A London-set romance, a cross-border star, and a release that skips India
Eight years after his last Hindi film, Fawad Khan is back in a Bollywood lead. His new romantic comedy, Aabeer Gulaal, pairs him with Vaani Kapoor and aims squarely at the old-school, big-feel rom-com space—music, dance, messy hearts, and second chances. It opened worldwide on September 12, 2025, but not in India, where diplomatic tensions after the Pahalgam attack kept the film from hitting screens.
Directed by Aarti S. Bagdi and produced by Vivek Agrawal, Aabeer Gulaal leans into a warm, diaspora-friendly setup. Gulaal (Vaani Kapoor) bolts from an arranged marriage and lands in London, where a chance mishap drops her into the orbit of Aabeer Singh (Fawad Khan), a closed-off restaurateur carrying old scars. What starts as friction—a clash of pride, rules, and rhythm—turns into reluctant companionship, then into something deeper.
The teaser and trailer, out in August 2025, tease a breezy, contemporary tone: late-night rescues, snippy banter, a dance class that turns into a battleground, and a tender car sequence underscored by the classic tune “Kuch Na Kaho.” Khan’s singing in that moment sparked a flood of nostalgia for fans who remember his music roots, while Kapoor’s easy charm gives the film a grounded center.
The premise is built for chemistry. Aabeer is the kind of man who lives by lists and closing times; Gulaal is chaos with a suitcase. He runs a kitchen like a fortress; she shows up when the lights are off. In between: broken rules, small acts of kindness, and the awkward grace of two people learning to be seen. The film’s pitch is simple but effective—if love is a risk, what does it take to risk again?
The cast packs reliable performers: Riddhi Dogra as Avantika, Lisa Haydon as Laila, veteran Farida Jalal as Nani, Soni Razdan as Sushma, and Parmeet Sethi as Suresh. No one here is window dressing; the supporting characters push the leads to confront their blind spots—family, forgiveness, and the fear of repeating old mistakes.
- Fawad Khan as Aabeer Singh
- Vaani Kapoor as Gulaal Bajaj
- Riddhi Dogra as Avantika
- Lisa Haydon as Laila
- Farida Jalal as Nani
- Soni Razdan as Sushma
- Parmeet Sethi as Suresh
For Khan, this is more than a new credit. His last prominent Bollywood run was in 2016 with Kapoor & Sons and Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. The pause that followed was shaped by the wider freeze on Pakistani artists working in India. In the years since, he headlined major Pakistani projects and kept his star wattage high across the region. Aabeer Gulaal is his first Hindi-language lead in nearly a decade—and the trailers make a measured promise: a mature romance, a voice fans missed, and a character built on restraint rather than swagger.
Vaani Kapoor’s casting is smart. She can hold the emotional weight of a woman who refuses a script written for her, while keeping the film breezy. Gulaal isn’t just running away; she is running toward a self she hasn’t met yet. The London setting—dance studios, neon diners, late-night streets—makes that personal leap feel cinematic without drowning the story in postcard shots.
Music is the film’s emotional scaffolding. The nod to “Kuch Na Kaho” is deliberate—a bridge between nostalgia and now. Fans have latched onto Khan’s vocals in the promo, a neat reminder that long before cinema, he fronted a band and had a stage presence built on voice, not just looks. It turns a car scene into a confession without words, the kind of moment rom-coms bank on.
Aabeer Gulaal was originally slated for May 9, 2025. The Pahalgam attack and the diplomatic chill that followed changed that plan. Producers pushed the release to September in international territories while India stayed off the map for now. It’s a release strategy designed around diaspora-heavy markets and urban centers that have historically embraced cross-border talent and Hindi-language romances.
- Original India release plan: May 9, 2025 (postponed)
- Global release (excluding India): September 12, 2025
- Current India status: unreleased amid diplomatic tensions
The August promos helped recalibrate the conversation. Viewers got a feel for the tone—playful, not frothy; emotional, not heavy. The chemistry between Khan and Kapoor is the sales hook, but the writing hints at a second layer: how people carry the past into new rooms, and how love shows up as patience as much as passion.
Art meets geopolitics: a romance navigating hard borders
Here’s the obvious tension: a mainstream Hindi film led by a Pakistani star in 2025. Ever since 2016, cross-border artistic work has been erratic and often impossible. Aabeer Gulaal shows what that looks like in practical terms. The film is available in major markets worldwide—UAE, the UK, North America, and Pakistan—but the India release is on hold. That means two things: audiences in India are watching from the sidelines, and the film’s word-of-mouth has to travel digitally across borders.
Could streaming bridge the gap? Maybe. A direct-to-digital route in India would skirt the political optics of a theatrical rollout, but platforms are cautious too. No one has announced a local streaming window yet. For now, the makers are riding overseas collections and diaspora buzz, hoping the conversation lasts long enough to break the wall later.
This isn’t just a business headache; it shapes the film’s cultural footprint. Hindi cinema still finds much of its oxygen in Indian theaters—where songs turn into radio earworms and weekend chatter. Without that, Aabeer Gulaal has to do double duty abroad: sell the romance and keep the noise alive. The good news? London-set love stories with Indian leads have a sturdy track record with overseas audiences, and nostalgia-driven music travels well.
Thematically, the film sits in a space that Hindi cinema hasn’t abandoned but hasn’t dominated lately either: adult romance without the crutch of high-concept twists. Think small domestic battles, complicated families, and two people trying to learn a new rhythm. The dance-class motif isn’t just cute choreography; it mirrors the leads. Aabeer needs rules to feel safe. Gulaal needs to break them to breathe. That’s where the heat comes from.
Khan’s screen persona—soft-spoken, composed, with a stare that carries history—fits Aabeer’s guarded edges. Kapoor, who has swung between glossy musicals and character-led parts, gets to be messy and brave. When the marketing calls the film a “celebration of second chances,” it isn’t selling scope—it’s selling tone. The stakes are private, not planetary.
The supporting cast gives the story an everyday pulse. Farida Jalal as Nani signals warmth and memory; Soni Razdan and Parmeet Sethi bring the generational push and pull; Riddhi Dogra and Lisa Haydon shape the friends-and-foils space, where advice is loving and often wrong. In a genre that lives and dies by texture, these roles matter.
What about the way forward? If the climate shifts, an India release—late but noisy—could give the film a second life. Romance travels, but it blooms differently at home. Until then, the project stands as a case study in how filmmakers are adapting: multilingual marketing, targeted premieres in Gulf and UK hubs, and a social push built on musical moments and star nostalgia.
One thing is clear: audiences didn’t forget. The sheer curiosity around Khan’s return shows the pull of cross-border storytelling even when politics says no. And the film doesn’t try to chase headlines; it keeps its eyes on two people figuring out how to meet in the middle. For anyone who missed the classic Bollywood love story—but wanted it a little older, a little wiser—Aabeer Gulaal is that bet.
