While there has been a lot of buzz around Karan Johar's Diwali release, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil ever since its trailer and teaser were launched, the film's songs have also been widely appreciated.

With five tracks - Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, Bulleya, Channa Mereya, The Breakup Song and Cutie Pie - already dominating the charts, composer Pritam Chakraborty asks us to watch out for Alizeh, the sixth number of the film that releases on October 28. He says, “Alizeh is like the theme of ADHM. It plays quite a few times during the movie, and is my favourite. I hope the audience likes it as much as they loved the five songs that are already out.“

Earlier, the filmmaker had told BT that he had enjoyed collaborating with Pritam for the project. The music director, who had delivered a hit album for KJo's production, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, says, “I had always wanted to work with Karan as a director. He's clear about what he wants, so that saves time. ADHM is a double bonanza, as I got to work with both Karan and Ranbir.“ He adds, “Ranbir takes songs to a different level.“

When asked about the brief Karan gave him while taking him on board, Pritam says, “He narrated the story with a detailed sketch of the characters. He wanted a melodious album, and a title song that conveys the underlying emotion of the film. He has a great sense of music, so that helped crack the songs faster.“ The composer is proud of the title track. “I love creating angsty songs. So, I'm glad that the audience has loved its intensity,“ he explains.

Pritam also credits Amitabh Bhattacharya for his lyrics and asserts that they had great fun creating the songs. While Channa Mereya was among the quickest to crack, it took a while to fit The BreakUp Song in the narrative. He says, “The BreakUp Song has Amitabh at his quirkiest best. The words and the rhyming he has come up with are amazing. It was his concept, and so was Cutie Pie.“

KARAN JOHAR PRODUCER-DIRECTOR
“ADHM is not a love story, it's about the feeling and power of love. There's not a single actor in the film that wasn't my first choice. I thought of the film when I was in New York, then I came back and wrote it. I narrated the film to Ranbir; he was on board right away. Anushka was cast just as quickly. I wrote the film in a month, I cast the actors in day and then I took a year to make it. So the irony is that if I had not acted in Bombay Velvet I wouldn't have cast them. I think chemistry is such an overused and misunderstood term. I perceive chemistry as is comfort, and I have seen that's what Ranbir and Anushka share which makes it so special. The most indispensable casting of this film is actually Aishwarya Rai. I don't think there is a single person in this country who could play her role like she has. She walks into the film at midpoint and then she owns the space. And I don't think you have ever seen her do what she is done in terms of tonality. Not in terms of what is being conjured to be bold. It's not bold; she's playing an ageless, evolved, strong and com pletely opinionated woman of today“.


BEHIND THE SCENES
- Ranbir's character Ayan is a movie buff. For a track, he performed Salman Khan's towel step from Jeene Ke Hain Chaar Din (Mujhse Shaadi Karogi), Hrithik Roshan's signature move from Ek Pal Ka Jeena (Kaho Naa.. Pyaar Hai) and Amitabh Bachchan's steps from Kajra Re (Bunty Aur Babli).
- For a scene, Ranbir imitated Jeetendra's steps from the title track of Tohfa. Interestingly, Karan Johar showed him the moves.
- Another scene required Ranbir to dance to Sunny Leone's Baby Doll number.
- Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Anushka Sharma shot together only for one day for a pivotal scene. They'd seldom interacted before that but they got along well.
- For the song Channa Mereya, Anushka wore an outfit that weight 20 kilos.
- Since they were shooting on the first floor of a palace, the actress had to climb the stairs several times. Karan calls Aishwarya a team player because she would wait patiently for her shot.
- Karan had been keen to work with Aishwarya since his first film, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. He had even offered her Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, but things didn't work out.
- During the 55-day schedule across London, Paris and Vienna, every day after the shoot, the cast members would go shopping and relish local delicacies.
- Ranbir remembers that whenever he felt a certain shot wasn't working, Karan immediately came up with an alternative.