Zoya Akhtar explains Katrina’s ZNMD kiss with Hrithik

Filmmaker Zoya Akhtar has revealed why Katrina Kaif agreed to an unexpected kissing scene with Hrithik Roshan in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.

Speaking at the Monsoon Film Festival on Monday, Akhtar recalled her experience of working with Katrina on the 2011 film. She said Katrina had never performed a kissing scene before.

According to Akhtar, Katrina understood that the scene was important to the story. After reading the script, she agreed to film the moment because she recognised its importance to her character.

The director explained that Katrina’s character, Laila, was portrayed as someone who lived in the moment and acted on her instincts.

Akhtar said the kiss was important because audiences needed to see Laila make a completely spontaneous decision. The moment was designed to reveal another side of her personality.

She compared the scene to a fairy-tale moment. In her interpretation, Hrithik Roshan’s character Arjun was like Sleeping Beauty, while Laila played the role of the prince who wakes him up.

Akhtar said the scene was not included simply as a romantic moment. It was intended to strengthen Laila’s character and underline the emotional transformation taking place between the characters.

The scene later became one of the most discussed moments from the popular film.

During the conversation, Akhtar also addressed reports about a possible sequel to Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. She confirmed that work on a follow-up is underway but said several details are still uncertain.

The filmmaker indicated that the team is considering whether the story can successfully revisit the characters at their current stage of life.

Released in 2011, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara starred Katrina Kaif, Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar, Abhay Deol and Kalki Koechlin.

The film followed three friends who reunited for a road trip in Spain. It became widely popular for its themes of friendship, adventure, relationships and living life to the fullest.

The movie was also a commercial success. It reportedly earned around ₹153 crore worldwide against a production budget estimated at between ₹45 crore and ₹55 crore.