Bobby Deol On Losing Imtiaz Ali's Jab We Met To Shahid Kapoor: My Heart Got Broken

The

2007 romantic comedy Jab We Met, starring Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor, is a cult classic that enjoyed success even when it returned to theatres. However, Imtiaz Ali had a hard time getting the film off the ground and ended up replacing his original hero, Bobby Deol, even before filming started. Now, Bobby has taken to discussing the events of losing the delayed rom-com to Shahid Kapoor and why he was so affected after being replaced. Despite the setback, the actor shares that he and the filmmaker are now friends.

How Bobby Deol got replaced in Jab We Met

In an interview with Aap Ki Adalat, Bobby recalled being impressed with Imtiaz after watching his directorial debut Socha Na Tha starring his cousin, Abhay Deol. The Bandar star shared that he had great confidence in the new director at the time. Bobby was excited by his work and thought he was a good director and he should work with him on his next film. The next project ended up beingJab We Met and Bobby helped Imtiaz bring the film to different production houses; he also brought Kareena to the Hindi rom-com. But the film kept getting delayed for several other reasons. Eventually, Imtiaz and Kareena stayed, while Bobby lost the role to Shahid Kapoor. The film ended up being an instrumental part of both Shahid's and Kareena's careers. The songs of Jab We Met also became quite popular.

Bobby said of his experience, "That story is done now. We’re friends. My heart got broken because I needed a film like this during that phase of my career." Despite the loss, the actor used that moment to turn it into a learning lesson as he felt that these kinds of incidents could occur in an artist's career. He added, "These things made me a better person and a better actor. I’ve only learned from them. I don’t have any qualms with anyone."

Bobby Deol's upcoming projects

The actor's next theatrical release is Bandar, directed by Anurag Kashyap. Releasing on June 5, 2026, it features Bobby as a famous pop star named Sameer who is falsely accused of rape by his ex-girlfriend. Sanya Malhotra, Sapna Pabbi, and Saba Azad also star.

Bobby's other films in the lineup also include Vijay's Jana Nayagan, which has yet to fix a release date, and he will star alongside Alia Bhatt and Sharvari in Yash Raj Films' spy thriller Alpha. Directed by Shiv Rawail, Alpha is the first female-led film in the YRF Spy Universe.