Kho Gaye Hum Kahan - ‘Has friendship changed among Gen Z?’ Farhan Akhtar defends nuanced portrayal in film

In a recent roundtable discussion, Farhan Akhtar and his Kho Gaye Hum Kahan team defended modern-day friendships by referring to its intricacies and nuances as shown in their film.

Farhan Akhtar

Kho Gaye Hum Kahan released on Netflix on December 26 and has won over social media by showing a realistic and nuanced approach, along with its poignant portrayal of modern-day friendships. Directed by newcomer Arjun Varain Singh, the film is produced by creative mammoths Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, and Ritesh Sidhwani, of Excel Entertainment and Tiger Baby Films.

In a recent roundtable discussion with Harshit Bansal of The Humans of Cinema, Farhan Akhtar and the rest of the crew drew a rightful, defensive stance when the former was asked if ‘when he [you] see[s] younger people, that friendship itself has changed’ from what it was during the times of Jai and Veeru in Sholay, or even during Dil Chahta Hai, just like on-screen romance has changed and evolved over the years.

Farhan Akhtar immediately responded by disagreeing, “No, I don’t think friendship in its truest sense has changed at all.” But then he explained the cinematic evolution it has had over the decades, by slowly moving away from the tendency to profess it loudly, like Jay and Veeru did in Sholay, by singing Ye Dosti Hum Nahi Todenge.

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He further elaborated on how over the years, the tendency to proclaim friendship has mellowed down, even more than the three protagonists of Dil Chahta Hai grooving to a titular BGM. Just like it is shown in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, or their recent film Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, friendship is “more nuanced and even more layered” now.

The rest of the team also affirmed this by discussing how the film features platonic friendship at its best, without ever including any form of romance or love triangle between the leading trio. Despite having Adarsh’s character Neil, care deeply for Ananya’s Ahana, there is only pure love and acceptance for each other, despite all of them living together in an apartment.

Also read: Kho Gaye Hum Kahan X review- The perfect movie formula that gives reality checks without preaching

Nothing happens between them. It is life that happens to them as they heal and recuperate together by learning to overcome their respective insecurities and flaws and supporting each other like a family. Listening to all these thought-provoking insight, host Harshit was imbued to proclaim Kho Gaye Hum Kahan as the “defining friendship film of our, of this, generation (Gen Z).”

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