This artist subsequently regretted choosing not to work on the Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai

Karan Johar made his directing debut with the love drama Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which starred Salman Khan, Rani Mukerji, and Shah Rukh Khan in key roles. Despite only costing Rs 10 crore to make, the movie went on to become a global hit, generating Rs 106 crore and ranking as the highest-grossing Indian film of 1998.

The character that Rani Mukerji ultimately played in the movie was refused by Twinkle Khanna, Urmila Matondkar, Tabu, Shilpa Shetty, Aishwarya Rai, Raveena Tandon, Karisma Kapoor, and Juhi Chawla. Saif Ali Khan and Chandrachur Singh both rejected the role that Salman Khan ultimately portrayed.

In addition to the actors, one additional artist subsequently expressed sorrow for turning down the Karan Johar-helmed picture due to its title. He was the renowned scriptwriter and lyricist Javed Akhtar. In the end, Sameer wrote the words to the songs that Jatin-Lalit had created.

“Javed sahab had a problem with the title Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. We had a creative disagreement and he told me, ‘I don’t feel like I can write the lyrics of this film’s songs.'” The director remembered this in a 2023 chat with fashion designer Prabal Gurung. When I expressed my wish to collaborate with you, he said, “We will work with Karan another time.” However, he phoned me after the movie came out to correct me.” In several interviews, Javed Akhtar has also said that he first believed the movie’s title had “a lot of double meaning.”

The third movie directed by Javed Akhtar and Karan Johar, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, was released in 2006. The songs for the movie, which featured Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Rani Mukherji, Preity Zinta, and Kirron Kher, were written by the lyricist and composed by the musical group Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.