Despite its problematic gender politics, Karan Johar’s debut film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai achieved cult status, with characters Anjali (Kajol), Rahul (Shah Rukh Khan), and Tina (Rani Mukerji) ingrained in the memories of fans. In a recent Actors’ Roundtable 2023 with Rajeev Masand on Netflix’s YouTube channel, Kajol disclosed that she fought with Karan to play Tina’s role in the film.
Kajol said, “I fought in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. I fought with Karan Johar, I wanted to play Tina’s role and he was like, ‘No. You are playing Anjali.’ I was like, ‘But I want to play Tina’s role. You don’t know what I will do with Tina.’ Karan told me to shut up. I fought with him tooth and nail for 45 minutes but he refused categorically.” Sidharth Malhotra, also present at the roundtable, humorously remarked that he was quite happy “with the way the film turned out.”
In Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kajol played Anjali, who is best friends with Rahul. Anjali silently harbours feelings for her best friend, while Rahul falls for Tina, a new girl in college, eventually marrying her. Heartbroken, Anjali leaves college only to reunite with Rahul years later and marries him after Tina’s death.
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Earlier, at a IIMUN event, Karan criticised Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and said that it “propagated wrong gender politics.” He said, “I feel like I have grown as an individual, The first film that I made, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, I firmly believe that the gender politics of that film was all wrong. It is propagating incorrect gender politics, there is a lot of surfacesness in that film. Of course, there is nostalgia so you love it, but you don’t scratch the surface of the film and see that what Rahul is doing is actually not what I would want all the Rahuls in the audience, or all the boys in general, to do.”
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Kajol says she wanted to play Rani Mukerji’s role in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, fought with Karan Johar for it: ‘He refused categorically’ – The Indian Express
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