Bhansali began his career as an assistant to Vidhu Vinod Chopra and was involved in the making of "Parinda", ' and "Kareeb". However, they had a falling-out when Bhansali refused to direct "Kareeb". In 1996, he made his directorial debut with ', the commercially unsuccessful but critically acclaimed narration of a daughter's struggle to communicate with her deaf-mute parents. The film earned the Critics Award for Best film at Filmfare. He rose to prominence in Indian cinema with a triangular love story, "Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam", starring Aishwarya Rai, Salman Khan, and Ajay Devgan, which established his individualistic stamp for visual splendour and creating auras of celebration and festivity. The film was premiered in the Indian Panorama section at the 1999 International Film Festival of India. It was a great commercial and critical success, and won numerous awards including four National Awards and nine Filmfare Awards.