Saiyaara (film)
Saiyaara is a 2025 Indian Hindi-language musical romantic drama film directed by Mohit Suri. Produced by Yash Raj Films, it is loosely based on the 2004 Korean film A Moment to Remember. It stars debutant Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda in the lead roles of a singer-songwriter duo who fall in love. Originally planned as a spiritual sequel to Suri's Aashiqui 2, creative differences with producers Mukesh Bhatt and Bhushan Kumar led to the project being reworked into a standalone film under Yash Raj Films.
Saiyaara was released theatrically on 18 July 2025 to positive reviews from critics, with particular praise for Panday and Padda's performances, story, Suri's direction, and its soundtrack. A major commercial success, the film grossed over worldwide, emerging as the third highest-grossing Hindi film of 2025, and the highest-grossing Indian romantic film of all time. The film's soundtrack proved to be particularly popular, with its lead single "Saiyaara" topping several Indian and global music charts, remaining in the top ten for multiple weeks after its release. The film was named as the most popular Indian film of 2025 as per IMDb.
Plot
Vaani is waiting to marry her college boyfriend Mahesh at the courthouse with her parents and younger brother. Over a phone call, Mahesh informs her that he is abandoning her for the daughter of a wealthy businessman, prioritising his career over their relationship. Devastated, Vaani faints and subsequently withdraws into depression, isolating herself for months and abandoning her passion for writing.Krish Kapoor, an aspiring musician struggling to establish himself, copes with childhood trauma and anger through music. Prone to emotional outbursts, he faces setbacks in his career, including clashes with journalists and disputes with his band members. His friend KV supports the band financially, despite the strain it places on his own education. Krish encounters Vaani when he returns her poetry notebook she accidentally left while applying for a job as a writer at a publishing house where he assaults a journalist, and is immediately drawn to the honesty and depth of her work.
Though initially hesitant about Krish's erratic nature, Vaani agrees to collaborate with him on a song for hip-hop singer Prince. When she experiences creative difficulties, Krish discovers torn pages from her notebook, recognising her inner struggles. To help her, he takes her to a cricket playground, a place of solace for him. Inspired by his focus, Vaani gradually resumes writing. Their collaboration grows into a friendship as they spend more time together, with Vaani regaining her confidence and Krish finding stability in her presence.
Their bond deepens after Krish confronts his alcoholic father, with whom he became estranged after his mother's death. Vaani comforts him by opening up about her own heartache, and later encourages him to admit his father into rehabilitation. After completing their project, on which Krish is forced to cede all credit to pay for his father's rehab, he distances himself, believing Vaani deserves better. However, they soon reunite at Prince's concert, acknowledging their feelings for each other, and begin an intimate relationship. Krish reconciles with his band, and he and Vaani continue working together.
Vaani's parents, particularly her mother, grow concerned upon witnessing Krish's closeness to their daughter, fearing he may hurt her as Mahesh once did. The stress causes Vaani to collapse again, after which her mother questions Krish at the hospital about his intentions. When he promises commitment, her parents reluctantly approve of the relationship.
The couple's lives change dramatically when Vaani is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease. Signs of memory loss become apparent, including a public breakdown during an encounter with Mahesh after he acquires Vaani's workplace. Krish abandons his work commitments to support her, assuring her that he will remain by her side regardless of her condition. On medical advice, Vaani's parents consider a change of environment for her new routine. Krish takes her to a guesthouse in Alibaug, where they create new memories together.
At a later concert, Mahesh attempts to exploit Vaani's vulnerability during an episode of confusion. Krish intervenes, but Vaani, unable to recognise him, reacts fearfully and stabs his right arm after he beats Mahesh, experiencing an even worse breakdown. Back at their guesthouse, Krish's father reconciles with him, urging him not to repeat his mistakes.
In a quiet moment, Krish plays a tune on the piano. Vaani loves it and offers to write the words. With her Alzheimer’s worsening, she mistakenly calls him by Mahesh's name.
Krish leaves for a meeting. But when he returns, Vaani is missing. He later finds her diary with lyrics to the song she’d titled “Saiyaara.”
Despite extensive searches, Vaani is not found. Krish records and releases "Saiyaara" in her memory, and the song becomes a global hit, propelling him to fame. He continues to carry Vaani's writings with him while performing around India. Over a year later, KV discovers a viral fan video showing Vaani in Manali. Krish travels there and locates Vaani at an ashram, where he receives a letter explaining she left to avoid hindering his career after remembering what happened at the concert, but admits she continued to follow his music from afar.
When Krish reunites with her, Vaani no longer recognises him and is beginning to shut herself off from the world. He reminds her of their shared memories, including their first moments at the cricket playground. Slowly, fragments of her memory return, and she ultimately recalls their love. The film concludes with Krish performing at Wembley Stadium, with Vaani by his side as they marry, signifying their reunion through love, music, and memory. Vaani resumes writing as she reflects on her wedding with Krish.
Cast
Production
The film was officially announced by Yash Raj Films, with Mohit Suri signed as the director. Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda were cast in the lead roles. For the film's female lead, Suri stressed that he wanted an actress who had not undergone any cosmetic procedures. Principal photography began in September 2024 and concluded in March 2025, taking place in Mumbai, Goa, Manali, and Alibag.The end credits scene of "Saiyaara" was shot in a single day, according to a post from Bollywood Hungama and was a last-minute addition to the film and shot less than a month before the film's release.
In an interview, Suri revealed that the project was initially envisioned by him as a possible third installment in the Aashiqui franchise, but it did not materialize with its producers. Inspired by the Netflix documentary series The Romantics, he began developing the story—titled Saiyaara—independently. However, Akshaye Widhani, the CEO of Yash Raj Films, later came on board to produce and back the film under the YRF banner.
Soundtrack
The music album consists of 7 songs, composed by Mithoon, Tanishk Bagchi, Shubhanshu Kesharwani, Faheem Abdullah, Arslan Nizami, Vishal Mishra, Sachet-Parampara and The Rish, with lyrics written by Irshad Kamil, Mithoon, Rishabh Kant and Raj Shekhar. The background score was composed by John Stewart Eduri, who replaced Suri's norm collaborator Raju Singh. The vocals were provided by Arijit Singh, Jubin Nautiyal, Shreya Ghoshal, Shilpa Rao, Vishal Mishra, Sachet-Parampara, Faheem Abdullah and Hansika Pareek. The soundtrack album was released on 4 July 2025.Marketing
The teaser was released on 29 May 2025. The trailer was released on 8 July 2025.Panday and Padda did not promote the film before its release, as Suri wanted audiences to experience the pair for the first time on screen.
Release
Theatrical
The film was cleared with a U/A certificate from the CBFC after a few cuts. Saiyaara was released theatrically on 18 July 2025.Home media
The film's digital streaming rights were acquired by Netflix, where it began streaming from 12 September 2025; the deal marked a substantial shift away from YRF's regular streaming partner Amazon Prime Video, with pre-2020 YRF productions later being renewed by the platform as well. The satellite rights were acquired by Sony Max, which had been home to YRF filmography since 2000 until the Star Gold Network acquired the rights to War and subsequent releases, later renewing all but a select handful of prior YRF productions to add to its catalog.Reception
Box office
Saiyaara grossed approximately domestically and overseas, for a worldwide gross of. Trade analysts reported that the film achieved a return on investment of over 640%, having been produced on a budget of just. The film's box office performance has been described as unprecedented by many trade experts, with The Indian Express noting that it stood out "at a time when films are struggling to break even, especially the ones starring new faces or debutantes".The film had a record-breaking opening day, collecting ₹28.75 crore worldwide, marking the highest opening for a Hindi film featuring a debutant male lead. Its opening weekend was strong across India, especially in urban multiplexes, with ₹83 crore net earned domestically and over ₹119 crore globally. By the end of its first week, Saiyaara had collected between ₹172.5 crore and ₹175.25 crore net in India, and approximately ₹250.5 crore worldwide, surpassing Ek Villain to become the highest-grossing film of Mohit Suri's career. On its eighth day, the film maintained momentum, earning ₹17.5 crore net. On 26 July 2025, it crossed the ₹200 crore milestone domestically with an additional ₹15.3 crore, becoming the second fastest Hindi film of 2025 to enter the ₹200 crore club. The film crossed ₹300 crore mark on its ninth day. Its total stood at ₹220.75 crore net in India and ₹327.74 crore worldwide by the end of day ten. By this point, Saiyaara had already outperformed the lifetime totals of Raid 2, Sitaare Zameen Par and Housefull 5 becoming the second highest-grossing Hindi film of 2025 as well as the third highest-grossing Indian film of the year, behind only Chhaava. This made it the second-biggest opening week for a Hindi release in 2025, behind Chhaava. By its twelfth day of release, the film had earned an estimated ₹270.75 crore net in India, with a domestic gross of ₹319.5 crore. Its overseas earnings stood at ₹86 crore, bringing its total worldwide gross to ₹404 crore, surpassing Kabir Singh as the highest-grossing Indian romantic film of all time. Within thirteen days, it had climbed to become the 22nd highest-grossing Hindi film of all time, surpassing RRR and Dhoom 3.