11 February,2026 09:33 AM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
R Madhavan
The iconic cast of the 2006 blockbuster Rang De Basanti reunited to celebrate 20 years of the landmark film that redefined patriotic storytelling in Indian cinema. Aamir Khan, Siddharth, Sharman Joshi, Kunal Kapoor, Atul Kulkarni, and Soha Ali Khan arrived for the special screening. However, R. Madhavan was missing from the reunion. The actor has now revealed the real reason behind it.
R. Madhavan said, as quoted in a Hindustan Times report, "I was at a shoot abroad when the event took place and couldn't fly back in time. I really missed it, and I wish I could have been there with all of them to celebrate this iconic film." He added that the reunion was originally planned for January but got postponed after the plane crash in Baramati, Maharashtra, which killed Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. "We didn't want to celebrate at that time, naturally. It was a very, very tragic, heartbreaking event," R. Madhavan said.
Soha took to her official Instagram account and posted a couple of snippets from the emotional reunion. The post included a video of the cast and crew cutting a cake to commemorate two decades since the film's release. In the next slide, we can also see a before-and-after picture of the primary cast of the drama. "20 years later - we showed up! A few were missed, but the spirit was still (fire emoji)," Soha captioned the post. Makers Ronnie Screwvala, Siddharth Roy Kapur, and Ajit Andhare were also part of the celebration.
Made under the direction of Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Rang De Basanti revolves around a group of young friends who get inspired by revolutionary freedom fighters and decide to take a stand against ongoing corruption in modern India.
Upon its release, the project received widespread critical acclaim. It won the National Award for âBest Popular Film' and was also nominated for âBest Foreign Language Film' at the 2007 BAFTA Awards.
Additionally, Rang De Basanti was chosen as India's official entry for the Golden Globe Awards and the Academy Awards in the âBest Foreign Language Film' category.
