Aishwarya Rai was First Choice for Anjali from Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham?

Kajol was cast by Karan Johar even though Aishwarya Rai Bachchan had seen the script for Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.

There are countless reasons why Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham is still a cult favorite. Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, and Hrithik Roshan are among the ensemble cast, and their presence alone is enough to scream “yes.” The movie Poo starring Kareena Kapoor Khan continues to stick in audiences’ memories. Did you know that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was actually Karan Johar’s first choice for Kajol’s role?

Anjali was played by Kajol in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. The 48-year-old actress, on the other hand, channeled her desi image and left admirers in awe with her performance while Kareena Kapoor Khan was all sass. Can you even envision someone else playing that role? KJo did consider Aish.

Karan Johar revealed, “When I was casting for Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, I got to know that Kajol won’t be able to do the film because she was married and maybe she wanted to start a family. I thought I will approach Aishwarya. On that particular day, at 3 p.m. I reached Kajol’s studio and I thought she will say no, we will shed some tears and I will leave. I, of course, felt bad because Kajol had already worked with me.”

Karan Johar added, “But I don’t know what changed, Kajol actually wanted to do the film. So, I did not go to meet Aishwarya. But Aishwarya was my choice and after that, the series of ‘missing’ started.”

Later, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan also broke the silence and revealed that the script had undergone numerous modifications because what she had been initially told and what she witnessed on screen were very different things. She did give Kajol a lot of accolades for her amazing work in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.