Imtiaz Ali is an Indian film director and writer. He started his career with writing and directing television shows. He directed shows like Imtehaan, Naina and Kurukshetra. In 2005 he made his directorial debut with Socha Na Tha, that did not do well. Then he earned critical and commercial success for his direction of Jab We Met (2007). Love Aaj Kal (2009) and Rockstar (2011) made him known amongst youngsters.
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Biography from TMDB.
- June 16, 1971 (55)
- Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, India
- Writer, director and producer, also editor
- 13 on MovieCove · 37 credits in all
What are Imtiaz Ali's films like?
Across their 12 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 11
A split, not a type: Light 6 · Serious 1 · Dark 4
A split, not a type: Grounded 8 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 0
Gentle 4 · Charged 5 · Intense 2
Steady 4 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 2
A split, not a type: Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 2
Slow burn 6 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 0
Casual 6 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 0
A split, not a type: Easy watch 5 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 4
Resolved 7 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy7
- Bittersweet3
- Tragic2
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Imtiaz Ali's films?
As of October 24, 2026, all 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Netflix (8).
- Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026) · director, writer
- Amar Singh Chamkila (2024) · director, writer, producer
- Laila Majnu (2018) · writer, producer
- Metro in Dino (2025) · actor
- Thai Massage (2022) · producer
- Jab Harry Met Sejal (2017) · director, writer
- Love Aaj Kal (2020) · director, writer, producer
- She (2020) · writer
- ZEE5
Subscription and free streaming for Imtiaz Ali's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
37 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page; 4 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Side Heroes (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2027)
Main Vaapas Aaunga(2026)
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films
Metro in Dino(2025)
Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films
My Melbourne (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)
Bobby Beauty Parlour (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)
Amar Singh Chamkila(2024)
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films
Thai Massage(2022)
Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films
Dr. Arora (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)
She(2020)
Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all shows
Love Aaj Kal(2020)
Midcredits score: 28th percentile of all films
Laila Majnu(2018)
Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films
The Other Way (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)
Jab Harry Met Sejal(2017)
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films
Bruno & Juliet: A True Love Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)
Roots (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)
#IndiaTomorrow: MyDream (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)
Tamasha (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)
INT. CAFÉ – NIGHT (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)
Window Seat in Rajdhani Express (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)
Highway (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)
Window Seat in Kashmir (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)
Cocktail(2012)
Midcredits score: 58th percentile of all films
Rockstar(2011)
Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films
Teen Maar (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)
Kanden Kadhalai (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)
Love Aaj Kal(2009)
Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films
Jab We Met(2007)
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films
Ahista Ahista (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
Socha Na Tha(2005)
Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films
Black Friday (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)
Witness (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)
Star Bestsellers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)
Gubbare (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)
Heer Ranjha (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Imtiaz Ali's Next (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
O Saathi Re (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
The Idiot of Istanbul (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 37 titles, 32 of them dated from 1999 to 2026.
Biggest box office
Love Aaj Kal (2009)
Highest rated
Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026)
Most popular right now
Rockstar (2011)
Film career
- 2004Screen debut· Black Friday
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Imtiaz Ali's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 81st percentile, the median of all 12; across their 11 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 74th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up7
- 50th to 74th3
- 25th to 49th2
- Below 25th1
Shape of the crowd
5 of their 13 titles are Universally Loved.
- Universally Loved5
- Divisive2
- Crowd Pleaser5
- Mixed1
Reviewers score the dialogue 60/100 and the plot and story 50/100 in their films, across 11 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Imtiaz Ali's work okay for kids?
Across up to 9 MovieCove titles with content scores, profanity runs lighter than most films.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.
Who does Imtiaz Ali work with?
People who share at least 2 of Imtiaz Ali's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Aarti Bajaj shares the most, 7.
Writers
- Sajid AliShared titles: Amar Singh Chamkila (2024), Laila Majnu (2018), Cocktail (2012)See all 3 shared titles with Sajid Ali
Actors
- Diljit DosanjhShared titles: Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026), Amar Singh Chamkila (2024)See all 2 shared titles with Diljit Dosanjh
- Randeep HoodaShared titles: Love Aaj Kal (2020), Cocktail (2012)See all 2 shared titles with Randeep Hooda
- Deepika PadukoneShared titles: Cocktail (2012), Love Aaj Kal (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Deepika Padukone
- Saif Ali KhanShared titles: Cocktail (2012), Love Aaj Kal (2009)See all 2 shared titles with Saif Ali Khan
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Aarti BajajShared titles: Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026), Amar Singh Chamkila (2024), Laila Majnu (2018), Jab Harry Met Sejal (2017), Rockstar (2011), Love Aaj Kal (2009), Jab We Met (2007)See all 7 shared titles with Aarti Bajaj
- Pritam ChakrabortyShared titles: Love Aaj Kal (2020), Jab Harry Met Sejal (2017), Love Aaj Kal (2009), Jab We Met (2007)See all 4 shared titles with Pritam Chakraborty
- A.R. RahmanShared titles: Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026), Amar Singh Chamkila (2024), Rockstar (2011)See all 3 shared titles with A.R. Rahman
- Sylvester FonsecaShared titles: Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026), Amar Singh Chamkila (2024)See all 2 shared titles with Sylvester Fonseca
Producers
- Rajesh SharmaShared titles: Love Aaj Kal (2020), She (2020), Jab Harry Met Sejal (2017)See all 3 shared titles with Rajesh Sharma
- Gabbar SangrurShared titles: Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026), Amar Singh Chamkila (2024)See all 2 shared titles with Gabbar Sangrur
- Mohit ChoudharyShared titles: Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026), Amar Singh Chamkila (2024)See all 2 shared titles with Mohit Choudhary
- Abhishek GuptaShared titles: Thai Massage (2022), She (2020)See all 2 shared titles with Abhishek Gupta