Jaya Bachchan called Shah Rukh Khan’s film ‘most nonsensical’, Amitabh Bachchan was shocked

Mohan recalled Jaya Bachchan’s reaction

Mohan Kapur spoke about Happy New Year and said, “I got a lot of criticism for Happy New Year.” As the host recalled, during the film’s special screening, Jaya Bachchan had told the producers and actors that it was the most nonsensical film she has ever seen. She said she couldn’t be a part of something like that; she couldn’t watch it or be involved in it. She had even said that Abhishek was a great actor as he could play stupid so freely.

Also Read: Abhishek Bachchan says mother’s comment on ‘Happy New Year’ misconstrued

Looking back at the incident, Mohan said, “If a film works, it’s a great film, and if it doesn’t, it’s bad. Whatever Jaya Bachchanji said about the film was her opinion. Everyone has an opinion on it, and they are right. There was a special screening, and I was there. Jaya ji and Bachchan sir were sitting at the back, and during the interval, Amit ji had a shocked expression. Jaya ji walked outside the hall to get refreshments. There, she told SRK what she said, and Shah Rukh being the gentleman he is, reacted, saying he understood her point of view and added that the film was not made for a thinking audience or something to that effect. They were making a fun film.”

Mohan further added, “Farah Khan is the only person I have ever asked for work, because I loved her first film, Main Hoon Na, and then Om Shanti Om. If you say yes, then enjoy the process. Abhishek Bachchan is an intelligent actor; for whatever reason, he did the film, he did justice to his role. If she found it stupid as a mother, she was justified in looking at it that way. There is no good or bad. There are so many good films that flopped, and bad ones became blockbusters.”

In 2022, Jaya Bachchan had also spoken about Happy New Year at the Mumbai Literature Festival and said, “I told Abhishek he’s a great actor if he can act stupid in front of the camera like that. I can’t be part of what is being done in films these days, and hence, I don’t do films anymore. I couldn’t do it. But he did it so freely; I was impressed. Of course, I went and told the producer and the main actor of the movie that I’ve never seen a movie that was more nonsensical than this one.” She also recalled Shah Rukh Khan’s response to her and said, “He was so quick… amazing man. He said, ‘Jaya aunty, not more nonsensical than Amar Akbar Anthony’. I said it could be entertaining. Amar Akbar Anthony is a film I love watching… if you want to laugh, you don’t take back home anything you watched in theatre.”

Mohan on facing criticism for the film

Mohan Kapur also recalled how he got cast for Happy New Year and the criticism he faced. He shared, “I had reached out to Farah for a role in Happy New Year, but that same night, I got a call saying they had already cast for it. One month later, I got a call again, and they offered me a role for another character. The shooting was the next day. When I reached the set in Film City, Farah said I was like a piece of furniture in the film. There was no role, but because she felt bad for me when I called her asking to be a part of her film, she wrote a role for me. I was only standing with Jackie Shroff. Later, she gave me a few dialogues. I got criticized for the role; a lot of fans asked me why I played that role. But some decisions you take from the heart, and this was that, since I wanted to do a Farah Khan film.”

According to a report in Sacnilk, despite getting such criticism from Jaya Bachchan and also mixed reviews from the critics, the film had collected Rs 397 crores worldwide. It was mounted on a budget of Rs 150 crores and went on to become a commercial hit.