Rishtey (2002, Anil Kapoor, Karisma Kapoor, Shilpa Shetty)

Rishtey is the story of a street boxer, Suraj, played by Anil Kapoor, and a wealthy girl named Komal, played by Karisma Kapoor, and their son. Shilpa Shetty plays a lively girl, Vaijanti, who is a fishwife in Suraj’s neighborhood and falls in love with Suraj.

SPOILERS

Komal’s father, played by Amrish Puri, is pretty much what you would expect. He is vastly wealthy and, of course, opposed to Komal’s marriage with Suraj, and willing to go to any lengths to separate them. In one departure from the usual, Komal stands up to her father immediately when he publically humiliates Suraj. The two elope and live happily together, with Suraj fighting for a living, and Komal cheering him on to victories in the ring.

Komal’s father tricks/sets up Komal and Suraj and manages to separate them. When Amrish Puri orders their newborn baby son killed, Suraj rescues the baby and escapes with him. The baby is diagnosed as having “weak” bones because he was premature (?), and the doctor says he will never walk. Suraj refuses to accept this diagnosis and by sheer will, shouting at him to run, and leg massages (!), gets the boy to walk. Suraj is not able to fight anymore, because he has a brain injury that could be fatal if injured again. He gets another job for a construction company. Shilpa Shetty meets and falls in love with him, but he rejects her, telling her he is still married and loves his wife.

One day Komal spots Suraj and the boy, and her father is able to track them down. She sues for custody and lies in court in order to win custody. Her father also pays several other people to lie in court. Komal wins custody, and Suraj and his son are miserable. Through divine intervention and Shilpa’s selfless help, Amrish Puri’s treachery is revealed and the family is happily reunited, after yet another boxing match (this one has the added drama of the danger of the fatal brain injury).

END SPOILERS

I’ve never seen boxing rings like the ones in this movie. One ring had fire around it, so if they fighters got pushed to the edge they caught on fire! Another had metal spikes that they could be impaled on. And in one fight water was showered on to the ring the whole time. For some reason the boxing scenes made me think of the Roman coliseum, with the whole OTT spectacle of bloody violence.

Did they really have street boxing like this in India, with a boxing ring enclosed by fire or pointed stakes?

Also, what dialect/accent/language is Shilpa speaking?