John Abraham and Nikhil Advani did not talk after Salaam-e-Ishq flop, director express – it took 20 years to become friends

Actor John Abraham and director Nikhil Advani have worked together in films like Veda and Satyamev Jayate, but the first time the two worked together was for Nikhil’s 2007 romantic comedy Salaam-e-Ishq. This film consisting of six love stories had a huge cast and in one story, John Abraham and Vidya Balan played the role of romantic partners. But after the film failed, John and Nikhil broke up and did not talk to each other for many years.
In conversation with Siddharth Kannan for his YouTube channel, Nikhil shared, “John and I had hardly met after Salaam-e-Ishq. It was only after Satyamev Jayate that our friendship became stronger again. In between, he was doing his thing and I was doing mine and we didn’t really connect.
Satyamev Jayate was produced by Nikhil and directed by Milap Zaveri. The film was a surprise hit. Its sequel also came in 2021 which flopped miserably. Later, they also worked together in the film Batla House, directed by Nikhil. Nikhil said that he and John now have a deep friendship. “Working with him, sitting with him feels very comfortable,” he said.
Recalling the failure of Salaam-e-Ishq, Nikhil said that he was deeply affected by it and ran away from Mumbai.
When asked what was John’s reaction to the failure of Salaam-e-Ishq, Nikhil said, ‘We didn’t talk for 20 years (laughs). After Salaam-e-Ishq, I decided not to talk to anyone. Salaam-e-Ishq was released 17 years ago and Satyamev Jayate was released 6 years ago.
Nikhil Advani and John Abraham have joined hands for Veda, which also stars Sharvari.