Cinearium Picks Movies Like...
50 movies like Hridayam: warm coming-of-age stories, college romances, first loves and life-spanning friendships from Malayalam cinema and beyond.
Hridayam follows one young man from his first day of engineering college into adulthood, through first love, heartbreak, friendship and growing up, with songs that carry the story. These 50 picks share that warmth and nostalgia, from Premam, Varshangalkku Shesham and Thanneer Mathan Dinangal to 96, Kirik Party and Before Sunrise. Every note is spoiler-safe.
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Why it belongs on this list
An aimless young man moves to Hyderabad and falls for a confident IT professional who seems out of his league. A breezy rom-com that became one of Malayalam cinema's biggest hits.
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Vineeth Sreenivasan's earlier romance follows a young communist from Thalassery who falls for a Muslim girl. Sweet, funny and full of the kind of songs that became Hridayam's calling card.
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A spirited young woman decides to win over the older man she has had a crush on since school. Nazriya Nazim and Nivin Pauly make this one of Malayalam cinema's most charming romances.
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Three cousins move to Bengaluru and learn about love, marriage and growing up the hard way. Anjali Menon's ensemble is warm, funny and endlessly rewatchable.
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Two school sweethearts meet again at a reunion 22 years later and spend one night catching up. Vijay Sethupathi and Trisha make every glance count; keep tissues nearby.
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Seven engineering students go on a college tour that turns into the trip of a lifetime. Produced by Vineeth Sreenivasan, it is full of the same campus warmth.
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Rakshit Shetty plays a rowdy engineering student whose college years run from mischief to heartbreak to growing up. The Kannada film closest to Hridayam's arc.
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Before his wedding, a man travels to invite the women he loved at school, in college and after. Cheran's 2004 film is the original life-in-love-stories drama.
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Rajisha Vijayan plays June from her last years of school through first love, college and adulthood. A female-led Hridayam in all but name.
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A shy engineering student moves into a college hostel and slowly finds her voice. Girish A.D.'s follow-up to Thanneer Mathan Dinangal is funny and relatable.
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A college reunion brings old friends and rivals back together, along with memories of student politics, love and an unsolved mystery. Lal Jose's 2006 hit is pure nostalgia.
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Eight friends go through four years of engineering college, with ragging, romance and fights along the way. Sekhar Kammula's hit is Telugu cinema's definitive campus film.
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An aspiring filmmaker falls for his Malayali neighbour, and their on-off romance plays out over years. Gautham Vasudev Menon and A. R. Rahman made a modern classic.
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A soldier posted in Kashmir in the 1960s begins receiving letters from a woman who calls herself his wife. A lush, old-fashioned love story with beautiful music.
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A software engineer recalls his loves from school to adulthood on a long drive. Darling Krishna's romance follows the same life-in-chapters structure as Hridayam.
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A soldier looks back on his father and his own life, from first love to loss and recovery. Suriya plays father and son in Gautham Menon's emotional, life-spanning drama.
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A young woman goes looking for the mysterious artist who once lived in her rented room. Dulquer Salmaan's free spirit makes this a joyful journey.
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Two friends ride motorcycles from Kerala to Nagaland, and one of them is chasing a lost love. Sameer Thahir's road movie is about youth, freedom and finding yourself.
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Four friends who once dreamed of making a short film reunite for a trip to Goa. Tharun Bhascker's comedy captures the bittersweet feeling of drifting apart.
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A father tells his son the story of his engineering-college friends and their underdog hostel. Warm, funny and moving, with Sushant Singh Rajput and Shraddha Kapoor.
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Best friends Jai and Aditi are the only ones who cannot see that they belong together. A breezy, music-filled romance with a fine A. R. Rahman soundtrack.
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Three college friends drift apart as they grow up and find love. Farhan Akhtar's 2001 debut redefined the modern Hindi coming-of-age film.
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A lazy rich kid learns to grow up with the help of a writer who has just moved to Mumbai. Ranbir Kapoor and Konkona Sensharma in a gentle, charming film.
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A trek brings four friends together, and a wedding years later brings them back. Big, colourful and nostalgic about youth.
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A young couple in Bengaluru dream of a life by the sea until a desperate decision tests their love. A tender, heartbreaking romance; Side B continues the story.
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A shy young woman's life changes when she meets two very different men. A quietly devastating romance that became a word-of-mouth hit.
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A video-game designer and an architect in Mumbai decide to live together without planning a future. Mani Ratnam's breezy romance comes with an A. R. Rahman soundtrack.
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A young couple elope and then discover what marriage really means. Mani Ratnam's 2000 romance, told in flashbacks, is full of classic Rahman songs.
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A young man who dreams of being a chef ends up working in his grandfather's Kozhikode restaurant. Anjali Menon's script is warm, funny and full of heart.
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Four brothers in a messy fishing-village home slowly learn to be a family. Tender, funny and a little dark, with Fahadh Faasil's unforgettable Shammi.
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Raised by a lodge owner in Mookambika, a young man has waited all his life for the mother who left him there to come back. Vineeth Sreenivasan leads this gentle, feel-good family drama.
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A tech-shy father tries to reconnect with his grown-up sons, including a struggling screenwriter, as they vanish into their phones. Indrans is wonderful in this warm family comedy.
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A fisherman's son and a powerful politician's daughter fall in love in a Maharashtra village. Nagraj Manjule's blockbuster is joyous and musical at first, then grows far darker.
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A college boy from Delhi goes looking for heartbreak to become a musician and finds more than he bargained for. Imtiaz Ali's music-driven romance is carried by A. R. Rahman's songs.
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Two friends go looking for the college classmate who changed their lives. Funny, sentimental and one of India's most-loved college films.
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Three friends in their twenties navigate careers, love and social media in Mumbai. A modern look at the friendships Hridayam's characters might have later.
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Five friends grow up in a Seoul neighbourhood in 1988, surrounded by family and first loves. A Korean series that is pure warmth and nostalgia.
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A teenage fencer and a young man rebuilding his life grow up together during the 1998 financial crisis. A bittersweet Korean drama about youth and first love.
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Two strangers meet on a train and spend one night walking and talking in Vienna. Richard Linklater's romance is simple, honest and timeless.
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A greeting-card writer revisits the ups and downs of a relationship out of order. A clever, bittersweet romance told with music and humour.
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A young man learns he can travel back to moments in his own life and uses the gift to find love. A warm British film that is really about family.
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An actress and a jazz pianist fall in love while chasing their dreams in Los Angeles. A musical about love, ambition and the choices that shape a life.
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A Dublin schoolboy in the 1980s starts a band to impress a girl. Joyful, funny and full of great songs.
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Filmed over 12 years with the same cast, Boyhood follows one boy from age six to 18. Coming-of-age at its most real.
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A shy teenager starts high school and finds friends who change his life. Tender and honest about growing up.
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Two childhood friends, separated when one emigrates from Korea, reconnect decades later. Quiet, wise and deeply moving.
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Two friends are revisited on the same date, 15 July, every year for two decades. Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess in a love story told year by year.
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Alphonse Puthren follows George through three love stories, from school to college to adulthood. The film Hridayam is most often compared with, and a cultural phenomenon in Kerala.
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Vineeth Sreenivasan reunites with Pranav Mohanlal for the story of two friends chasing careers in 1970s Madras cinema, told across decades. Nostalgic, musical and very much in Hridayam's spirit.
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Why it belongs on this list
A lovestruck Plus Two student navigates crushes, friends and a new teacher played by Vineeth Sreenivasan. Girish A.D.'s comedy nails the awkwardness of being seventeen.
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Behind the picks
Picks are ranked by how closely they match Hridayam's appeal: a coming-of-age story told across years, college life, first love, friendship and music that carries the emotion. Malayalam cinema leads, followed by films in other Indian languages and international favourites. Rankings are Cinearium editorial choices.
Movie facts and community ratings come from TMDB. Streaming information is provided by JustWatch through TMDB and varies by country. Missing availability means no option was returned by the provider; it does not prove a film is unavailable everywhere. Dates above refer to editorial updates.
