Wouldn't have made Ae Dil Hai Mushkil had Aishwarya turned it down, says Karan Johar

It was written in the stars (pun intended), albeit 17 years later, that Karan Johar was able to work with the gorgeous Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, without whom he said he would have cancelled the entire project.

Johar, who was hosting the Big Zee Entertainment Awards 2017 held a couple of days ago, reiterated how much he had desired to work with Bachchan since 1997 when due to scheduling conflicts, she couldn't commit to Kuch Kuch Hota Hai.

"I wanted to work with her since 1997. I narrated the script of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai but due to some reason, things didn’t work out back then," the director said as Bachchan got on to the stage to collect her award for Most Entertaining Actor in Drama – Female, for her role in Sarbjit.

"Hence, after almost a decade, when Ae Dil was being planned, I was pretty sure, Aishwarya would make for an indispensable fit for this role," Johar said. "If she would have declined this role then I would have never gone ahead with it."

Aish had nothing but gratitude for him.

"Thank you, Karan, for giving me the role of Saba. It has helped people wake up to many other possibilities that they can choose from," she said. "I am glad to have such an amazing team. I thank the entire cast and crew for their immeasurable support and hard work."

Pretty neat when you like who you work with, and so much!