Gully Boy co-stars Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh were the first guests in the first episode of Season 7 of Koffee with Karan on Disney+ Hotstar on July 7. And show host and filmmaker Karan Johar was in his elements with the lead pair of his upcoming film Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani.

At the beginning of the episode, Karan admitted that he failed to bring popular real-life couples to the show as guests, in a possible reference to newlyweds Alia and Ranbir Kapoor passing up the opportunity for a joint appearance. Still, the first episode lived up to expectations with Alia and Ranveer joining Karan for some interesting observations and candid moments over ‘Koffee’. Here are the highlights from Episode 1.

Karan Johar confessing his doubts about Koffee with Karan’s comeback

While Koffee with Karan has been around for 18 years and seven seasons, Karan shared that he thought he would not be able to bring the show back after the last season. Alia agreed with the filmmaker that in the last couple of years the scrutiny faced by Bollywood had made her doubt the chance of the show’s return. Karan also said that whenever his show was mentioned, people reacted negatively and that Bollywood had been put in the proverbial “dungeon” in the past few years. Ranveer, however, seemed to be unaffected by the hate that the industry had been getting. He said that he was certain the show would return and have many more seasons in store.

Ranveer playing hype-man to Alia

Alia and Ranveer, both of whose partners dated each other for some time, share a quirky comradery. Their friendship and the tone they set in the episode matched that of Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, who were the first guests on the show back in 2004.

Throughout the episode, Ranveer appeared to take the role of a ‘hype-man’. Alia shared that even during the filming of Gangubai Kathiawadi, she kept calling Ranveer for moral support. On the day of the shoot of the song Dholida, he even went on the set to offer his support. Ranveer also was one of the people who cried when Alia told them about her engagement with Ranbir.

Alia adjusting to the Kapoor family after marrying Ranbir

Both Alia and Ranveer opened up about their respective marriages. Karan asked Alia about how much of an adjustment it was to become a part of the famous Kapoor family. The newlywed said that the Bhatt family was more nuclear than the Kapoor family. She took some time to adjust to the big involved family system of the Kapoors and the traditional side of Ranbir. Speaking about their wedding, Alia said that the couple chose an intimate wedding as the location was close to their heart.

Alia also shared tid-bits about how Ranbir proposed to her in Masai Mara. She deeply appreciated that he managed to get the proposal photographed as photos are important to her.

Talking about how Alia and Ranbir got together, Karan revealed that Ranbir had joked about marrying Alia while visiting the sets of Student of the Year. However, the couple eventually got close on their flight to Tel Aviv for a Brahmastra-related workshop.

Ranveer’s separate wardrobe for visiting Deepika Padukone’s family

Taking a cue from Alia, Ranveer also shared that his wife Deepika Padukone’s family took some time to adjust to his flamboyance. He revealed that he has a separate wardrobe for when the couple visits the Padukone family. While his usual wardrobe consists of quirky and colourful outfits, when meeting Deepika’s family it is all about white shirts and blue pants.

Ranveer was even open about Deepika’s mother not being impressed by him initially. But over the years the family has slowly warmed to him.

Showing some more of his goofy side, the 83 actor enlivened the show with his hilarious mimicry of celebrities like Hrithik Roshan, Ajay Devgn, Varun Dhawan and Aamir Khan.

Ibrahim Ali Khan’s heartfelt note for Alia

One of the most interesting moments of the episode was delivered by someone who was not present on the show. Alia read out the message Saif Ali Khan’s eldest son, Ibrahim, sent her after the release of Gangubai Kathiawadi. “Had to remove the time to message you personally...I cannot believe this is the same lady, I learn from every time, you’re just phenomenal. You’re so so good as Gangu and seeing you as Rani and then watching this film, it’s safe to say you mould yourself effortlessly, like water taking shape of its container. So So good! Best actress in this country,” the heartfelt message read.

Live audience voting the winner in the rapid-fire round

This year the show’s rapid-fire round has seen a change. The show now has a live audience watching the quiz round and voting for the winner. Ranveer had a clean sweep victory with 71% of the votes after he had an interesting rapid-fire round and almost took over Alia’s round as well.

While Ranveer took home the coveted coffee hamper, Alia won the following game round, taking home a prize as well.

The first episode of the show did not rock the boat as some of Koffee with Karan’s past episodes are known for doing. However, it was a refreshing and positive start to the season.