‘It must have been the nervous excitement of shooting with THE Amitabh Bachchan.’
‘I had kept tossing and turning all night.’
‘The next morning, I promptly fainted in Farah Khan’s arms.’
‘When I came round, I heard Amitji saying, “Please don’t faint. I promise I’ll dance well”.’

IMAGE: Amitabh Bachchan in Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna.

Karan Johar has known Amitabh Bachchan since childhood. After all, his father Yash Johar had produced one of AB’s hits, Dostana.

Kjo himself has directed the superstar in two films, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham and Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna.

On Amitabh Bachchan’s 82nd birthday on October 11, Karan tells Subhash K Jha, “Why do we have to show him as a humble patriarch or a retired don? In real life, he wears the coolest clothes and plays the coolest music. If at his age, if I show even a jot of his zest, I’d be blessed.”

You’ve worked with Amitji not once but twice.

Working with him is an honour.

I have worked with Lataji (K3G) and Amitji, the two legends. I am blessed.

Amitji‘s characters in my Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham and Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna were as dissimilar as cinematically possible.

In one, he was the portrait of discipline.

In the other, he was flamboyant, a very unusual character, compared with what he had played earlier.

IMAGE: Kajol, Shah Rukh Khan, Jaya and Amitabh Bachchan, Kareena Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.

Do you remember your first day of shooting with him?

On the first day, I fainted on the sets. It must have been the nervous excitement of shooting with THE Amitabh Bachchan.

I had kept tossing and turning all night.

The next morning, I promptly fainted in my choreographer Farah Khan’s arms.

When I came round, I heard Amitji saying, ‘Please don’t faint. I promise I’ll dance well.’

Can you believe my first day of shooting with the legend of Indian cinema, and I had to direct from a bed in my makeup room?

I felt like Francis Coppola directing from a bed.

Quite a moment that must have been.

It’s so strange, but there was just one moment in the film when all my main characters come together for a song. And I wasn’t on set.

I was looking at the scene from my monitor in the makeup room.

The doctor told me to go home, but there was no way I could be dragged away.

If I had to die, I’d rather watch that moment and then do so.

Farah joked, ‘Karan, I hope you faint in every song sequence. That way you’ll okay my dance movements far less fussily.’

IMAGE: Amitabh Bachchan in Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna.

You had some wild fun with Amitji while shooting K3G in London?

Subhash, wild is a bit of an exaggeration. I remember we went to see the Nicolas Cage starrer, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin in London.

Kajol kept laughing and crying the loudest.

Amitji said he wanted to keep going to movies with her because there are two movies going on at the same time with Kajol around.

There are two performances in K3G I’ve no hand in. One is Mr Bachchan, the other is Shah Rukh Khan.

They worked out everything completely on their own.

Mr Bachchan etched out every gesture and nuance in his performance, so did Shah Rukh.

He told me he’d be a baby in his father’s house, but leave like a man. And then he would he reunite with his father again as a child after 10 years.

I left the men to do their own thing. I dealt much better with the women.

In Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna, he was quite a Lothario.

(Laughs) You are saying that, not me. Abhishek’s father in the film was a flamboyant character and who better equipped than Mr Bachchan to play him?

He’ll be called Sexy Sam for a long time.

He trusted that I’d handle his raunchy role with class and dignity.

Of course, Amitji is full of class and dignity.

Why do we have to show him as a humble patriarch or a retired don?

In real life, he wears the coolest clothes and plays the coolest music.

If at his age, if I show even a jot of his zest, I’d be blessed.