Aamir Khan and Javed Akhtar’s relationship goes way back, as the duo have worked together on many films, including the Oscar-nominated Lagaan. Aamir has also collaborated with Javed Akhtar’s children, Farhan and Zoya. At a recent event held on Sunday afternoon, the veteran lyricist shared an anecdote about how Aamir became a part of Dil Chahta Hai.
Javed Akhtar revealed that Farhan had given him the script to read, and he liked it. However, he was worried about how his son planned to cast three heroes for his debut film, as it is usually difficult to secure even one. But Farhan put his worries to rest by informing him that Aamir Khan had already agreed to do the film, which surprised the veteran lyricist even more.
He went on to share that, at the time, Aamir had instructed his secretary not to schedule any script narrations for the next six months, as he was busy shooting. Farhan, however, would frequently visit the sets, and upon seeing him, Aamir figured out that he was Javed Akhtar’s son. It was then conveyed to Farhan that Aamir was not considering any scripts for six months, but they could meet once he was ready to listen to new projects.
Meanwhile, Aamir began waiting for Javed Akhtar’s call, expecting that the veteran writer would ask him to hear his son’s script. However, when ten days passed without any call, Aamir assumed that Farhan had not mentioned the script to his father. This piqued Aamir’s curiosity, prompting him to call Farhan and ask about the script. The moment Farhan narrated the story, Aamir immediately agreed to do the film.
On a humorous note, Javed Akhtar quipped that had he mistakenly called Aamir, his son’s career might never have taken off.
Dil Chahta Hai had a major cultural impact after it released. The film starred names like Akshaye Khanna, Saif Ali Khan, OSnali Kulkarni and Priety Zinta and had music by Shanka-Ehsaan-Loy.