They embody romance for millions of movie-goers. And it is to celluloid that Aamir, Akshay, Katrina, Priyanka and others turn, to rekindle their own longing for romance… Decades ago, a smitten schoolboy now in his sixties, scrawled in his girlfriend’s slam book, ‘Love is the itching of the heart that can never be scratched’. In lurid red ink, it seemed just the kind of slightly vulgar thing a pubescent would say. But dwell on it for more than a second and it acquires a depth that even a philosopher would admire. For the thirst of the spirit for romance does not end…Not with finding Ms/ Mr. Right, not with the humdrum routine of daily life, snoring spouses, screechy brats, not even with the onset of dentures and dribbling grand-kids. As babies we’re born with a need to love - and we never quite outgrow it. “For me, to love is to lose oneself,” declares the intense Irrfan Khan. “I’m basically shy and not very spontaneous. I live such moments in my head…” Moments like Meena Kumari, joyous and free under a wide sky, lying besides a flowing river, stroking her face and neck with a white flower, singing ‘Mausam hai aashiqana…’ (PAKEEZAH) He also counts among his faves, the white, wispy mosquito net scene from MAQBOOL, and the legendary feather-caressing sequence between Dilip Kumar and Madhubala in MUGHAL-E-AZAM. Irrfan is outspoken enough to admit that if he ever considered an extramarital affair, it would be for “fulfillment of sexual desires” - but this would be just lust. “When you love someone you won’t be making love to her - you’d regard her as someone who brings respite from the world and is a delight to be with.” Double standards perhaps but who are we to disallow them? Steering clear of discussing the love graph in her own personal life, Priyanka Chopra nevertheless emphatically states that, “Love can never take a backseat, not only in films but also in our everyday life!” When she needs her quota of thrills, she turns to DILWALE DULHANIYA LE JAYENGE. “It gives me the goose-bumps even today! I can watch it a million times! It’s so simple, yet larger than life. It’s everything I maybe would have wanted for myself…” This unabashed romantic claims she “loves love and watching it in all its forms. No matter how many action and sci-fi films hit the screen there is still love in these stories. Even a film like DEV D had love. It is the greatest emotion in the world!” Ranbir Kapoor would second that statement. His eyes light up when he speaks of that legendary scene in SHRI 420, which tops his list of romantic moments in the movies… “It has my grandfather Raj Kapoor and Nargis under an umbrella singing ‘Pyaar hua, ikraar hua hai…Pyaar se phir kyun darrta hai dil…’. The lyrics of the song are so beautiful and the way it captures the chemistry between one of the best romantic ‘jodis’ of screen is simply mesmerising! The song is magical and so romantic!” he raves like a smitten fan, as if unaware that he himself is the stuff of many a female fantasy! Deepika Padukone, ever the prim and careful one when it comes to matters personal, perhaps unintentionally reveals what it is she treasures most in a relationship - trust. “I love all the scenes from DILWALE DULHANIYA LE JAYENGE,” she says, “but the scene I consider the best is the one that has Shah Rukh and Kajol meeting in the ‘sarson ka khet’, and he tells Kajol to trust him…” It’s the inherent unspoken emotion that draws Aamir Khan to PYAASA and KAGAZ KE PHOOL. “There are no great proclamations of love; just a deep bond and deep sensing of each other,” he elucidates. “The song ‘Aaj sajan mohe ang laga lo, janam safal ho jaye, hraday ki peeda deh ki agni, sab sheetal ho jaye…’ It’s a Bengali devotional song of the Baul singers but it has been used so beautifully in PYAASA to convey Gulabo (Waheeda Rehman)’s silent yearning for Vijay (Guru Dutt). “In KAAGAZ KE PHOOL that one song ‘Waqt ne kiya kya haseen sitam…’ the way it is shot, it plays out their anguish and longing so subtly and beautifully. ‘Jaayenge kahan soojhta nahi, chal pade magar raasta nahi…kya talaash hai, kuch pata nahi, bunn rahe hain dil khwaab dum badum…’ it simultaneously connects you with the depth and the fragility of their relationship.” This avid film buff is also partial to the “passionate scene between Raj Kapoor and Nargis in AWARA, on the beach” and if it’s desire you’re talking about it’s the image of ‘Roop tera mastana…’ that springs to his mind. “Drenched in rain, around a bonfire, the ambience created, the music, the lyrics and Rajesh Khanna, who had a unique way of romancing his heroines… I think there was no woman in this country at that time who didn’t want to be romanced by Rajesh Khanna!” he quips. Vidya, with her equally perceptive eye, singles out a scene in DIL SE for attention. “It has Manisha Koirala drinking water from a bottle in a rather unladylike way. There is some raw appeal, something very earthy about her mannerism, the water trickling down her neck… and the way Shah Rukh looks at her. The entire scene is high on sexual energy; it’s lovely!” Many would say the same of her kiss with Madhavan in GURU, which came in for considerable praise. “It was just one scene but it was so beautifully written,” she agrees. “And of course, Mani Ratnam did it. When it comes to showing emotions Mani Ratnam is impeccable!” Her partner in that scene, R. Madhavan feels no one created magic better than Kajol and Shah Rukh did in KUCH KUCH HOTA HAI. “I love the scene in which they dance without music… Without saying anything it speaks so beautifully of their love.” Similarly, he admires the “outstanding romance” portrayed by Kamal Haasan and Amala in the silent film, PUSHPAK. “They don’t exchange a single dialogue; conveying their feelings only through their eyes.” And you thought men looked at everything but the eyes!