Everyone loves Shah Rukh Khan
He is a globally loved superstar who has impacted millions of lives through his work. His fan following is crazy and rightfully so – he’s pretty awesome.
Everyone loves Anushka Sharma, too
She’s smart, beautiful and incredibly talented. AND she’s a badass feminist, which is great. She’s always been incredible on screen and has not hesitated to speak out about issues that plague Bollywood.
You’d think people would be really excited about their upcoming movie, jiska naam was still in the works
Rangbaaz sounded pretty great, though. Has a nice ring to it, no?
However, the name of the movie was announced today. The team decided to go with ‘Jab Harry Met Sejal’
.@iamsrk and @AnushkaSharma share an exciting look of #WhenHarryMetSejal.https://t.co/dT6Y0VGxjB
— Filmfare (@filmfare) June 9, 2017
However, the announcement didn’t sit well with the audience
Jab Harry Met Sejal sounds like the disaster that happens when Meg Ryan and Shah Rukh Khan end up in a Sajid Khan movie. #WhyImtiazWhy
— Ankur Pathak (@aktalkies) June 8, 2017
Why, you ask? Well, let’s start off with Shah Rukh Khan and his, um, interesting tweets
Do nothing…. Just… @AnushkaSharma pic.twitter.com/6DD22JotC1
— Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) June 9, 2017
Is “Stay Met” the new “Stay Woke?” Guess we’ll never know.
SRK sent out this very important PSA, too
Just in case Ranbir Kapoor ever claims it…the title Jab Harry met Sejal was never ever suggested by him!So he doesn’t win the Rs.5000 reward
— Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) June 8, 2017
Additionally, the title seemed to be derived by merging two very famous movie titles
Desis everywhere after hearing about the title
“Yeh bik gaya hai cinema.”
People were obviously confused
Is Jab Harry Met Sejal a kind of Hindi Version of When Hally Met Sally?! ?
Please say NOOOO
— Roshni (@TheCrazzySRKian) June 8, 2017
And took to mocking the film’s title
Jab We Met + When Harry Met Sally = Jab Harry Met Sejal ??
Bc Ab to Film ka name v copy karne laga srk , srkian kaha ho ??
— TUBELIGHT ? (@BadassSalmaniac) June 8, 2017
To be fair, this person is quite obviously Team Salman.
The criticism was kinda harsh
When Harry Met Sejal is the typical Bollywood movie where everything from the script to the scenes are copied & only names slightly changed.
— Rifa (@a_bit_too_much) June 9, 2017
Apparently, there’s no room for a Sejal alongside the name Harry
When someone says When Harry, you say Met Sally. There's no Sejal ?
— Bru (@TheSRKdisciple) June 8, 2017
Uff, tauba
When Harry Met Sejal has to be one of those names that someone threw into the mix as a joke without gauging the IQ of the room.
— Azeem Banatwalla (@TheBanat) June 9, 2017
Local publications weighed in on the matter, too
Shah Rukh’s Jab Harry Met Sejal poster seems all too familiar https://t.co/ikpwAw9O1Y
— Geo English (@geonews_english) June 9, 2017
Shah Rukh Khan and the team amidst all the backlash, probably:
While the movie’s title has sparked a debate, the poster itself seems pretty intriguing. It’ll definitely be interesting to see how the movie fares eventually. All the best to the team.