Twenty-five years after Dil Chahta Hai first arrived on screen, Sonali Kulkarni continues to be closely associated with one of the film’s most loved characters – Pooja. Sonali looks back at the character with fondness, reflecting on the qualities that made Pooja so instantly relatable and how she continues to see a part of herself in her even today.For Sonali, Pooja was never simply a character she portrayed. There was an instinctive connection between the actress and the young, candid and effortlessly charming woman she brought to life. “I have Pooja’s humour. I have Pooja’s ease,” Sonali recalls in an exclusive conversation, reflecting on the qualities she found most naturally within the character.
25 years of ‘Dil Chahta Hai’: Sonali Kulkarni on transforming into Pooja
While Pooja’s personality came instinctively to Sonali, her now-iconic appearance was carefully shaped by the film’s creative team. Sonali credits costume designer Arjun Bhasin and Adhuna, who designed her look, for giving Pooja her distinctive visual identity. Sonali shares, “The glamour quotient was added by Arjun Bhasin, our costume designer. The looks were designed by Adhuna. She cut my hair, and that was something that really added Pooja to me because I had long hair. In all my previous films, I had sported long hair, except in Daayra, where I had to wear a cropped boy-cut wig. But cutting my hair really changed my personality, and that is definitely to the credit of Adhuna and my entire look design team.”The transformation went beyond just a hairstyle. Pooja’s easy fashion, colourful wardrobe and contemporary aesthetic became an integral part of the character and, in many ways, introduced Sonali to a new visual language.
What made the ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ character so special
“I vibed well with Pooja. I understood her because she is a frank person, someone who wouldn’t lie. She is youthful and truthful,” Sonali says. “Pooja is someone who opens up quickly, and she tells the truth- that she has a boyfriend. She isn’t beating around the bush. She isn’t hiding anything from the new person, Sameer, played by Saif, whom she meets.”It was this frankness and emotional honesty that Sonali found particularly relatable. Pooja does not overcomplicate her relationships or hide behind pretence. She is direct about who she is and what she feels, a quality that Sonali believes helped her connect with the character on an instinctive level.“She comes across very frankly, and that is the part of Pooja that I could connect with,” she adds.
Sonali Kulkarni says she learnt fashion from her on-screen personality Pooja
Twenty-five years later, Sonali also looks back at Pooja as a character who was ahead of her time in the way she dressed and carried herself. The film brought a sense of freshness to the way young Indians were represented on screen — from colourful clothing and hair to relaxed, comfortable silhouettes.“Apart from that, I loved being Pooja. There were fresh colours that ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ brought — in the sense of the hair colour, the costume colours. Men were seen wearing colourful trousers, girls were wearing easy, comfortable clothing and that’s something Pooja helped me learn,” Sonali says.“In a way, you could say I learnt fashion from Pooja,” she concludes.
About ‘Dil Chahta Hai’
Directed by Farhan Akhtar, ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ starred Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan, and Akshaye Khanna. Released on August 10, 2001, the film continues to resonate with the youth for its revolutionary coming-of-age plot.
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