Karan Johar has repeatedly addressed the nepotism controversy surrounding him and his production house Dharma Productions. Here are the key points from his responses:
Defending Casting Decisions :
– Johar defended his decision to cast Alia Bhatt in ‘Student of the Year’, stating that when he first saw her audition, it didn’t matter who her father was as she “just jumped out”. He described Alia as being “in many ways my firstborn” and said the feeling was very parental.
– At the trailer launch of ‘Yodha’, Karan Johar hit back at nepotism allegations, saying “To everyone who accuses us of working only with insiders, Shashank Khaitan is our brand ambassador of an outsider. Sagar and Pushkar represent outsiders. So, the next time anyone trolls us, they should look at ‘Yodha’ because the lead is also an outsider. So are Raashii and Disha.”
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Acknowledging the Criticism :
– Karan Johar acknowledged that the nepotism topic started on his show ‘Koffee With Karan’ Season 5 and has “never left” him since. He said he is still “cursed for it, still trolled for it” but now he’s not bothered by it.
– He admitted that the “Nepotism rocks” chant with Saif Ali Khan and Varun Dhawan at IIFA was meant as a joke but was “misplaced, misunderstood” and he regretted it.
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Developing a Thick Skin :
– After being “trolled” and “abused” for casting star kids, Johar says he has developed a thick skin to the nepotism allegations.
– He believes it’s important as an artist to not celebrate success too much or lament failure too much, and to learn and move on.
In summary, while Karan Johar has defended his casting choices, he has also acknowledged the nepotism criticism and developed a pragmatic attitude towards it over the years. He continues to provide opportunities to both star kids and outsiders.