under Fire1996

Both films center on a love that violates the unspoken rules of the family and community it inhabits. Both ask: what do we owe desire versus duty?

Deepa Mehta's film about two women in a Delhi household discovering love and desire. Unflinching, formally brilliant, and structurally similar in how it builds to a revelation that shatters the world around it.

But It's visually austere, emotionally intense, and was banned in India for years. This is not a commercial romance.

Toilet: A Love Story2017

A marriage story built around a mundane but vital issue: sanitation in rural India. Balances social commentary with genuine affection between the couple.

But The broader social commentary sometimes overwhelms the intimate relationship you're rooting for.

Bareilly Ki Barfi2017

A woman rewrites her own love story. Colour, warmth, and a refusal to pretend that women aren't sexual or complicated. Kriti Sanon is magnetic.

But The plot mechanics show a bit too much scaffolding in the third act.

Khosla Ka Ghosla!2006

A middle-class family fights to keep their land. Deadpan funny, deeply human, with no character reduced to a joke. An older film that rewards discovery.

But It's quieter than you might expect, and the pacing is deliberately relaxed.

Dil Dhadakne Do2015

A family on a cruise ship over a weekend confronts marriage, ambition, and what they owe each other. Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone have electric chemistry.

But It's long, and sometimes indulges the luxury setting when the drama needs air.

Piku2015

Deepika Padukone and Amitabh Bachchan as a daughter and aging father. Specific, warm, genuinely funny about bodies and what we inherit from our parents.

But Some viewers find it slight, though it's actually quite carefully constructed.

Raanjhanaa2013

A love story that doesn't end the way romantic comedies usually do. Dhanush and Sonam Kapoor have unexpected chemistry, and it takes real emotional risks.

But The tonal shifts are sometimes clumsy, and the political backdrop can feel added on.

The Half of It2020

Both follow a character discovering that the person they thought they were doesn't fit the person they actually are. Both treat this as tragedy and liberation in equal measure.

A queer coming-of-age story set in small-town America, written and directed by Alice Wu. Tender, witty, genuinely about what it costs to hide and what it means to be seen.

But It's a Netflix film with a deliberately small canvas. If you want spectacle or irony, it's not here.

Moonlight2016

Both films are about a character grappling with an identity that contradicts the world's expectations of their body and masculinity. Both suggest that self-knowledge is an act of courage.

Three chapters in the life of a Black queer man in Miami. Achingly beautiful cinematography. A film about masculinity, desire, and the violence that keeps people from themselves.

But Dialogue is sparse and evocative rather than explanatory. Some find this poetic; others find it opaque.