Shah Rukh Khan once gave a reality check to Karan Johar on Kuch Kuch Hota Hai sets, recalls Nikhil Advani: ‘You don’t know anything’

In the glitzy and glamorous world of Bollywood, it’s usually the final picture that we get to witness on the big screen. However, what happens behind the surface is sometimes a lot more filmy than the film itself. One such similar situation happened on the sets of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and Kal Ho Naa Ho, where the Badshah of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, gave a reality check to Karan Johar during his directorial debut.

Producer Nikhil Adani recently shared some behind-the-scenes from sets. He shared that Karan had “excitedly ordered every single available piece of equipment required on a film set, despite there being no need for most of it.” It was Shah Rukh Khan who pointed out their mistake and reminded them that filmmaking was more about emotion and simplicity than excessive technical setups.

Nikhil also expressed how those moments changed his perception about storytelling and direction, teaching him to trust emotions over equipment and spectacle.

“You Don’t Know Anything”: Shah Rukh Khan’s Blunt Advice

Recalling a candid interaction, Nikhil said, “We finished the day’s shoot, and Shah Rukh called me and Karan into his van, and he said, ‘Boss, you all don’t know anything; tumhe kuch nahi ata hai (you don’t know how to do anything). Why did you get all this equipment? It wasn’t required for this shot. Figure it out!’”

The honesty may have been harsh, but it came from a place of mentorship. Nikhil remembered telling Karan, “We should just shoot the song, and I’ll learn from Farah Khan.” He added, “So even now, a lot of shot-taking is like I am shooting a song, and I learnt that from Farah.”

The Emotional Weight of Kal Ho Naa Ho’s Climax

Coming to his directorial venture Kal Ho Naa Ho, Nikhil shared some anecdotes from the iconic death sequence that still makes audiences emotional. He was asked if he was also crying while shooting it, to which he replied, “I started crying because I didn’t really know how to shoot this scene.”

He explained that cinematographer Anil Mehta guided him to keep it simple and show the moment from Shah Rukh’s point of view. “I had to convince myself that Shah Rukh had just done Devdas. His death scene was so iconic, with Aishwarya Rai running with the 9-metre saree and screaming ‘Deva…’ I had to understand that I have to make the scene between just two people.”

Why Simplicity Was the Key

Nikhil further concluded with a deeply emotional reflection: “Jitna rona tha film mein, utna aap pehle hi ro chuke ho (However much you had to cry while watching the film, you have already cried). The wedding is about to happen; we already know that Shah Rukh is dying, and you know that he has sacrificed. So we tried to keep that scene as simple as possible, and you never actually see Aman (Shah Rukh) dying.”

Lessons from the Set

Nikhil further shared how Shah Rukh Khan wasn’t just an actor but also a guiding force on set. Whether it was reminding filmmakers to cut down on unnecessary equipment or guiding them toward emotional truth, his advice shaped scenes that remain timeless today.