Kunal Kohli Says Rani Mukerji Laughed During Hum Tum Kiss Scene With Saif Ali Khan: 'One Of The Worst...'

Kunal Kohli’s Hum Tum completed 22 years recently, but the filmmaker has now revealed that the effortless chemistry audiences saw between Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukerji was far from the reality on set. While the 2004 romantic comedy remains one of the most loved films of its time, Kunal shared that the two actors had “zero camaraderie” during the shoot and were not particularly fond of each other off camera.

Kunal Kohli Says Saif Ali Khan And Rani Mukerji Didn’t Like Each Other

Speaking to NDTV, Kunal recalled that the early part of the shoot felt divided, with Rani and him on one side and Saif mostly on his own.

He said, “They were not particularly fond of each other off-screen. For the first half of the shoot it felt like team Rani and me, and Saif

alone. Saif and I didn’t like each other and Saif and Rani didn’t like each other.”

The director added that things began changing during the Amsterdam schedule, when he had a serious conversation with Saif about the importance of the film for his career.

Kunal shared, “Then Saif and I spoke throughout the Amsterdam schedule. I said, ‘Listen, this film is very important. If it doesn’t work, you will not be a solo hero. You’ll only be doing second leads to Shah Rukh Khan like in Kal Ho Naa Ho. So let’s make this work.’”

According to Kunal, that conversation helped improve the atmosphere on set, and the team eventually began working together more smoothly.

Kunal Kohli Recalls Hum Tum’s Kissing Scene

Kunal also spoke about the kissing scene between Saif and Rani during the song Saanson Ko Saanson Mein. He revealed that Rani was initially hesitant to do the scene and later agreed to only one take.

He said, “We were shooting that whole night. At first she said she wouldn’t do the kiss. Finally she said, ‘Okay, I’ll do one take.’ If you watch the take she’s actually laughing; she’s lying on her side and moving because she’s laughing.”

The filmmaker said he noticed her laughing only later during the edit. “When I saw it in the edit I thought, she’s laughing. So yeah, it’s got to be one of the worst kisses of Hindi cinema,” he added.

About Hum Tum

Produced by Aditya Chopra under the Yash Raj Films banner, Hum Tum starred Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukerji in the lead roles. The film also featured Rishi Kapoor, Kirron Kher, Rati Agnihotri and Jimmy Shergill in supporting roles.

Loosely inspired by the American romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally, the film followed the evolving relationship between Karan and Rhea over several years.

At the time, Rani was already an established star, but Hum Tum became a major turning point for Saif Ali Khan. The film helped cement his place as a solo romantic-comedy lead and earned him the National Film Award for Best Actor.