Farhan Akhtar reveals: How Shah Rukh Khan almost starred in Dil Chahta Hai — and why Aamir Khan made him wait

From early casting dreams to massage-mishaps on Don’s set — some behind-the-scenes stories you didn’t know about

Veteran filmmaker Farhan Akhtar — who has directed two of Bollywood’s biggest stars: Shah Rukh Khan in the Don series and Aamir Khan in Dil Chahta Hai — recently shared some surprising and entertaining anecdotes from his journey with both. In candid conversations, he revealed that his original vision for Dil Chahta Hai wasn’t what eventually made it to screen — and that his bond with Shah Rukh developed much later, eventually leading to their collaboration on Don.

Farhan confessed that he had initially wanted to cast Shah Rukh Khan in Dil Chahta Hai. He tried reaching out to Shah Rukh at the time, but — unable to get in touch — the idea never materialised. “He didn’t ask me why he was not in the film,” Farhan recalled.

Interestingly, Farhan revealed that his first formal meeting with Shah Rukh happened at a screening of Dil Chahta Hai — although their paths had crossed earlier, thanks to Farhan’s mother and writer Honey Irani who had worked with Shah Rukh in earlier films.

The bond between Farhan and Shah Rukh truly strengthened during the filming of Lakshya in Delhi — at a time when Shah Rukh was in the city visiting relatives and friends. They even hung out at a restaurant owned by one of Shah Rukh’s childhood friends. It was during this period that Farhan realised: if ever he got to work with Shah Rukh, the film had to be Don.

As Farhan says, there was “something very magnetic, charming” about Shah Rukh that made him the ideal choice for Don.

Farhan also candidly recalled a funny — albeit painful — moment from the first Don shoot. During their last schedule in Paris, he admits he suffered from severe neck and shoulder pain because of “director’s fatigue.” According to him, Shah Rukh offered to help — gave him a massage, promised a medicine, and assured him he’d be fine by morning. The next day, Farhan says, “I couldn’t even move my neck in the other direction.”

When those plans didn’t work out, Farhan turned to Aamir — whom he thought might reject the idea of a multi-hero film, given the trends of the late ’90s. Surprisingly, after persistent persuasion, Aamir agreed — but not before making Farhan wait for eight to nine months while he completed his commitments on another project. During this waiting period, Farhan worked on reworking parts of the script; but when Aamir returned, he requested to hear the original draft, and the team decided to stick with that.

Farhan says that when Aamir returned from the shoot of his other film, he had reworked parts of the script during the waiting period. But Aamir asked to hear the original version — and they remained with it. According to Farhan, Aamir’s advice was: “If you’ve written something good, don’t overthink — leave it as is.”

These anecdotes from Farhan give us a glimpse of how fluid and uncertain casting and filmmaking were behind some of Bollywood’s most loved movies. The stories show — even films like Dil Chahta Hai and Don, which seem seamless on screen — had complicated, sometimes serendipitous journeys. A mix of timing, persistence, relationships, and goodwill shaped the films we remember.

Also, who knew directors needed massages from their stars too? 😄

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