R Madhavan Reacts To 'Problematic Themes' In Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein: 'Green Flag, Blue Flag Ye Sab Cheezein Nikkamme Logon...'

Actor R Madhavan recently spoke about his iconic film ‘Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein’, reacting to the discussions about the movie’s “problematic themes.”

‘Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein’ is a Hindi remake of his own Tamil film ‘Minnale’, which was released in the same year.

Source : Prime Video

Actor R Madhavan recently spoke about his iconic film ‘Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein’, reacting to the discussions about the movie’s “problematic themes.” Although the film initially underperformed at the box office, it eventually gained a devoted fanbase and became a cult classic. 

R Madhavan talks about his debut film Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein

During his appearance on The Bombay Journey, R Madhavan disagreed with the criticism and defended the film’s plot. Talking about his Bollywood debut, R. Madhavan shared, "Maine socha, maine kya galti ki thi? Maine toh poori shiddat se film ki thi, mandir bhi gaya. Ab samajh aa raha hai ki Bhagwan keh rahe the—ruk ja, pehli reaction par mat ja, yeh first-day ka report nahi, lifetime ka report hai. Mujhe bahut khushi hoti hai ki aaj bhi Gen Z yeh film dekhti hai, uske gaane gaati hai. Jab main club jaata hoon, toh aaj bhi woh gaane bajte hain, aur yeh dekh kar acha lagta hai (I wondered, what mistake did I make? I gave my all to the film. I even went to temples. But now I realize that God was telling me to wait—don’t judge based on the initial reaction. The first-day report isn’t everything; it’s the lifetime impact that matters. I’m so glad that even today, Gen Z watches the film and sings its songs. When I go to a club, they still play those songs, and it feels amazing)," he added. 

Addressing concerns about the film’s ‘problematic theme’, the actor defended it, saying,"Main in sab baaton se bilkul sehmati nahi rakhta. Ye green flag, blue flag ye sab cheezein nikkamme logon ki nikkammi baatein hain. Mera maanna hai ki ek gentleman hona bahut zaroori hai. Bachpan se hume sikhaya gaya hai ki mahilao se kaise baat ki jaaye, kaise unhe approach kiya jaaye, aur ye hamesha hamari sanskriti ka ek hissa raha hai. Lekin aap hume Western yardstick se judge nahi kar sakte (I completely disagree with all this. These concepts like green flag, blue flag—this is just meaningless talk by idle people. I believe it’s important to be a gentleman. Since childhood, we were taught how to talk to women, how to approach them, and this has always been a part of our culture. Of course, there are troublemakers everywhere, but you can't judge us using a Western yardstick)."

R Madhavan on RHTDM being called 'problematic'

"Main aapse puchta hoon, jo log problematic bolte hain, uss zamane mein agar Mumbai mein kisi ladki se hume mulaqat karni hoti, hum dil se mohabbat karte hai aur izzat se milna chahte hai. Agar kisi anjaane sheher mein kisi ladki se milna hota, toh hum kaise milte? Kya hum bar mein jaake milte? Western culture mein yeh hota hai – bar mein jaake milte hain aur pyaar ho jata hai, aur yeh bilkul acceptable hai ("I ask those who call it problematic – back in the day, if we wanted to meet a girl in Mumbai, we did it with love and respect. If we were in an unfamiliar city and wanted to meet a girl, how would we do it? Would we go to a bar to meet her? In Western culture, that's how it is – you meet at a bar, fall in love, and it's totally acceptable),” Madhavan further added.

Produced by Vashu Bhagnani’s Pooja Entertainment, ‘Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein’ also featured Dia Mirza and Saif Ali Khan. The film marked the Bollywood debuts of Madhavan and Dia. Directed by Gautham Vasudev Menon, it is a Hindi remake of his own Tamil film ‘Minnale’, which was released in the same year. To celebrate its 25th anniversary, ‘Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein’ was re-released in August.