Mohit Suri says Shah Rukh Khan lauded him for keeping Ahaan Panday, Aneet Padda away from limelight before Saiyaara release: ‘Best thing’

He added, “Because we didn’t have stars, we concentrated on making great music. We spent more time promoting the music. We did not promote it through interviews or by sending the actors out like everyone does. We spent that money on pushing the music instead. And it all paid back. It all went very authentic.”

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Rejected Ahaan after 2-3 meetings: Mohit Suri

However, it wasn’t a cakewalk for Ahaan to be cast in the film, despite Yash Raj Films’ Aditya Chopra recommending him. Explaining the same, Mohit said, “So, I met this boy and Adi (Aditya Chopra) sir told me, ‘He is your character. He is Krish Kapoor.’ And they never let me meet him in the YRF office. He was told, ‘Go meet him in your office.’ And my office is not like a corporate office. It’s like a pad.”

Ahaan was instructed to meet Mohit at the director’s personal creative space, where all his work takes shape. However, despite meeting Ahaan two to three times, Mohit wasn’t convinced and initially rejected him. Revealing the same, he said, “It’s like a den where I sit and write. It’s a simple two bedroom apartment with a garden outside, where I can do my writing and my music and stuff like that. And he comes there, and I didn’t find him like Krish Kapoor at all. I found him to be a sweet, really soft boy. So I told Adi sir, ‘He is not the kind of guy.’ And we did spend two or three meetings where I had actually completely rejected him.”

Mohit eventually saw the potential in Ahaan and cast him in the role, making him an overnight star.