Neelam Kothari recalls how Karan Johar convinced her to star in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai despite quitting films

Karan Johar had roped in Neelam Kothari for a cameo in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. The actor essayed the role of a talk show host.

Neelam Kothari, who was a major star in the late 1980s, has revealed that at a time when she had decided to move away from films to focus on personal life, directors Karan Johar and Sooraj Barjatya convinced her to reverse her decision and star in their movies.

Neelam Kothari from Kuch Kuch Hota Hai.

Speaking with a leading daily, Neelam Kothari revealed that although she had decided to quit films, Karan Johar convinced her to play a small part of Kuch Kuch Hota by telling her that all she had to do was play herself. The actor had her own show called The Neelam Show in the film.

"Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (KKHH) and Hum Saath Saath Hain (HSSH) happened after I had quit acting. Karan Johar, who is a dear friend, told me, ‘Look, you are playing yourself. It’s a cameo appearance. It will be fun’, and that was that. Little did I know that The Neelam Show I did in KKHH would be such a big hit. In fact, the younger generation knows me from KKHH," she said.

"Filmmaker Sooraj Barjatya was extremely keen on having me on board for the part in HSSH. I told him that I wasn’t doing movies anymore, but he was sweet enough to persuade me. So, I may have done 40 films, but I am recognised for my last two screen outings," she added.

Neelam faced the camera after almost two decades with Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives. The Netflix show featured Neelam (wife of Samir Soni), Maheep Kapoor (wife of Sanjay Kapoor), Bhavana Panday (wife of Chunky Panday), and Seema Khan (wife of Sohail Khan). The actor will be returning with a new season of the show soon.

The actor had also made an appearance on the dance reality show Super Dancer 4 with Govinda. The duo came together after almost 20 years.