Kajol Recreates Anjali’s Red Jacket Look as KKHH Turns 28
Kajol marks 28 years of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai by slipping back into Anjali's short hair and red jacket, the look that defined an era.
When an actor steps back into an old character, it is rarely about the clothes. Kajol’s October 16 Instagram post — a red jacket, a short crop, and a caption wondering whether magic can be recreated — was a full-circle moment for a film that has never really left the Hindi-movie conversation.
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Karan Johar’s 1998 directorial debut, marked 28 years on October 16. Kajol, who played Anjali Sharma, posted a photo of herself in the character’s signature red jacket and short hair, writing, “Can magic ever be recreated? Here’s Anjali a couple of years later (sic).”
Why Anjali’s look still lands
The image works because it is shorthand. Before Anjali says a word, the red jacket and cropped hair communicate the college-era version of her: someone direct, comfortable and rooted in friendship. The film’s tomboy styling — dungarees, headbands, short hair — became a widely recognised visual of late-1990s Hindi cinema.
That first-half persona also anchored the second half, when Anjali returns as a softer, more conventional figure. Kajol’s recreation taps the version fans remember first.
A film that set the template
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai released on October 16, 1998, with Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukerji and a Salman Khan cameo in the mix. It explored friendship and unrequited love, became a major box-office success, and remains a pop-culture reference point for the decade.
For Bollywood fans, the anniversary is a reminder of how much the modern romantic template owes to this film:
- Friendship and unrequited love at the centre
- Fashion that codes a character instantly
- A box-office template that still gets referenced
What makes the post smart is its restraint. Kajol does not stage the whole scene; she offers one visual cue and a short question, and lets two decades of audience memory complete the picture.
Where Kajol is now
Kajol’s most recent theatrical release was the mythological horror Maa (2025), a spin-off to 2024’s Shaitaan, set in the same universe. It was co-produced by Ajay Devgn, Jyoti Deshpande and Kumar Mangat Pathak, with Ronit Roy, Indraneil Sengupta and Kherin Sharma in key roles. She also appeared in the JioHotstar action-thriller Sarzameen (2025) with Prithviraj Sukumaran and Ibrahim Ali Khan.
For now, the red jacket is enough. On a date that invites fans to remember, Kajol gave them the image they already knew by heart.
Source: India Today
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