Sep 17, 2008

Entertainment - Funny side up Koffee bytes with Karan Johar

Ghostbusters

This one was on the location of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai in Scotland. One morning, I think it was around 4 am, Farah (Khan) came up, almost hysterical, screaming that she had seen a ghost that had come and slept on top of her. She kept yelling: “He was lying on top of me.” Initially, I kept reassuring her that she was hallucinating but she was so hysterical that eventually even I got scared! Both of us in our 30s — me in my early 30s and Farah who must have been 35 — behaved like two mentally challenged people and even went to the extent of closing all the doors and sat up till light broke. Farah was, in fact, in her Donald Duck night-suit. Farah kept saying she would not mind if it was me on top of her rather than the ghost because then she would not be scared at all. I don’t know whether to take that as a compliment or an insult!

Big B & The Twists

It was the very first day when I had to work with Amit uncle, on October 20, 2000, for Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. I had driven myself sick worrying about how I was going to direct Amit uncle. As a result, I went to the bathroom and fainted. While coming out, I nearly fell on Farah, nearly breaking her bone. The first face which I saw after regaining consciousness was Amit uncle who kept telling me, “I promise I will dance properly!” In fact, the work went on so smooth and fast after that, prompting Farah to ask me if I could fall sick more often during the song shoots so that they could move as fast. I ended directing Amit uncle from my make-up van and did not visit the sets.

Art Of Screaming

Then there was the very first day when I went to call the ‘shots’ (Karan was 24) and we were shooting the song Koi mil gaya for KKHH. Kajol was sure I was too mild and no one was going to listen to me. So she decided to make a pact with me asking me to scream at her for something. Her deal was that if I could scream at her, then I could probably scream at anyone! So I did it, and it really worked. The upshot is that in two days it was all back to the same!

Designed To Kill


For the same movie, I was shooting with Salman for Sajanji ghar aaye and he walked onto the sets wearing torn jeans and a T-shirt, insisting that he was going to wear just that and would not change into the designer suit I had got ready for the song. I was too scared to tell him anything and was not sure what to do. I went to my make-up room and started crying till Salman came and said that he was just pulling my leg. That leg-pulling continued for some time but man, I really shed copious tears thinking he was not going to wear the designer suit we had made for him!

Digest This

Poor Rani. Right through the shoot of KKHH, I was her diet monitor-cum-instructor. She had been told to lose four kilos and everyone from the hotel to the people on the set had been told not to let her anywhere near food! Poor girl!

Kareena Ka Karishma

While shooting for K3G, there was this death scene of Amit Uncle’s mother and Kareena wept and wept. She gave her shots and after pack-up asked: “So who died?” When I asked her how could she give a shot without knowing that, to which in typical Bebo style she said: “You asked me to cry and so I did.” That is Kareena. Spontaneous...

Saif With Kantaben

As for Kantaben, what can I say? For quite some time, I had to explain to Shulbha Arya what I wanted from that character. Every time I said that as Kantaben she was supposed to be upset with Shahrukh who went around hugging Saif, she would say: “I know what you mean is Preity!” I guess there was no precedence to this character. But she did a fab job.

Milli Milli?

Preity Zinta’s knowledge of yesteryears movies is non-existent. Add to that the fact that she has no filmi connections nor does she hail from a film family so she ends up making loads of faux pas. One day, Javed Akhtar, Jaya aunty and I were having a discussion on Milli and Preity comes in asking, ‘What movie is this? Is it, like mein milli, tu milli like that, who was this Milli?” and she turned to Jaya Aunty and asked her. Jaya aunty looked straight at her and said, “I was Milli!”

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