Zoya Akhtar's 'Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara' was called 'rubbish' by an uncle at a special screening

Filmmakers often hold friends and family screenings before releasing their projects, a practice that has evolved into more formal focus group sessions in recent years. However, in a recent roundtable hosted by The Hollywood Reporter India, renowned directors Karan Johar and Zoya Akhtar expressed their hate for this process. They described focus groups as sometimes “ruthless,” with Zoya admitting that she has lost interest in conducting these sessions altogether.

Karan recounted a memorable incident involving Zoya during a focus group screening for her film 'Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara'. He recalled that an intelligent commercial critic remarked, “There are too many travel shots,” to which Zoya replied, “It’s a travel film.” Later, during a screening of 'Gully Boy', the same person commented, “There’s too much rapping,” and Zoya responded, “Because this is a film about rap.” Frustrated, she wondered, “What am I doing here?”

Zoya quickly explained that she doesn’t take all feedback to heart—she tends to nod along and not listen to everything. She recalled one particular challenging focus group experience where she was shouted at. During a screening for 'Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara', an older gentleman, a friend of the producer's father, criticized the film, saying, “This is a rubbish movie. What is going on? They are just driving!” Zoya responded, “Sir, this movie is not for you. I can’t make this film for you.” She emphasized that it simply wasn’t his kind of movie. Fortunately, there were some twenty somethings in the audience who loved it and felt a connection, and their support sparked a lively debate, allowing her to escape the criticism.

'Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara' was released on July 15, 2011. The film starred Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar, Abhay Deol, Katrina Kaif, and Kalki Koechlin. At the box office, it performed very well, grossing over ₹150 crores (approximately $20 million) in India.