'Friendship', a hit formula in Bollywood

Sangam (1964): A superhit classical directed and produced by Raj Kapoor. Story of two best friends - Sunder (Raj Kapoor) and Gopal (Rajendra Kumar) who fall in love with the same girl, Radha (Vyjayanthimala). This formula of love triangle, exploring meaning of sacrifice for friendship was largely appreciated by the audience.

Sholay (1975): An action film directed by Ramesh Sippy and produced by G.P. Sippy, needs no introduction why is it been talked about in this list. The famous 'Jai-Veeru' dosti of Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra became a landmark of friendship both on screen and off screen and the cult song, Yeh dosti is still an anthem of friendship.

Yaarana (1981): A blockbuster hit directed by Rakesh Kumar and produced by F.A. Nadiadwala, was the story of two childhood friends - Kishan (Amitabh Bachchan) and Bishan (Amjad Khan) and how they struggle to help each other in their life. Bishan helps Kishan to become a singing sensation by fighitng all odds and later Kishan helps Bishan when he loses everything including his family, money and even mental stability. The music of the film was a huge hit where songs like - Chhookar Mere Man Ko, Tere Jaisa Yaar Kahan and Saara Zamana, Haseeno Ka Deewana, were chart topping.

Dil Chahta Hai (2001): A critically acclaimed film which won National Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi in 2002 and got several other Filmfare and IIFA nominations, was directed by Farhan Akhtar. The story of three urban best friends - Akash (Aamir Khan), Sameer (Saif Ali Khan) and Siddharth (Akshaye Khanna), who have different views on love and relationships and how their lives change when love happens. A movie which brought the theme of friendship back in vogue.

Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na (2008): A superhit romantic comedy written and directed by Abbas Tyrewala, Jaane Tu.. represented how friendship turns into love. Story of two best friends - Jai (Imran Khan) and Aditi (Genelia D'Souza) who refuse to accept their love for each other in the starting and then later as sorrows and heartbreaks follow end up realising their feelings for each other.

Rock On!! (2008): A rock musical, written and directed by Abhishek Kapoor and produced by Farhan Akhtar, Rock On!! is a story of four friends - Aditya (Farhan Akhtar), Joe (Arjun Rampal), Kedar (Purab Kohli) and Rob (Luke Kenny) who reunite to live their dream and form a band and plan to win a music competition. The film was critically acclaimed and also won seven Filmfare awards.

Dostana (2008): A romantic comedy directed by Tarun Mansukhani and produced by Siddharth Anand and Karan Johar, the film is a story of Sameer (Abishek Bachan) and Kunal (John Abraham) who bump into each other while looking for a rented apartment and later as story develops they pretend to be gay couple and try to win the heart of their beautiful room-mate Neha (Priyanka Chopra). A fun comedy film about three friends, Dostana compliments its name.

3 Idiots (2009): An award winning film which was directed by Rajkumar Hirani and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, is a story of two friends - Farhan (R. Madhavan) and Raju (Sharman Joshi) who set out on a quest to find their best buddy, Ranchhoddas 'Rancho' (Aamir Khan) who suddenly disappears after the graduation ceremony from college and is never seen after that. The movie shows how Rancho helps Farhan get the courage to pursue his passion for photography and helps Raju fight his fear of failure and then the two friends set on a journey to find Rancho. The movie was a blockbuster and it's music was a great treat for music lovers.

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011): Directed by Zoya Akhtar and produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, ZNMD was a story of three childhood friends - Arjun (Hrithik Roshan), Imraan (Farhan Akhtar) and Kabir (Abhay Deol) who set out on a vacation to Spain after Kabir gets engaged. How they attempt to overcome their fears during the trip is what the film is all about. The film also won many awards including this year's IIFA award for Best Film.

Cocktail (2012): Latest on the block is soon-to-release Homi Adajania's directed romantic-comedy, Coctail which offers a heady mix of friendship and love. Story of three friends - Gautam (Saif Ali Khan), Veronica (Deepika Padukone) and Meera (Diana Penty) whose life and friendship turns confusing when love happens. Whether the film will be a hit or not, we will soon get to know as it release this Friday on 13 July.