When Shahid Kapoor Nudged Imtiaz Ali To Hike His Fees For Love Aaj Kal After Jab We Met Success

Imtiaz Ali made his directorial debut in 2005 with Socha Na Tha, starring Abhay Deol and Ayesha Takia. However, it was his second movie Jab We Met that put him on the map. The movie starred Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor and went on to earn ₹50.9 crore back then. In a recent interview, the filmmaker recalled how Shahid helped him in asking for an astronomical fee for his third movie Love Aaj Kal, starring Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone.

Imtiaz Ali always thanks Shahid Kapoor for THIS reason

In an interview with Mid-dady, Imtiaz praised Shahid and said that the actor guided him a lot not just during the filming of Jab We Met but even after the release. Recalling an incident, he said that he will never forget how Shahid helped him with the fees of his next movie. Shahid told Imtiaz, "Hamari picture (Jab We Met) thodi chal gayi hai. When you make your next film, don’t fix the price right now because I feel Jab We Met is climbing". To this, Imtiaz told Shahid I told that he was thinking of charging X number of lakhs.

"Shahid said, ‘Maybe you’ll get twice the amount or even Rs. 1 crore!’” At first, Imtiaz laughed at hearing the figures and thought Shahid was joking. However, Shahid made it clear that he was serious. "He told me, ‘Don’t fix it without calling me’. He thought ‘Yeh bewakoof hai. Isko log bewakoof bana denge’. Shahid, hence, was my self-appointed guide!” the filmmaker added.

What was Love Aaj Kal producer Dinesh Vijan's reaction to Imtiaz's demand?

Imtiaz recalled when he went up to Dinesh Vijan and told him his fee expectation, the producer was shocked. He added, "Dinoo suffered (laughs). He told me, ‘Aapne jo number bola, my head hit the roof!’. I told him, ‘Blame Shahid Kapoor’!”
 

Love Aaj Kal follows Jai and Meera's journey, and portrays the feeling of pure love which never changes, although the perspective of realizing one's soulmate has changed over time. Produced on a reported budget of ₹35 crore, the film was critically and commercially successful. It grossed ₹120 crore worldwide, becoming the second-highest-grossing Hindi film of the year.

It was remade in Telugu as Teen Maar (2011). In 2020, Imtiaz Ali made a spiritual successor of the same name with actors Kartik Aaryan and Sara Ali Khan.