Director-producer Karan Johar brainstorms to weave a story that is nothing like the love stories he is known for in a new promo video of Dharmatic Entertainment’s upcoming Disney+ Hotstar series Showtime, dropped by the makers on Tuesday.

The video, which includes indirect references of Karan’s life and career, begins with him indignantly hurling a script at the screenplay writers. “What Jhumka? I’m done with it,” says Karan, subtly referring to his 2023 blockbuster Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. The Kuch Kuch Hota Hai director affirms that he wants to produce a web series, distinctly different from anything that he has done so far.

One of the scriptwriters proceeds to vent his anger in the guise of offering a solution. “This realistic story opens on this big Bollywood producer without whose consent nothing moves in the industry,” he says, dishing out facts which coincide with the life of Karan. Karan is himself a big-time producer working under the banner of his father Yash Johar. However, in a sequence overflowing with irony, the filmmaker fails to understand the allusion and goes on to sympathise with the producer in the narrative.

The events of the narrative make further references to charges often levelled against Karan, the most common one being that he is a “nepo king” who launches star-kids one after another. The next event in the script narrated to Karan in the video is intriguing — a small-time outsider enters the scene, clashing with this big-time producer.

The scriptwriter's sarcasm becomes more pronounced as Karan approves the project, praising its realistic portrayal of the dark underbelly of Bollywood, plagued by celebrity tantrums, staged publicity events and superficial friendships. Unwittingly corroborating the scriptwriter’s remark about his arrogance, Karan boasts of his own brilliance, proudly mentioning his spontaneous creation of the film's title. The video concludes with Karan sharing the news with his mother, whose comments ultimately lead him to realize that the script reflects his own life.

Netizens flooded the comment section of Karan’s post with speculations about the identity of the outsider. Many remarked that she might be actress-filmmaker Kangana Ranaut.

Created by Sumit Roy, Showtime is helmed by Mihir Desai and Archit Kumar. The series, featuring Mouni Roy, Emraan Hashmi and Naseeruddin Shah in lead roles, marks Disney+ Hotstar and Dharmatic Entertainment’s second collaboration after Karan’s celebrity talk show, Koffee With Karan, which is currently streaming on the platform.

Showtime will premiere on Disney+ Hotstar on March 8.