Filmmaker Nikkhil Advani, who broke out with the 2003 hit Kal Ho Naa Ho, opened up about his clash of egos with Karan Johar following the film’s success, and his subsequent departure from Dharma Productions. Nikkhil described it as an ’emotional’ fallout, and said that both he and Karan were swayed by what people around them were saying. He said that he wasn’t being given the due credit for Kal Ho Naa Ho’s success, while Karan felt that Nikkhil was being given too much credit.
In a conversation with Hindi Rush, Nikkhil also opened up about bonds in the film industry, and said that he went without speaking to Anil Kapoor and Govinda for a decade. He did, however, eventually patch up with Karan. “I had left Dharma Productions because I was upset. Karan and I had fought. Some people were saying that I had directed all three of their biggest hits, while some were saying I hadn’t even directed Kal Ho Naa Ho. There was a lot of confusion and anger.”
Also read – ‘Bullied Karan Johar a lot in school,’ admits Nikkhil Advani: ‘Today he can bully all of us’
Nikkhil denied that he and Karan ever clashed creatively, and said that they were very close. “Even now, we are very close. Luckily, 20 years later, we have put everything behind us. Both of us have grown up. We’ve understood that films are films and life is life. I was very close to his father. It wasn’t a creative clash; it was more of an emotional clash. ‘How could you listen to other people who are saying this about me?’ My whole thing was people aren’t giving me credit for one love story, so I’ll do six love stories,” he said.
Nikkhil said that he admires the bond that Ajay Devgn shares with Rohit Shetty, and the bond that Karan shares with Aditya Chopra and Shah Rukh Khan. He compared it to the equation that he shares with John Abraham. He said that there was a three-year period where people stopped taking his calls because his films weren’t working. “Me and John drifted apart for a few years… I didn’t talk to Anil Kapoor for 10 years, I didn’t talk to Govinda for 10 years… When John and I meet, we don’t talk about films or the industry. We talk about politics, food, fitness…”
Nikkhil’s last film was Vedaa, which featured John and Sharvari. The film didn’t do well at the box office, and Nikkhil attributed its under-performance to its clash with Stree 2. He said that he was pushing for the film to be delayed, but it wasn’t in his hands.
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