7 best Ratna Pathak movies that every cinephile should watch

Ratna Pathak movies have been entertaining movie lovers for years. As we celebrate the veteran actress’s filmography, let’s revisit some of her best movies.

By Arpita Sarkar

Published on Jun 28, 2024 | 11:55 PM IST | 185.1K

7 best Ratna Pathak movies that every cinephile should watch

Image Credit: Screengrab from Dhak Dhak movie

Ratna Pathak movies never fail to entertain us as they are filled with captivating storylines, top-level acting, dialogues, and characterizations. The veteran actress made her acting debut with Shyam Benegal's Mandi (1983).

After this, she did several films and earned praise for her work in Mirch Masala (1987), Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na (2008), Golmaal 3 (2010), Kapoor and Sons (2016), Nil Battey Sannata (2016), Lipstick Under My Burkha (2017), and many more.

7 best Ratna Pathak movies that are hard to miss

1. Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na

Cast: Genelia Deshmukh, Imran Khan, Naseeruddin Shah, Ratna Pathak Shah, Arbaaz Khan, Sohail Khan, Prateik Babbar, Paresh Rawal, Shakun Batra, Rajat Kapoor, Ayaz Khan
Director: Abbas Tyrewala
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
Movie Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Release year: 2008
Where to watch: Netflix

Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na is one of the most acclaimed Ratna Pathak movies in Indian cinema history. From the story to the characterization, it aptly satisfies the appetite of the entertainment buffs. In the film, best buddies Jai and Aditi are the ideal couple, but they refuse to explore a romantic relationship. However, when they begin dating other people, they realize they are in love. This is also one of the most acclaimed Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak movies.

2. Kapoor & Sons

Cast: Alia Bhatt, Sidharth Malhotra, Rishi Kapoor, Ratna Pathak Shah, Fawad Khan, Rajat Kapoor
Director: Shakun Btra
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
Release year: 2016
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance, Family
Where to watch: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video

In Kapoor & Sons, Ratna Pathak played the role of Sidharth and Fawad’s mother. Brothers Arjun and Rahul return home to visit their sick grandfather. Amid numerous ongoing family problems, emotions run high when a girl causes a rift between the two.

In the meantime, their father met with an accident. After the funeral, Rahul comes out as gay to Arjun, and the two move to London and Newark respectively. Four months later, the brothers receive a video message from Amarjeet (grandfather) requesting them to come back, as he feels lonely. After their return, Sunita (Ratna Pathak) comes to terms with Rahul's sexuality.

3. Lipstick Under My Burkha

Cast: Vikrant Massey, Konkona Sen Sharma, Ratna Pathak Shah, Shashank Arora, Aahana Kumra
Director: Alankrita Shrivastava
IMDB Rating: 6.8/10
Release year: 2017
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video

Lipstick under My Burkha features four average women Usha Parmar, an old matriarch, Rehana Abidi, a college fresher, Leela, a beautician, and Shireen who are forced to steal, lie, deceive, and hide to live the life they deserve because of ridiculous society rules. In an interview with Kovid Gupta, Shrivastava mentioned that she did not make the film "with the intention of teaching or preaching" but was glad that "it was able to start a discussion!"

4. Golmaal 3

Cast: Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi, Tusshar Kapoor, Shreyas Talpade, Ratna Pathak Shah, Kareena Kapoor Khan
Director: Rohit Shetty
IMDB Rating: 5.6/10
Release year: 2010
Genre: Comedy, Action
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, JioCinema

In Golmaal 3, we see Pritam, a single father, comes across his college sweetheart, Geeta, in Goa. However, when their respective children go to war with each other, the two find it difficult to reunite. Ratna Pathak played the role of Geeta Chopra aka Guddi. The film received a lot of love and recognition from fans and critics.

5. Khoobsurat

Cast: Sonam Kapoor, Aditi Rao Hydari, Ratna Pathak Shah, Fawad Khan, Kirron Kher, Cyrus Sahukar, Ashok Banthia, Simran Jehani, Nisha Pareek
Director: Shashanka Ghosh
IMDB Rating: 6.4/10
Release year: 2014
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Where to watch: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video

Khoobsurat is also one of the best Ratna Shah Pathak movies. In the film, we see Milli, a quirky physiotherapist, working for a royal family, but their cold behavior troubles her. Soon, she discovers more about them and falls for the young prince who is engaged to someone else.

6. Thappad

Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Dia Mirza, Ratna Pathak Shah, Ram Kapoor, Manav Kaul, Tanvi Azmi, Pavail Gulati
Director: Anubhav Sinha, Mrunmayee Lagoo
IMDB Rating: 7/10
Release year: 2020
Genre: Drama
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video

Thappad follows Amrita's seemingly flawless life which is upended in Thappad when her husband smacks her once at a party. But is one slap reason enough to doubt the values of the relationship? In the film, we saw Ratna Pathak in the role of Sandhya Sandhu, Amrita's (Taapsee) mother.

7. Dhak Dhak

Cast: Fatima Sana Shaikh, Dia Mirza, Ratna Pathak Shah, Sanjana Sanghi
Director: Tarun Dudeja
IMDB Rating: 6.3/10
Release year: 2024
Genre: Drama
Where to watch: Netflix

The slice-of-drama Dhak Dhak follows Four women who embark on a road trip to the world's highest motorable pass on their bikes on a journey of self-discovery from Delhi to Khardung La. They move their motorcycles like birds with big wings in the gust of wind. They rise beyond the bounds of their lives to the height of freedom.

Apart from these movies, Ratna Pathak Shah also did films such as Kutch Express, Hum Do Hamare Do, Mirch Masala, Mubarakan, Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu, Aladin, Mandi, Paheli, The Perfect Murder, and others. As you get the list of some of her best movies, head to the above-mentioned platforms to binge-watch.

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