Karan Johar’s directorial debut was released alongside David Dhawan’s Bade Miyan Chote Miyan on October 16, 1998. I was enchanted by Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’s virgin language, colours, textures. I saw the film twice in the same week. I don’t think Karan has directed a better film than Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. Except, maybe, My Name Is Khan. Kajol-Shah Rukh’s chemistry was so removed from what lead pairs generally share. But the real star of the show were the two kids Sana Saeed and Parzan Dastur as Anjali and the silent Sardarji.
Karan, it is 26 years of his debut film?
I hope I have matured since then.
Do you are see KKHH as the game changer in your life?
Well, I had no game before. But it changed my life .
The perception of the overweight bratty pampered kid changed?
I was never bratty…pampered and overweight, yes.Bratty,no. Now I pamper my mother and my kids.
25 Years, how do you look back on the experience?
As if it was in another lifetime. When I look back at pictures from the sets of KKHH, I can’t recognize who that person is. He was plus-size simple untouched innocent 100-kg plus…completely free of any value-judgement and seeking validation only from himself. It was an oldfashioned conviction.
Your father producer Yash Johar was fully convinced that his oversized overpampered son could make a film?
A father never has to have confidence…he just has abundant love. It didn’t matter whether I made the worst film in the history of Indian cinema. He would have still loved it.The fact that my first film turned out be something people loved was just a happy circumstance. My father would have loved it anyway. He thought I was the best filmmaker, the most good looking person and the best son on the planet. It was embarrassing to hear him gush about me to just about anyone. I would be mortified, and ask him not to do it, it was like blowing one’s own trumpet. He would say, ‘Kyon na karun. If I don’t blow my own trumpet, who will?’
So what happened after he saw KKHH for the first time?
He was just so proud. He was crying and hugging me. I had a very tactile relationship with my father. He was like my grandfather. He had me when he was 40.
That would be fairly normal age to have a child in present times?
Not back then. Men got married at 22 and had their first child at 23. So when you ask, ‘Did my father love the film,I say, he loved me.’
What was the first screening of KKHH like?
The first screening had my mom, dad, my friends Manish Malhotra, Aditya Chopra, Kajal Anand. Shah Rukh and Kajol were not there. There were lots of tears at the end of the screening .So others were wondering if the film was sooo bad or good. My mother was speechless.Yeah, it was just tears. The compliments came later. Adi(Aditya Chopra) helped me edit the film. After seeing it he suggested I cut fifteen minutes in the first-half. And I did. When he helped modify the first–half I know how to edit the second-half.
So Aditya Chopra had a hand in how KKHH shaped up?
Oh yes, he held my hand right through the film. His Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge had come three years earlier and it was just the most beautiful love story for me. I don’t think KKHH came anywhere close as a love story. But I think we created our own pop culture in KKHH.
You had trouble casting for the role that Rani Mukerji ultimately did?
Yes, I am not mentioning the actresses who said no. But there were seven of them. I absolutely did not hold grudges against them. They are all my friends. I was a newcomer and grateful that they gave me time to listen to my script. Guess who suggested Rani Mukerji’s name?
Who?
Aditya Chopra. He had seen the trailer of her first film Raja Ki Aayegi Baaraat. He recommended that I see it.
And you still signed her after seeing her in that hideous film?
I loved her in the movie. I was happy to have her on board.The moment she gave her first shot in the song Koi Mil Gaya, I knew a star was born. Her screen presence is magnetic.
Has any lead actor has ever said no to you after that?
Ummmm…not that I recall.
Finally what makes you the king of pop culture in Bollywood?
Am I really that? Thank you. I think I make sure I am surrounded by no-men.
No-men?
Yeah, people who have the liberty to point out I am doing rubbish when I am doing rubbish. I work with people who are younger than me. I listen to their voices. It is important to watch the work of all contemporary filmmakers and to acknowledge the brilliance of other filmmakers and it is important to to understand the mindset of the generation that is consuming content. It is important to work with a young team not just for their young energy but also as people who their opinion in a democratic way. The 25-year old today has much stronger opinions than my generation. It is important for me to connect with that generation. If you live in a bubble how will you know what’s going on in the world?
How many times have you seen Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (KKHH)?
Twice, I think. That’s all. I can’t bear to sit and watch my films over and over again. That would make a completely self-obsessed filmmaker. I am not one of those actors or directors who love their own work. Khamiyan dhunte dhunte mujhe migraine ho jayega.
