The movie "Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna" turns 20 years today. The movie, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukerji, is still remembered by the viewers. Nevertheless, at the time when the movie was released, there was intense criticism directed at Karan Johar. The director expressed this through an Instagram post.
Based on marriage, love, and adultery, "Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna" polarized the viewers. Karan Johar stated that before the movie premiere he went to see its paid preview in a movie theater. There he was peacefully watching the movie when he saw a middle-aged couple strongly responding to one of the scenes with the actors of Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukerji, Dev and Maya.
Karan Johar recalled that the couple seemed uneasy before the scene, and the situation became even more tense when Dev and Maya entered a hotel elevator and became overwhelmed with their emotions.
Karan Johar wrote about this in his Instagram post. He wrote, "At that moment, the woman in a sari looked at the man in a kurta in surprise, and the popcorn fell from his hand. The man turned back and said, 'It was a dream.' When the man realized it wasn't a dream, he looked angrily at his wife and immediately signaled for the exit. They left the theater, and my heart sank."
Karan Johar said that things became even more difficult for him when he left the theater. He wrote in the post, "A woman and her daughter came up to me after the screening. She asked, 'Are you Karan Johar?' I took my daughter to see a happy film with songs, dances, and family values because it was your film. I showed it to her the day she got divorced. You should be ashamed. I was afraid she might hit me, so I quickly left and found more angry faces.
Karan Johar made an important point in his post about the film's story. He writes, "A few weeks later, I met a woman in an airport lounge. She said she loved your film. I lied to my husband and said I didn't like it at all."
Karan further writes, "I don't deny the film's flaws. It was made on a grand scale and had grand songs, even for my understanding of mainstream cinema. But I always felt its spirit was right. The film didn't endorse infidelity. But it showed that stepping outside the boundaries of marriage in pursuit of love or desire can destroy your foundation and family.
Karan Johar further writes in his post, "20 years later, I meet many people who tell me they couldn't connect with this film then, but understand it better today. Perhaps life itself gives us answers we never asked for."
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, directed by Karan Johar, starred Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, Abhishek Bachchan, and Preity Zinta in lead roles. This romantic drama film was released in theaters on August 11, 2006.
