Dil Chahta Hai marked Farhan Akhtar’s directorial debut, and the film starring Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan and Akshaye Khanna has completed 25 years. During Monsoon Film Fetsival held in Mumbai recently,
Farhan recalled the time when he narrated the story of the film to Aamir. While he had the script ready and a clear idea of how he wanted the film to look, Aamir wasn’t immediately convinced that Farhan should be the one behind the camera. He had doubts about whether the first-time director could pull it off. Instead, Aamir suggested Farhan hand over the script to him so that he could make the film himself.
Aamir Khan Didn’t Think Farhan Akhtar Could Direct Dil Chahta Hai
While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter India, Farhan Akhtar was asked whether it was true that ‘an actor’ loved the story of Dil Chahta Hai, but didn’t think Farhan could direct it. “Completely true. And I think we should name this person also. It was Aamir Khan,” said Farhan.
He further recalled how their conversation went. “Aamir told me, ‘Your story is really good. It’s a very fresh script. But how are you going to direct it? You’ve never made anything before. So just give me the script and I’ll make it.’ And I said, ‘No, I can’t give the script.’ So he’s like, ‘Accha, you think about it’,” recalled Farhan.
Farhan, however, wasn’t willing to give up his vision. He told Aamir that he couldn’t hand over the script because he wanted to direct the film himself.
At the time, Farhan didn’t know Aamir particularly well. He had met him before through his mother, Honey Irani, but the two weren’t close. It was only while making Dil Chahta Hai that Farhan began to understand what may have been behind Aamir’s initial reaction.
Aamir Khan Accepted Farhan’s Decision To Direct The Film
“The more I got to know him through even the making of that film, I really feel that he was testing my resolve. Like, I think he wanted to see whether I’m so immersed in it and I’m so committed to it that it’s not just something that I’m happy to just get made regardless of who’s making it. Because when I went back to him and I said, ‘Nahi yaar, I have decided that nobody else can make it the way I’m imagining it,’ he just said, ‘Yeah, okay, cool. Let’s do it,’” he said.
Rather than continuing to question his decision, Aamir accepted it and agreed to be part of the film. For Farhan, the exchange ultimately became an important early test of his conviction as a filmmaker.
“But I think he just wanted to know how committed I am to making this film. Then he finally said yes,” recalled Farhan.
