Imtiaz Ali REACTS to Sara Ali Khan and Kartik Aaryan-led Love Aaj Kal’s debacle; ‘The film lacked freshness...’

During a recent conversation, Imtiaz Ali addressed the debacle of Sara Ali Khan and Kartik Aaryan starrer Love Aaj Kal. He also admitted flaws in the 2020-released romance drama.

By Krishma Sharma

Updated on Mar 16, 2025 | 04:23 PM IST | 11.4K

Pic Courtesy: Love Aaj Kal IMDb

Sara Ali Khan and Kartik Aaryan shared screen space in the 2020-released, Love Aaj Kal. The romantic film was a sequel to the 2009-released movie that originally had the actress’ father Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone in the lead roles. Despite much anticipation, the sequel couldn’t perform well at the box office and Imtiaz Ali admits flaws including a lack of freshness in the film.

During a recent conversation with Komal Nahta on the Game Changers YouTube channel, Imtiaz Ali admitted mistakes in his 2020-released Love Aaj Kal. Reflecting on the debacle of Sara Ali Khan and Kartik Aaryan starter, he stated that there were things he could’ve approached differently.

“I could have done 2–3 things differently. I tried to put too much into it, and that’s why it became heavy. The ease of the film was compromised. It became thick, people didn’t understand what happened. It seemed like this didn’t come from the heart. Secondly, I feel the film lacked freshness,” he said.

At the time of the film’s release, Sara Ali Khan was subjected to significant judgment for her performance in the movie. Nonetheless, the director articulated his belief, stating that casting wasn’t the issue. According to him, one should have a proper reason to make a sequel. While he had a reason for making Love Aaj Kal, he admits failing at expressing it.

“I had that reason, but I wasn’t able to express that. At least, it didn’t get expressed in the publicity of the film,” he added.

In an interview with Hindustan Times last year, the Jab We Met director addressed the underperformance of Jab Harry Met Sejal and Love Aaj Kal. He noted all his films had flaws, but he wanted to make them. He believed they could’ve done better and hoped for people to see some merit in these two films as some good things didn’t come through.

Going further, Pinkvilla exclusively informed you last year that the director is set to collaborate with Aditi Rao Hydari and Laila Majnu fame Avinash Tiwary for his next. The filmmaker is expected to complete his work on this yet-untitled film by Summer 2025.