“We made that film only for entertainment,” she said. “I think films reflect society, and that’s exactly what ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ was. People thought like that at that point in time.”
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More than two decades after ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ became a pop culture phenomenon, Kajol is candidly reassessing one of its most debated themes, the way it portrayed gender and attraction.
In a recent conversation with ‘The Lallantop’, Kajol addressed a long-standing criticism of the film, that Shah Rukh Khan’s character, Rahul, only began to see her character Anjali as a romantic interest after she shed her “tomboy” avatar and embraced a more traditionally feminine look.
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Responding with honesty and a touch of self-awareness, Kajol admitted that those ideas weren’t at the forefront when they made the film.
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“We made that film only for entertainment,” she said. “I think films reflect society, and that’s exactly what ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ was. People thought like that at that point in time.”
Kajol added, without hesitation, “If we made ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ today, people would laugh us out of the room.”
In the original 1998 film, Anjali’s transformation from a sporty, short-haired girl in college to a graceful woman in a saree years later is a key turning point in Rahul’s realization that he is in love with her.
While this narrative worked for the film’s era, many viewers over the years have pointed out how it reinforces the idea that only conventionally feminine women are seen as worthy of love.
Kajol acknowledged this criticism and even imagined how the film might flip that idea if made today: “That tomboy cut would probably be part of the second half. Pehle saree mein thi toh pasand nahi aayi thi, uske baad when she started playing basketball and became cool is when he starts liking her,” she said, flipping the script.
She was quick to clarify that ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ was “right for its time,” and cautioned against judging it by today’s lens.
“If we try to dissect it now and point out what was wrong or right, then maybe yes, we were wrong in that film,” she said.
‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ remains beloved for its music, performances, and emotional beats, but it’s clear that audiences, and its stars, are now more aware of how much has shifted culturally since then.
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