Daily Times

Directed by Imtiaz Ali and starring Kareena Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor, Jab We Met became the underdog hit of 2007. But the film had a rather tumultous production, with behind-the-scenes drama related to the casting and the mid-production breakup of the lead stars. As Jab We Met turns 15 today, here’s looking back at some stories related to the movie. The issues began even before the film had begun shooting. Bobby Deol revealed in an 2017 interview with HuffPost that he had started to put the project together with Imtiaz, but was quietly removed from it after Kareena, “who didn’t even want to meet Imtiaz,” suggested that they hire Shahid to star opposite her instead. Bobby said that he was taken aback when he discovered that Kareena and Imtiaz had set the project up for themselves, and had also brought Shahid in. “I was like, wow. Quite an industry… But I have no hard feelings against him. He is a great director and doing so well. We’re still friends. But I always tell him: ‘Imtiaz, I won’t watch any of your films until you make one with me. That’ll be your best film.” For Kareena Kapoor, Jab We Met was a game-changer. Her performance as Geet is still regarded as one of her finest. But Kareena recalled in a 2020 interview with Film Companion that she didn’t expect much out of Jab We Met.