Karan Johar entered the film industry as an assistant director on Aditya Chopra 's '' Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge '' ( 1995 ) , which is regarded as a landmark in Hindi cinema . He then made his own directorial debut with the blockbuster romance '' Kuch Kuch Hota Hai '' ( 1998 ) . The first half of the film centers on a college love triangle between an insensitive boy ( Shah Rukh Khan ) , his tomboyish best friend ( Kajol ) , and the prettiest girl at the college ( Rani Mukerji ) , while the second half centers on the now-widowed boy 's attempt to reconnect with his best friend who is now engaged to marry another man ( Salman Khan ) . The film became a major blockbuster at the box office and received mostly positive reviews from critics . Writing for Planet Bollywood , critic Anish Khanna commented that " Karan Johar makes an impressive directorial debut , has a good script sense , and knows how to make a film with S-T-Y-L-E . " It won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment . It swept most of the major awards at the 44th Filmfare Awards , including Best Film , Best Director , and all four acting awards
44th Filmfare Awards
44th Filmfare Awards
Karan Johar