Koi... Mil Gaya ( ) is a 2003 Indian Hindi-language science fiction action comedy drama musical film directed and produced by Rakesh Roshan. It stars Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta and Rekha. In addition to writing the story, Rakesh also wrote the screenplay with Sachin Bhowmick, Honey Irani, and Robin Bhatt. Koi... Mil Gaya focuses on Rohit Mehra, a developmentally disabled man who contacts an extraterrestrial being later named Jadoo with his late father Sanjay's supercomputer. The film follows his relationship with Nisha, Rohit's friend, who falls in love with him.
After the release of the commercially and critically successful romantic film Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000), Roshan wanted to work again with his son Hrithik on a different type of film. In June 2001, during the 2nd IIFA Awards, he announced the second film when he received the Best Director award for Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai. Principal photography was shot by Ravi K. Chandran and Sameer Arya from November 2001 to March 2003 on sets built by Sharmishta Roy in Canada, India, and New Zealand. Roshan's brother, Rajesh Roshan, composed the film's soundtrack and background score. American artists Mark Clobe and Craig Mumma spent on its visual effects.
Filmed on a budget of , Koi... Mil Gaya was released on 8 August 2003 and was the first instalment of the Krrish franchise. Promoted with the tagline "You Are Not Alone...", it targeted children and parents. It was the second-highest-earning Indian film of the year, grossing worldwide. The film had a positive critical reception, with most of the praise directed at the cast's performances. Two sequels titled Krrish and Krrish 3 were released in 2006 and 2013, respectively. A fourth installment, announced to be released in 2027.
The recipient of several awards, Koi... Mil Gaya won three National Film Awards (including Best Film on Other Social Issues). At the 49th Filmfare Awards, it was nominated in eleven categories and received five awards, including Best Film, Best Director (Rakesh Roshan), and Best Actor and Best Actor (Critics) (Hrithik Roshan). The film won five of its eleven nominations at the 5th IIFA Awards, including Best Director (Rakesh Roshan) and Best Actor (Hrithik Roshan). Considered a milestone of its genre, it is one of the first Indian films featuring aliens. The character of Jadoo became popular and inspired a spin-off series entitled J Bole Toh Jadoo (2004). This film was considered a turning point in Roshan's career after having a few previous consecutive flops which put his film career in jeopardy.
Plot Scientist Dr. Sanjay Mehra has created a supercomputer from which he sends variations of the syllable om into space, hoping to attract extraterrestrial life. When he receives a response, his colleagues ridicule him. While driving home, an alien spacecraft appears overhead shortly after responding to his signals through the computer. Distracted, he is involved in a car accident that kills him in an explosion and injures his pregnant wife, Sonia. As a result, their son Rohit is born with a developmental disability. Sonia learns that surgery is the only cure for Rohit's disability, but it could paralyse or kill him. Not wanting to lose her son, she raises him in Kasauli.
Years later, a grown-up Rohit is still in school due to his disability, but has found companionship among six children. A young woman, Nisha, arrives and is initially insensitive towards Rohit because of the childish practical jokes he plays on her, as well as her ignorance of his mental condition. Her friend Raj, who also happens to be Rohit's former classmate, attacks Rohit with his gang, resulting in them breaking his kick scooter. Sonia scolds them for assaulting Rohit, explaining that he did not intentionally make fun of Nisha, and reveals Rohit's condition to her. Realising her mistake, Nisha gifts Rohit a bicycle and introduces him to her parents, who are sympathetic towards him. Rohit and Nisha, now friends, discover Sanjay's old computer, and Rohit inadvertently summons the aliens. The aliens leave hastily, accidentally leaving one of their group behind. Rohit, Nisha, their group of friends, and Sonia befriend the alien, naming him Jadoo, and discover his psychokinetic abilities.
Raj resents Nisha's closeness to Rohit, bullying him and spreading a rumour that he and Nisha are getting married. The rumour upsets both Nisha and Rohit, who is hurt because he believed Nisha was his girlfriend. Jadoo discovers that Rohit is disabled and uses his powers, derived from sunlight, to enhance Rohit's mental and intellectual abilities. The next morning, Rohit develops clear vision. Although only a seventh-standard student, he solves a tenth-standard mathematics problem orally, surprising both his mathematics teacher and the school principal. He also answers questions posed by his computer teacher, who had previously mocked him for his disability, and accidentally beats up Raj's gang as well.
Rohit's physical abilities increase to superhuman levels. Raj's gang challenge Rohit and his friends to a basketball game. Rohit scores several baskets, but Raj's gang begin to cheat. When the sun emerges, Jadoo helps Rohit's team win the match. Rohit confesses his love to Nisha, and she reciprocates. Raj's gang later confront Rohit's group about the basketball game. While fleeing, the group accidentally drop Jadoo. Constable Sukhwani sees Jadoo inside a bag and calls for backup. Led by Inspector Khan, the police capture the bag; however, Rohit rescues Jadoo. Confronted by Raj's gang, an enraged Rohit overpowers them before the police arrive. Jadoo is not in the bag, having escaped while Chelaram was calling the other officers.
Suspicious of Rohit, Khan confronts him at his house with several other officers. The police seize Jadoo and knock Rohit unconscious. When he regains consciousness, Rohit catches up with the police vans in time to prevent Jadoo from being sent to the United States. The flying saucer summoned using his father's computer returns, and Rohit bids an emotional farewell to Jadoo. After Jadoo leaves, Rohit reverts to his former self; this saves him from prosecution by the government, who congratulate him for his actions.
Raj's gang later harass Rohit and Nisha, challenging Rohit to kick a ball towards them. He angrily kicks the ball into Raj's face and realises that Jadoo has permanently restored his superhuman abilities. Rohit and Nisha thank Jadoo and get married.
Cast The cast is listed below:
Hrithik Roshan as Rohit Mehra: Dr. Sanjay and Sonia's mentally disabled son; Nisha's love-interest and Alien Jadoo's friend who gifts him with his superhuman powers to cure his disability Micky Dhamijani as child Rohit Preity Zinta as Nisha Malhotra: Rohit's and Raj's love-interest Rekha as Sonia Mehra: Dr. Sanjay's widow and Rohit's mother Indravardan Purohit as Jadoo: The stranded alien friend of Rohit who gifts him with his superhuman powers to cure latter's mental disability Rajat Bedi as Raj Saxena: Harban's son; Nisha's friend and Rohit's former classmate who keeps bullying Rohit with his gang Rakesh Roshan as Dr. Sanjay Mehra: A scientist; Sonia's husband and Rohit's father Prem Chopra as Collecter Harbans Saxena: District magistrate of Kasauli and Raj's father Johnny Lever as Constable C. Sukhwani: Rohit's neighbour Mukesh Rishi as Inspector Khan: Incharge of Rohit's locality Akash Khurana as Father Robericks: Principal of the Catholic School where Rohit studied and was always supportive and sympathetic to his condition Ravi Jhankal as Mr. Chaturvedi: Rohit's Mathematics teacher who was supportive and sympathetic to his condition Mithilesh Chaturvedi as Mr. Mathur: Rohit's computer teacher who used to bully him for his mental condition Rajeev Verma as Mr. Malhotra: Nisha's father Vivek Shauq as Basketball match commentator Beena Banerjee as Indu Malhotra: Nisha's mother Anjana Mumtaz as Mrs. Saxena: Harbans' wife and Raj's mother Anuj Pandit as Bittu: A Sikh child in Rohit's friends group Mohit Makkad as Bunty: One of the child in Rohit's friends group Jay Choksi as Aslam: One of the child in Rohit's friends group Omkar Purohit as a child in Rohit's friends group Hansika Motwani as a child in Rohit's friends group Pranita Bishnoi as a child in Rohit's friends group
Production Development Following the success of the romantic thriller Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000), the director Rakesh Roshan wanted to collaborate again with his son, Hrithik Roshan, who starred in the film alongside the debutante Ameesha Patel. The director wanted his next project to be a child-centric film, not just a romance, which Rakesh Roshan had done many times in his career both as a director and actor. He told Bollywood Hungama that he was motivated to make a film that was not "run-of-the-mill" but "an out-of-the-box yet entertaining, mainstream film", after attending the premiere of Lagaan in June 2001 during the 2nd IIFA Awards. He announced it subsequently at the ceremony while he was receiving the Best Director award for Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai. The idea to make a film on extraterrestrial life came up when he saw his five-year-old granddaughter watching a series about it on a cartoon network. He later informed Hrithik Roshan of the project when the latter was shooting the 2001 release Yaadein in Delhi; Hrithik Roshan accepted the role immediately.
Rakesh Roshan used a "K" as the film's initial, his favourite letter he used in all of his directorial ventures. The film was originally titled Koi Aap Jaisa (), Koi... Tumsa Nahin (), and Kaisa Jaadu Kiya (), before Koi... Mil Gaya ()—which sounded more romantic to him than any of the previous titles—was finally chosen. He wrote the screenplay with Sachin Bhowmick, Honey Irani, and Robin Bhatt. This took between two and three weeks before its first draft was done in Khandala. Unfamiliar with the topic, Rakesh Roshan confessed he was initially reluctant and doubtful of the project, but Hrithik Roshan convinced him. According to Rakesh Roshan, the screenwriters were "contributing new ideas since the premise itself was so new". He described it as "a very emotional, thematic film" and "the greatest challenge" of his life, saying that science fiction was not the main theme of the film. Though many have commented on the film's similarities to E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Rakesh Roshan denied being inspired by it. Javed Siddiqui finished the dialogue. Koi... Mil Gaya was produced by Rakesh Roshan under Filmkraft Productions, which he established in 1980, and distributed by Yash Raj Films.
Casting
When Koi... Mil Gaya was announced, Rakesh Roshan said that his son Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta would play the lead roles in the film; it marked the actors' second collaboration after Mission Kashmir (2000). Playing against typecasting, Hrithik Roshan was cast as the developmentally disabled man Rohit. He admitted the role had reminded him of his childhood, saying he could eat as many chocolates as he wanted and "became a baby and everybody was so caring towards me". Hrithik Roshan called it the "most challenging role" of his career, but revealed he had accepted the part after his father first offered it to him, confessing that his excitement made the role feel much easier. In a retrospective interview with Mint, he explained that he "revisited that earlier passion I had felt when I did my first film". To provide an accurate portrayal, Hrithik Roshan lost , changed his hairstyle, and wore loose clothes to cover his well-built body.