7 movies where colours were a character in themselves

Bollywood movies centre around love and love can take form in various different colours. Here’s instances where colours became a pivotal part of storytelling in these movies!

If someone came and spoke to you about ‘Devdas’ right now, do you immediately not think of red? Does Gangubai not immediately make you think of a lady in a white saree? Do you not think of Ranbir Kapoor dropping his towel in a blue background, the minute you reminisce about Saawariya? Well, that’s the power colours hold in a movie or, should I say, in a Sanjay Leela Bhansali movie! While he has absolutely mastered the art of making colours a synonymous part of his film and celebrating them for all their glory, other filmmakers have also taken inspiration from this concept! For instance, Karan Johar made an entire love song just by relying on various different colours that represent different stages of love or Aditya Chopra making one of the most iconic scenes in the middle of a vast yellow field! But the love for storytelling through colours doesn’t just end with Bollywood. There have been prominent examples in the West that took over the world too! Barbie is proof of how colour can dominate an entire story, a character, the costumes and an entire press tour that went down as a big moment in pop culture! So it’s safe to say that just like our lives, our movies would also be super dull without some colour in them!

Also Read: Holi and Bollywood: The paradox of aspirational magic and dark realities!

Here’s decoding what each of the colours represent in these evergreen films!

White - Gangubai Kathiawadi

One of the most iconic lines from the movie is ‘Gangu waala safed’ which lingers over our minds so many years after the release too. The extensive use of white in ‘Gangubai Kathiawadi’ highlights Gangubai's transformation from a young, innocent girl to a powerful figure in Kamathipura, symbolizing purity, innocence, and simplicity against the backdrop of her tough environment. 

Red - Devdas

Another Sanjay Leela Bhansali classic! Red is used extensively in Devdas to evoke emotions of passion, melancholy, and opulence, reflecting the film's themes of love, loss, and the larger-than-life style Bhansali is known for. 

Blue - Saawariya

The blue hues of Saawariya are used to create a sense of dreaminess, melancholic beauty, and longing, which aligns with the theme of unrequited love and the bittersweet nature of the film's story. Adding to this, the word Saawariya is often used for Lord Krishna known for his dark blue complexion and hence the colour blue plays a significant role in the film.

Pink - Barbie

Mattel decided to use pink for Barbie in their packaging as the colour is supposed to inspire you to be joyful. People also say that the colour is used when people start to fall in love with life again. Who better than an optimistic beacon of hope to carry pink everyday than Barbie? The colour became a representation of girlhood and became a character in itself in the pop culture scene.

The six colours of love with Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna

Tumhi Dekho Naa shows the six colors of love. As Maya and Dev are navigating their relationship, their love is like a rainbow that brings colour to their grim and desolate lives, and everything around them becomes colorful. The song begins with the frame turning blue which represents the quiet and calm of the ocean. It quickly changes to black, which symbolizes them protecting each other from the world and creating a safe space for themselves. They then shift to orange which means that they’re on the brighter side of their relationship just like the first rays of the sun. Next up, is purple which represents that their love is pure and intense as they stand in a church and pray together. They are then seen in red which of course represents passion between the two that they’ve never felt before. And the song finally ends with green, which means that they’ve reached an emotional tranquility and calmness which they find in each other’s arms.

Yellow - Dilwale Dulhania Le Jaayenge

The iconic scene from DDLJ where Raj and Simran confess their love for each other for the first time and the legendary ‘Shah Rukh Khan’ pose came into being was all in the middle of a yellow mustard field. The image is printed in our minds and we cannot imagine any other colour but yellow to be a part of that scene now. The yellow enhances the moment and represents the two lovers who are lost in each other’s arms in the scene.

Red - Her

Red is associated with acceptance, love, and new possibilities, particularly in relation to Samantha, the AI operating system. Theodore's apartment, office or his costume constantly feature red emphasizing on the fact that he is head over heels in love with her throughout the film!

Colours always have and always will continue to express a character’s state of mind in movies and here’s to us being in awe of these colour palettes each time!

Do you know a film where colours play a significant role? Let us know in the comments below!

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