Aamir Khan and Asin Thottumkal's Ghajini remains one of the most memorable Hindi films of 2008. A remake of the 2005 Tamil hit of the same name starring Suriya, the film itself was loosely inspired by Christopher Nolan's Memento. But beyond the widely known influences, a resurfaced clip has now revealed that one of Ghajini's most iconic moments may have been directly borrowed from another international film, the 2001 French masterpiece Amelie.
A scene from Amelie, featuring Audrey Tautou in the titular role, has been circulating online for its striking resemblance to a beloved sequence in Ghajini.
In the French film, Amelie tenderly helps a blind man cross a busy street, narrating the world around him with sensory detail. She says, "We just passed the drum major's widow. She's worn his coat since the day he died. Careful. The horse's head on the butcher has lost an ear. That's the florist laughing and he has crinkly eyes. In the bakery window there are lollipops. Smell that! They are giving out melon slices. Sugarplum ice cream. We're passing the pork butcher. Now the cheese shop. Picodons are 12.90, cabecous 23.50. At the butcher's a baby is watching a dog that's watching the chickens roasting. Now we're at the newspaper kiosk by the metro. I'll leave you here. Bye."
In Ghajini, Asin's character performs a nearly identical act of kindness. She guides a blind man across the road while describing the surroundings. She says, "Girls are playing in the street in their uniform; a woman is beating her husband; radio is being played at a tea shop. Now we are crossing the temple and now we are at the main road and here is the bus stop."
Fans have pointed out the similarities, suggesting that this moment in Ghajini was not simply inspired but closely modelled on the French original.
The Two Films
Amelie (2001) is a whimsical French romantic comedy directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, while Ghajini (2008) is an action thriller directed by AR Murugadoss.
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