The filmmaker is iconic when it comes to his movies but he’s just as inspirational in his everyday life. Here’s how…
He may be Bollywood’s big star maker but he himself enjoys a star status like no other film director does. He is the life of every party and everyone who matters in the industry loves him and wants to be a part of his cool clan. He wears many hats and excels in each role. A lot has been spoken and written about the trajectory of his career so on his birthday we give you 8 reasons why Karan Johar inspires us.
Dance like no one is watching
In a world full of shy boys, be a Karan Johar at weddings! Not many men would shed all their inhibitions like he does, especially when surrounded by dance experts of the film fraternity. On average, it is said that women get onto the dance floor first and men usually shy away but Karan relies on no one to get the party started.
Fatherhood is the new motherhood
Karan Johar shocked everyone when he announced the birth of his two kids Yash (named after his father, late filmmaker Yash Johar), and Roohi (a rearrangement of his mother’s name Hiroo) through surrogacy. In his recently released autobiography, An Unsuitable Boy, Karan Johar had expressed a desire to adopt a child or have a surrogate child as his old-age insurance policy. He knows his constraints and may not go for a life partner yet it did not stop him from fulfilling his dream of fatherhood. “I have prepared myself mentally, physically, emotionally and logistically to ensure that my children get all the unconditional love,” he announced excitedly.
It’s ok to admit failures
“I am a big flop actor. None of my films run. I did Bombay Velvet and Welcome to New York and both didn’t work. Nobody should cast me in any film. I should not be taken. No viability with me. I am a very big flop actor,” he candidly confessed in one of his recent interviews. He may be a brilliant filmmaker as well as king maker when it comes to giving newbies a break but he is still far from good when it comes to full-fledged acting and he has no qualms in admitting his under-performance.
The art of apologies
K Jo found himself in hot water after the controversial episode with Kangana Ranaut, after which nepotism became talk of the tinsel town. A few weeks later, Karan took a dig at Kangana at IIFA awards which he hosted and it was distasteful. It did not go down well with the industry folks. Karan did not only step up and apologize but also took complete responsibility of that remark. “The idea of that joke was entirely mine, so I take onus of the idea of what we said. And I think we went a bit too far with the Kangana mention…I regret it.”
It is ok to switch off the Miss Congeniality mode
He doesn’t like to be a people pleaser anymore as that is not who he needs to be. “I feel like I don’t want to be nice to everyone anymore and I don’t want to be there for everyone like I have been before. At least a decade of my life, I have pretended to be someone else. I want to be a little more real. I have lied through my teeth sometimes, I have made fake praises and I have brushed some issues under the carpet, I don’t think pretending to be someone should be on anyone’s agenda,” Karan mentioned speaking to one of his friends in an interview.
The fear of death
Karan’s own life changed after the death of his own hero, his father Yash Johar, and he has said, time and again that his only fear is losing his loved ones and through his films, he has always brought that emotion on the celluloid. If you carefully observe, Karan Johar’s protagonists or the main leads have suffered through the pain of death of a loved one. Be it Rani in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai or SRK in Kal Ho Na Ho, be it Kajol in We are Family or Anushkha Sharma in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, death does play a major role in K Jo’s life and films.
One-sided love
He is single and plans to remain this way at least for the near future but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t believe in love. For love to happen and sustain, it doesn’t need to be a shared emotion. It can very well survive on its own. ‘Ek tarfa pyar ki taqat hi kuch aur hoti hai’; remember this dialogue from ADHM?
Unapologetic glamour
His brand of cinema is about beautiful women and chiseled men, backed up with gorgeous locations and strong storylines. K Jo’s love for the rich, famous and fashionable gave cinema some of its most unforgettable films. Where Raj Kapoor’s films celebrated the common man as the hero, Karan Johar’s heroes fly in helicopters to commute and drive Lamborghinis to college. It’s always the world of the rich and famous.
– Sadiq Saleem is a Dubai based entertainment journalist. He is also an Instep & Something Haute correspondent and can be contacted on his page fb/sidsaidso.
