When a contestant from Ayodhya was introduced to the strains of Deva deva and he sang the soulful Kesariya on a reality show, Pritam’s tunes from Brahmastra echoed the musical timelessness so intrinsic to Karan Johar’s movies.
Music has always been Karan’s strong suit. Right from his first film Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, where the title track instantly caught on, to the theme music of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (Jatin-Lalit), Kal Ho Naa Ho (Shankar-Ehsan-Loy) and Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (Pritam), irrespective of the composer, every one of them has been soul-searing. Who can forget the raga-inspired Mitwa too from Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna?
Ayan used to lean on Karan’s music sense and I’m pretty sure the producer had a hand in the Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani numbers, Balam pichkari and Badtameez dil too. When Karan himself directed Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, Pritam had been baffled by the brief and had admitted, “I wondered how on earth he was going to shoot the entire mukhda (opening stanza) of the title song only on Ranbir Kapoor’s close-up. But when I saw it, my God, the way he held the shot on just Ranbir’s eyes was simply brilliant.”
Which brings us to the question, does any of this craftmanship sound like the work of a flippant, 50-year-old fascinated only with fashion labels and the gossip of the day?
Karan’s image, bolstered by his flamboyant show Koffee With Karan and his tendency to laugh away charges of launching “nepo kids”, has done an unfortunate injustice to the man who didn’t inherit anything on a platter. Dharma Productions, one of the top-rated production houses of the day, that dabbles in movies, web series, ad films and talent management, is not what Karan got as a legacy.
His father, Yash Johar, had an export business and was a generous producer. He gave his directors everything they needed — Ramesh Talwar got Dilip Kumar for Duniya, Mahesh Bhatt got Sanjay Dutt-Sridevi for Gumraah and Shah Rukh Khan for Duplicate. But most directors let Yash down, saddling him with a spate of commercial failures, until Karan brought creativity into the production office. Kuch Kuch Hota Hai was the first film that brought relief to Yash’s life. He finally had what Yash Chopra always had — a successful director in the house.
Having watched Karan as Yash’s kid, I think he really grew up when Mahesh Bhatt, who had signed on more films than he could do creative justice to, messed up his father’s film Duplicate. Aamir Khan had seen the warning signs and had stepped in to salvage his father’s Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke. When Duplicate also went awry, Shah Rukh and Karan joined forces to try and save it. In the process, Adi Chopra and SRK spotted a director in Karan.
Yash Johar was a very amiable man to know, reputed for his straightforward dealings. What Karan inherited was the heap of goodwill that Yash earned in his lifetime. But he had to slog to build Dharma into the company it is today.
A few other labels also need to be ripped off. If Karan launched “nepo kids” Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan, why forget Sidharth Malhotra, the handsome stranger from Delhi who was also a Student Of The Year? Directors like Shashank Khaitaan (Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya, Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya) and Shakun Batra (Kapoor & Sons, Gehraiyaan) are also here because of Karan. S.S. Rajamouli, too, was not a celebrity kid when Karan backed him seven years ago and lent his name to an unknown south Indian film called Baahubali — The Beginning.
Another image that doesn’t fit Karan is that of a vengeful don. For instance, when Kartik Aaryan walked away from Dostana 2, I was sure that Yash’s son would not go on a revenge spree. He didn’t and don’t be surprised if Karan does a movie too with Kartik one of these days.
But that strong negative perception about Karan persists peskily. One corrective step he has taken is to go off Twitter and get a breather from the toxicity. It will take a while but rest assured. A refreshed Karan 2.0 will one day emerge.
Bharathi S. Pradhan is a senior journalist and author
