Bollywood and Hollywood Movies That Were Filmed in Nepal

Nepal has a great potential for being a superb location for film shooting. It has snowy and high mountains, moon-like dry highlands, national parks rich with various species of birds and animals, alien and fascinating cultures, beautiful and ancient architectures, fast-flowing rivers and mesmerizing and remote lakes. It’s a paradise for trekking, mountaineering, mountain biking and many adventure sports.

But that potential hasn’t been fully utilized. Only a handful of Bollywood and Hollywood movies have their shooting here over the decades. The best year till today has to be 2001, when 49 foreign films were filmed in Nepal.

Though things might change. Two major releases of 2015, one a Bollywood movie Baby and another a Hollywood movie Everest, were shot in Nepal in 2014. Both films have big-name stars of their respective industries.

We now present you the list of both Bollywood and Hollywood movies filmed in Nepal.

Bollywood Movies:

1. Hare Rama Hare Krishna:

It’s a 1972 Dev Anand film about hippies. The first Bollywood film to be shot in Nepal. Dev Anand himself and actress Zeenat Amam star in the film, which made her a big star and gave audience the popular song Dum Maro Dum. The idea for the movie came to Dev Anand when he was in Kathmandu, Nepal. It also increased the number of Indian tourists coming to Nepal.

2. Mahaan:

A 1983 movie about murder and twins. Amitabh Bachchan plays a triple role in the film. It was filmed in all three cities of Kathmandu valley.

3. Yudh:

A 1985 action thriller. Its actors are Anil Kapoor, Hema Malini, Jackie Shroff and Danny Denzongpa. The film tells a story of twin brothers who were separated at a small age and grew up to become a police inspector and a criminal.

4. Khuda Gawah:

It’s an epic romance drama film starring Amitabh Bachhan, Sridevi and Danny Dengzongpa. The second highest-grossing movie of 1992, it was filmed in India, Afghanistan, Nepal and Bhutan. The shooting was moved to Nepal because of “the challenges faced when shooting in Afghanistan”. The film is a story about an Afghan warrior’s (played by Amitabh Bachcha) romance and exploits.

5. Beqabu:  

A 1995 film whose lead actors are Sanjay Kapoor and Mamta Kulkarini. It tells a tale about a criminal, the terrorist he helps police to arrest, his estranged father and his look-alike whom his widowed wife meets in Kathmandu.

6. Gharwali Baharwali: 

The movie is comedy drama released in 1998. In the movie, Arun (Anil Kapoor) is married to Kaajal (Raveena Tandon). They are a childless couple. Then, Arun comes to Nepal, where he unknowingly marries a Nepali girl Manisha (Rambha).

7. Love in Nepal: 

It’s a romantic comedy and thriller movie released in 2004. Indian singer Sonu Nigam and Nepali actress Jharana Bajracharya are the actors. The film is about Indian ad agency people coming to Pokhara to shoot a campaign and an unfolding murder mystery.

8. Ek Haseena Ek Deewana:

The movie is a comedy thriller strarring Govinda and Priyanka Chopra. It was released in 2013.

9. Baby: 

It’s an upcoming spy thriller starring Akshay Kumar, Danny Denzongpa and Anupam Kher. In Nepal, it was shot in Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Thamel and HYATT Hotel in Baudha where Akshay Kumar also stayed during the shoot. Its director’s resume includes movies like A Wednesday and Special 26.

Hollywood Movies:

1. The Golden Child: 

Comedy actor Eddie Murphy, the protagonist, finds out that he is the chosen one fated to save “The Golden Child”. The fantasy comedy was released in 1986.

2. Baraka:  

A 1992 documentary without narrative and voice-over. It is “a kaleidoscopic compilation of natural events, life, human activities and technological phenomena shot in 24 countries on six continents over a 14-month period.” In Nepal, it was shot in the Himalayas and various World Heritage Sites of Kathmandu.

3. Little Buddha:  

It’s a 1993 film about an American boy believed to be the reincarnation of a spiritual teacher. The film also shows Buddha’s life in ancient times. Keanu Reeves portrays Prince Siddhartha. And Chris Isaak and Bridget Fonda play the boy’s parents.

4. Seven Years in Tibet: 

It’s a 1997 biographical drama film based on the book of the same name. The book was written by an Austrian climber. Starring Brad Pitt and David Thewlis, the film tells a story of the climber learning selfishness from the young Dalai Lama.

5. The Fall: 

This adventure fantasy film, released in 2006, is about an injured stuntman who tells a little girl a tale of five mythical heroes. It was directed by Tarsem Singh, known for movies like Immortals and Mirror Mirror.

6. Returned: Child Soldiers of Nepal’s Maoist Army:

It’s a 2008 documentary about Maoist child soldiers. At the Atlanta Underground Film Festival, it won the Best Documentary Short award.

7. The Wildest Dream: 

A documentary film about the British climber George Mallory. In 1924, he and his climbing partner Andrew Irvine attempted to climb Mt Everest and didn’t return. It’s not known whether they reached the summit or not. More than half a century later, in 1999, Mallory’s body was discovered by a climber named Conrad Anker. The documentary, released in 2010, won the Best Adventure Film award at the Boulder International Film Festival.

8. Beyond the Edge:  

It’s a 3D docudrama about the first ascent of Mt Everest. It was released in 2014. In 1953, Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay summited to Mt Everest for the first time in history.

9. Everest: 

It’s an upcoming 3D adventure thriller film based on the events of 1996 Mount Everest disaster. Its actors include Jake Gyllenhaal, Keira Knightley and Josh Brolin among others. For the shooting of the movie, Josh Brolin, Jason Clarke, John Hawke, Martin Henderson and film crew were in Nepal in January, 2014.

Check out a related blog post: 19 Hollywood Celebrities Who Visited Nepal.