Jab We Met continues to enjoy a special place among audiences nearly two decades after its release. Directed by Imtiaz Ali and starring Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor Khan, the romantic drama has evolved into a cult favourite over the years, with its memorable characters, dialogues and music continuing to resonate with viewers.

Imtiaz Ali reveals Shahid Kapoor was instrumental in making Jab We Met; says, “It happened because of Shahid honestly”

While the film‘s journey has often been discussed, filmmaker Imtiaz Ali has now shared an interesting anecdote about how Jab We Met eventually came to life. According to the director, the film moved forward largely because of Shahid Kapoor’s belief in the story at a time when it was not even the project they had initially met to discuss.

During a recent interaction with a media portal, Imtiaz recalled meeting Shahid for an entirely different film. However, the conversation took a different turn when the actor asked him about another script involving a boy and a girl meeting on a train.

Sharing the story behind the film’s inception, Imtiaz said, “Jab We Met happened because of Shahid honestly. I was meeting him for something else and we were not making Jab We Met that time and he asked me if I have a story where a girl and a boy meet each other in the train, so I said this is there and I was supposed to make it with Bobby Deol, but now that film is not happening and I was gonna talk to you about some other film which I told him but he was like what is the story of that one, then I narrated the story of Jab We Met to him and he was very interested and he saw that I’m also interested while I was telling him the story of Jab We Met, there was this thing in my eyes also that I’m interested then he said why aren’t we making this? Can I not do this?”

The filmmaker further revealed that Shahid’s conviction gave him the confidence to take the project ahead and secure the support needed to mount the film on a larger scale. “So it was through his confidence that this can be good and this film can be made and we’ll tell the producer that we are doing this but you must give us a good budget, you must give us a good release, all these things were there from his side that you must say this. The film worked so well, and everybody is happy”, he added.

Released in 2007, Jab We Met went on to become one of the defining romantic films of its era. Shahid Kapoor’s portrayal of Aditya Kashyap and Kareena Kapoor Khan’s performance as Geet remain among the most celebrated characters in Hindi cinema, with the film continuing to attract new audiences’ years after its release.

Also Read: Bobby Deol says losing Jab We Met made him a “better person and a better actor”