Naren Singh from 1942 A Love Story – One of the necessary additions to this list, simply for Anil Kapoor who manages to channel a very passionate old Hollywood style hero in his 1940’s garb. He is a complete Mr. Right for courting Rajjo (Manisha Koirala) in such an unabashed fashion while outside forces tear them apart. In an interesting twist of gender roles, it is Naren who mopes and vows to find Rajjo, when usually the saintly heroine pines for her hero. There is a crucial scene when he stands up to Rajjo’s father and promises to leave his bourgeoisie lifestyle just to be with her. He says this in such a dignified manner that her father is indeed impressed. The film evokes the sweeping romances of Hollywood films of the 30’s and 40’s and Anil Kapoor does a brilliant job of being an all rounder with being an insistent swashbuckler like Errol Flynn and imbuing pathos like an intense Montgomery Clift.
