Did Shah Rukh Khan take over control of Jab Harry Met Sejal? Imtiaz Ali says, 'He is a huge star with...'

Imtiaz Ali's Jab Harry Met Sejal starred Anushka Sharma and Shah Rukh Khan in the lead roles. With the response their first film together, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, received, it was highly expected that JHMS would earn even more. However, the box office collection of Jab Harry Met Sejal was quite disappointing. But what was the reason? Did Shah Rukh Khan's influence lead to a drastic drop in the romantic drama's box office collection? Or did Shah Rukh Khan actually take over control? Well, the film's director, Imtiaz Ali, thinks otherwise.

Imtiaz Ali dismisses rumors of SRK taking control over JHMS

In a recent interview with GQ, Imtiaz was questioned about rumours suggesting Shah Rukh Khan took over control of the film and changed his vision. In reply, the director firmly denied such claims. Instead, he stated that he didn't consider Shah Rukh's stardom while writing the script. The filmmaker said, "Shah Rukh never imposed himself on the film. But he is a huge star with an enormous fan base. He has a lot of expectations to fulfil, and I wasn’t writing to serve that. I did not consider the scale of his stardom."

He further accepted that there was a need to include elements in the film's script to make it work while ensuring that the base and soul of the story stayed intact. "There are some boxes you have to check within your script to make it work, as many as you can, without ruining the soul of the film. With JHMS, we needed to be more clear about what he is longing for. It needed some more exposition, perhaps some flashbacks, and a more traditional structure to work," he said.

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About Jab Harry Met Sejal

What happens when a depressed middle-aged tour guide meets a flamboyant, fun-loving, and carefree girl is what makes the story of Imtiaz Ali's Jab Harry Met Sejal. The story revolves around Harry and Sejal's journey across Europe. As Sejal loses her engagement ring, the search for it leads to several hilarious scenes, which make them grow feelings for each other.

Imtiaz Ali’s last directorial, Chamkila, starring Diljit Dosanjh and Parineeti Chopra, received critical acclaim and was hailed for its amazing storytelling. Currently, the filmmaker is working on one of the most hyped projects. He is directing Fahadh Faasil and Triptii Dimri in his next.

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