Two Weeks Since Saiyaara Release, How India Is Reacting To Ahaan Panday And Aneet Padda's Film Across Ages

NDTV

4 days ago

New Delhi:
At a recent screening of Saiyaara in Delhi, a man stood up mid-show, tore off his shirt as the title track began, and dropped to his knees weeping in front of the screen.
In another viral clip, a boy is filmed lying back in a theatre seat with an IV drip in his hand, eyes fixed on the screen as his friends cheer him on.
A movie ticket these days doesn't just buy a two-hour romantic drama. It buys a front-row seat to India's most passionately divided emotional event of the year. And if you've been on Instagram lately, you'll know: everyone has a Saiyaara opinion, and a generational one, at that.
Because the truth is, Mohit Suri's newcomer-led musical romance has done more than just mint box office gold. It has split the country into three emotional camps, and no, they're not defined by critics or fans, but by age brackets.
Gen Z And The Cry- aara
If you're in this bracket, chances are you've either sobbed in a cinema watching Saiyaara or posted about not sobbing and felt a bit left out.
The youngest demographic, fuelled by reels, Reddit threads and fandom breakdowns, has latched on to the film like a lifeline. TikTok-style reaction videos, eyeliner-smudged selfies post-credits, and "why am I crying over a fictional man again" memes have flooded the Internet.
For many, Saiyaara feels like their Rockstar moment, a romance that somehow speaks to their specific flavour of heartbreak.
"I don't know what happened to me. When Krish said tu ro sakti hai, main dekh loonga, I just... started bawling. It felt personal. Like this film knew my trauma," says 20-year-old Kritika from Lucknow.
College groups have even started unofficial "Saiyaara sobbing squads," where watching the movie alone is forbidden. "We bring tissues. And chocolate. And water. We don't talk till we leave the theatre. It's sacred," jokes Arjun, 22, from Pune.
From flash mobs in cinema halls to fans creating aesthetic edits layered with dialogues and Arijit vocals, Gen Z has fully claimed the film as their own.
The Quarter-Life Romantics
This is the category where appreciation lives, but with a seatbelt on.
The 25-35 crowd is enjoying Saiyaara for what it is: a nostalgic throwback to early 2000s Bollywood romance, rich in melody and melancholy. They're the ones who grew up on Jab We Met and Aashiqui 2, and they see Saiyaara as a well-executed genre piece, but not an emotional apocalypse.
"I liked it. The music is great. Ahaan and Aneet have chemistry. But when I saw someone fainting in the theatre on Instagram? I was like... please. Get a grip," says Simran, 30, a marketing professional in Mumbai.
28-year-old Tanushree says, "More than anything, I enjoyed the aesthetics of the film. Ahaan Panday's performance as a debutant is commendable. For someone who enjoys the romantic genre, I went to watch it with that expectation, and I think it fit the bill along with a great album after a very long time."
There's a clear sense of admiration mixed with gentle mockery. "We clapped when the kiss happened," shares Raghav, 28. "But the couple next to us were holding hands, whispering I'll never leave you to each other. We were like... bro, this is just a movie," he adds.
Many in this group admire the film's restraint.
"I think Saayiara did a fabulous job with casting, cinematography, and music, but the realist in me missed the relatability of a love story. What I loved about the movie, though, was its simplicity. The focus wasn't on portraying the girl as the stereotypical heroine or the guy as a symbol of masculinity, which is usually the case in most Bollywood movies. It has heart," says Tanya, a 32-year-old working professional.
The 35+ Age Group Is Not Buying The Hype
This group is the hardest to convince.
For those 35 and older, Saiyaara is less an emotional event and more an online mystery. The film's impact is incomprehensible, and the reactions feel overblown. Some are baffled by the spectacle; others, frankly, annoyed.
"I kept waiting for the twist or the tragedy," says 41-year-old Varun Mehra, who watched the film with his teenage daughter. "But it ends happily. And yet people around me were sobbing. I felt like I'd walked into a parallel universe."
"Blame it on my age, or the millennial hangover, I didn't like Saiyaara much. I felt the story was a rehash of Aashiqui 2. I liked Ahaan and Aneet's chemistry. I think it's the saving grace for the film," says Neeta Arora, 36.
While some acknowledge the film's melodies and performances, the consensus here is clear: it's good, but not life-altering. "We're from the Kuch Kuch Hota Hai era. We invented crying in the theatre," laughs Abhinav, 39.
Between Love And A Like Button
So, what's really happening?
The theatrical experience today is not just about sitting in a dark hall and watching a story unfold, especially not for Gen Z. It's about content creation, identity signalling, and shared cultural participation. Exhibitor Vishek Chauhan puts it best: "They don't just want to love the movie. They want to own it."
That explains why someone fainted and friends filmed it. Why dance circles break out mid-show. Why people are treating Saiyaara less like a film and more like a festival.
Interestingly, part of Saiyaara's success lies in its anonymity. Lead actors Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda are fresh faces, blank slates.
So, Is the Film Really That Deep?
Maybe. Maybe not.
What's certain is that Saiyaara has tapped into a long-dormant hunger for classic Hindi romance-dramatic, musical, earnest. It has made young people feel seen, millennials feel nostalgic, and boomers feel... confused.
And that, perhaps, is its real triumph: a movie that can make three different generations argue, weep, scoff, or shrug, all under the same roof.
Cinema is back. And apparently, it's bringing tissues (or maybe not).