The best Bollywood road trip movies are Jab We Met, Highway, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Piku, Karwaan and Qarib Qarib Singlle. They follow characters travelling through Punjab, Himachal, Rajasthan, Kashmir, Spain, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Sikkim, and use the journey to change how they see their lives.
A road trip film works because the journey forces people to talk, argue and open up. Hindi cinema has produced several such films in the last two decades. Here are six worth watching when you cannot take a trip yourself, or when you need ideas for one.
1. Jab We Met (2007)
Imtiaz Ali’s romantic comedy stars Shahid Kapoor as Aditya, a heartbroken businessman, and Kareena Kapoor as Geet, a talkative Punjabi woman he meets on a train from Mumbai. A missed train at Ratlam turns into a journey across North India.
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The story moves through Bhatinda, Manali and Shimla. Kareena Kapoor won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress, and the song “Yeh Ishq Hai” won National Awards for Shreya Ghoshal and choreographer Saroj Khan. The film returned to theatres in 2024 during a Valentine’s film festival.
2. Highway (2014)
Also directed by Imtiaz Ali, Highway follows Veera (Alia Bhatt), the daughter of a wealthy Delhi businessman, who is abducted just before her wedding by Mahabir (Randeep Hooda). Over a long drive, she finds a freedom she never had at home.
The film was shot across Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir, including Aru valley and Chandanwari near Pahalgam. A. R. Rahman composed the music. It is quieter and darker than most road films, and Alia Bhatt’s performance was widely praised.
3. Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011)
Zoya Akhtar’s film follows three school friends, played by Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar and Abhay Deol, on a bachelor trip across Spain before one of them gets married. Each friend picks an adventure sport the others must try.
The trip includes deep-sea diving, skydiving and the running of the bulls, along with the La Tomatina tomato festival in Buñol. Along the way, the friends deal with old hurts and their own fears. It remains one of the most loved friendship films in Hindi cinema.
4. Piku (2015)
Shoojit Sircar’s comedy-drama stars Deepika Padukone as Piku, Amitabh Bachchan as her ageing, fussy father Bhashkor, and Irrfan Khan as Rana, the taxi company owner who ends up driving them. The family travels by road from Delhi to their ancestral home in Kolkata, stopping overnight in Varanasi.
The film finds humour in everyday family life. Amitabh Bachchan won the National Film Award for Best Actor, his fourth, and Deepika Padukone won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress.
5. Karwaan (2018)
Akarsh Khurana’s debut film stars Dulquer Salmaan, in his first Hindi film, as Avinash, an unhappy IT employee in Bengaluru. After his father dies, he receives the wrong body and must drive to Kochi to exchange it, with his friend Shaukat (Irrfan Khan) at the wheel.
They pick up a teenager, Tanya (Mithila Palkar), and travel through Ooty and Kumarakom before reaching Kochi. The film mixes dark comedy with gentle moments and shows off the hills and backwaters of South India.
6. Qarib Qarib Singlle (2017)
Tanuja Chandra’s romantic comedy stars Irrfan Khan as Yogi, a poet, and Parvathy Thiruvothu as Jaya, a widow who meets him through a dating website. To test his claim that his ex-girlfriends still miss him, they set off to visit each one.
The trip takes them to Dehradun, Jaipur and Gangtok, partly by train. It is a slow, warm film about two people in their thirties learning to be open again.
Routes at a glance
| Film | Year | Main stops | Mood |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jab We Met | 2007 | Mumbai, Ratlam, Bhatinda, Manali, Shimla | Light romance |
| Highway | 2014 | Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab, Himachal, Kashmir | Intense, reflective |
| Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara | 2011 | Spain | Friendship, adventure |
| Piku | 2015 | Delhi, Varanasi, Kolkata | Family comedy |
| Karwaan | 2018 | Bengaluru, Ooty, Kumarakom, Kochi | Dark comedy |
| Qarib Qarib Singlle | 2017 | Dehradun, Jaipur, Gangtok | Gentle romance |
What makes a good road trip film
The best films in this list use the road as more than scenery. The characters start the journey running from something, whether a broken heart, a strict family or a dull job, and the people they meet on the way force them to face it.
Music also plays a big part. Songs such as those in Jab We Met and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara are still common on travel playlists, years after the films released.
Plan your own trip from these films
Several of these routes can be copied in real life. A Delhi to Manali drive by the Chandigarh route takes most travellers a long day. Kerala’s Kumarakom and Kochi can be combined with Munnar or Alleppey in a week. For Kashmir, plan around weather and check local travel advisories before you go.
Streaming rights for these films change often, so check the major OTT apps in India for current availability. For trip ideas, see our travel section and more film lists in entertainment.
Further reading: Jab We Met.
Frequently asked questions
Which is the best Bollywood road trip movie?
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara and Jab We Met are the most popular picks. Piku and Highway are favourites for viewers who prefer a slower, more personal story.
Where was Highway shot?
Highway was filmed across Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir, including Aru valley and Chandanwari near Pahalgam.
Which city does the Piku road trip end in?
The family drives from Delhi to Kolkata, with a night halt in Varanasi on the way.
Was Karwaan Dulquer Salmaan’s first Hindi film?
Yes. Karwaan (2018) was his Hindi film debut after a career mostly in Malayalam cinema.
Sources: Jab We Met on Wikipedia, Highway (2014) on Wikipedia, Piku on Wikipedia, Karwaan on Wikipedia.
