'Kuch Kuch Hota Hai' marked Karan Johar's directorial debut. It starred the terrific trio Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol and Rani Mukerji. But did you know that before the three got onboard, Karan had completely different actors in mind as the cast for the flick, especially for the glamorous yet culturally-rooted Tina's role, which was ultimately played by Rani?
Karan had written the said role for his close friend Twinkle Khanna. But when things did not work out with her, he approached other heroines including Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Tabu and Urmila Matondkar with the role of Tina. However, the offer was turned down by every single one of them.
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was three films old when Karan had approached her to play Tina in 'Kuch Kuch Hota Hai'. But she rejected the offer because she felt she would have been 'lynched' had she done the film.
Speaking with Filmfare, Aishwarya had said, "I'm in a catch-22 situation, really. Though I'm a newcomer, I'm compared with all the senior actresses." She added, "If I'd done the film, it would have been tittered that, 'Look, Aishwarya Rai is back to doing what she did in her modelling days—leaving her hair straight, wearing minis, and pouting glamorously into the camera.' Ultimately, the hero goes back to the more real person. I know if I'd done Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, I would have been lynched."
Later, Karan had said that "Ash was the only one who was polite to call me back."
17 years after Aishwarya turned down Karan Johar's debut film, she played one of the leading ladies in his film 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil', which was also touted as her comeback film.