Mumbai: Filmmaker Karan Johar revealed that the atmosphere on the sets of his multi-starrer drama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham was far from being homely and welcoming for Hrithik Roshan.
In his memoir An Unsuitable Boy, Karan shared that Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan and Kajol maintained distance with him and that was "really sad."
Karan stated that the hostility on the film set had to do with the success of Hrithik's debut film Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai.
He said that Hrithik was being compared to Shah Rukh as his debut became a blockbuster hit. He was even touted to be the next big star in Bollywood.
Karan wrote in his book: "It was unfair because he was too junior, and Shah Rukh was already such a big star. But that was a phase when one or two of Shah Rukh’s films had gone wrong and the media had started projecting Hrithik up there."
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"The negativity that crept in was not justified or correct, and it was really sad. I felt Hrithik was the only one during the course of the shooting who needed a little hand-holding. See, the Bachchans didn’t have that equation with him. Shah Rukh was a bit distant at that time because of everything that was happening. Kajol was Team Shah Rukh,” he added.
Acknowledging everything that was happening on the sets, Karan said that he tried to make Hrithik comfortable as much as possible.
"I felt I needed to hold his hand a bit. And we developed a really good friendship. We got close to each other— he was a bit of a lost child in this whole lot. And Hrithik, anyway, is slightly awkward around people. He’s not the most people-friendly person. Now he’s become a lot better," he wrote.
