Karan Johar shows his support for fellow-industry member, Kamal Haasan

Karan Johar has always made his thoughts known and has on previous account stood up for several members of the Bollywood fraternity. This time around, the Dharma Productions has expressed his thoughts about the controversy surrounding Kamal Haasan’s recent film, Vishwaroopam. “Filmmakers and creative artistes have always been at the receiving end of some people looking for mileage. I stand in complete support of Kamal Haasan because we (film industry) are only interested in putting forth our ideas and stories in an entertaining format, minus any agenda,” said the director-producer.

Karan faced a similar dilemma during the release of his 2010 Shah Rukh Khan-starrer, My Name Is Khan. “Looking at what’s happening around Vishwaroopam, I remember the tough times that I faced around the release of My Name Is Khan (2010). But at that time, Shah Rukh (Khan) and I had each other’s support, and that came in as a huge help. Most importantly, when people turned up and showed their support (by watching the movie), it was heartening for all of us,” added Karan.

According to him, celebrities are “soft targets,” given the fact that they have maximum reach and no real power. This makes it easy for people to point fingers at celebrities. Karan has kept a wary eye on social issues and has crafted his films accordingly, keeping himself away from negative news as such. “I am attentive when it comes to choosing my film’s subjects. I am always worried about who I have to fight a court case against if I choose a particular storyline. As an Indian citizen, I should have complete freedom of speech, but instead I think about who is going to drag me to the courts,” said Karan.

Karan Johar ropes in Saqib Saleem, Rani Mukerji and Randeep Hooda for Bombay Talkies

Karan Johar, Anurag Kashyap, Zoya Akhtar and Dibakar Banerjee will pay tribute to the 100 years of Hindi cinema with a one-of-a-kind film titled Bombay Talkies. The film is compromised of four short films stitched together, each directed by one of these profound filmmakers. Karan has recently been in the news with the announcement of his cast for Bombay Talkies. For the film, the Dharma Productions chief has roped in actors Saqib Saleem, Rani Mukerji and Randeep Hooda.

Previously, there were rumors of Karan Johar having cast his close friend and superstar Shah Rukh Khan for a part in the short-film. This however wasn’t true. Also, the theme and story of Karan’s short-film hasn’t been revealed and fans expect a lot from this filmmaker who has on previous account wowed the world with his directorial ventures that include Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham (2001), Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006), My Name Is Khan (2010) and his latest release, Student of the Year (2012).
The film will be Karan Johar’s shortest project. While his previous movies have all been sagas that have run for as long as 200 minutes and above, this 20 minute film is indeed a challenge. “For me, it’s a challenging format. We have 20 minutes to tell a story, which is coherent and connected to the other plots. This can be a challenge for any filmmaker,” says Karan.

Bombay Talkies is expected to hit cinema screens on the 3rd of May to commemorate the day the Father of Indian Cinema, Dadasaheb Phalke, released Raja Harishchandra, India’s first motion picture.

"It has not been an easy journey,” says Karan Johar’s protégé, Siddharth Malhotra

Siddharth Malhotra has pretty much grabbed the limelight with his debut in Karan Johar’s fifth directorial venture, Student of the Year. The newcomer made his debut in the film alongside fresh-faces Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt. Siddharth’s journey to the big-screen wasn’t a piece of cake however and the young actor did need to overcome a bunch of challenges to finally bag a big-budget dream debut.

Siddharth began his career as a model in Delhi. Here, he walked the runway for several Indian and international designers including Manish Arora, Manish Malhotra and Rohit Bal. He also made appearances for Roberto Cavalli and was featured on the covers of several magazines including RedBook, Men’s Health magazine and Gladrags. Siddharth then moved to Mumbai to audition for a film. The film however failed to take off and Siddharth began working as an assistant director to Karan Johar for the film My Name Is Khan.  "It has not been an easy journey. I started my career with modeling and then worked with Karan as an assistant director. At that time I had never imagined that he will cast me as a lead actor in his movie,” says Siddharth Malhotra.

Picking up on the youngster’s knack for the big-screen, Karan Johar cast him for a role in his film, Student of the Year. The film, a campus romance to be precise, hit cinema screens on the 19th of October and was extremely well-received by audiences, critics and Bollywood bigwigs, giving Siddharth Malhotra and his costars Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt a perfect launch to a long and fulfilling career in B-town.

Karan Johar’s Student of the Year, a coming-of-age campus romance sprinkled with rivalry!

Student of The Year

A campus romances is assured to grab attention and Karan Johar latest directorial venture, Student of the Year, has done just that! The film released on the 19th of October and is Karan Johar’s fifth film. Karan has previously called the shots for films like Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham (2001), Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006) and My Name Is Khan (2010). Unlike his previous films, all of which have had star-filled casts, Karan Johar’s Student of the Year includes three newcomers in the lead. For the film, the director roped in model-turned-actor Siddharth Malhotra, Varun Dhawan (director David Dhawan’s son) and Alia Bhatt (director Mahesh Bhatt’s daughter), all of who have made their first silver-screen appearance.

In this coming-of-age film, Siddharth Malhotra plays the role of the righteous and independent Abhimanyu Singh. A state-level runner and a brilliant student, Abhimanyu is competitive and a natural leader. Hailing from a Delhi-based middle class family, Abhimanyu seeks to fund his own education and is enrolled at the esteemed St. Theresa’s High School in Dehradun on a scholarship. At the school, Abhimanyu meets Rohan Nanda (Varun Dhawan), the son of a business tycoon. Arrogant and proud, Rohan locks horns with Abhimanyu. As the movie proceeds, Abhimanyu and Rohan beat all odds to nurture a friendship.

To add to the mix, Shanaya Singhania (Alia Bhatt) steps into the plot. Rohan’s childhood sweetheart and a girl who hates to be put down, Shanaya begins to grab Abhimanyu’s attention. Things take a turn with the announcement of the Student of the Year competition. The film’s three protagonists are faced with competition, envy, triumph, failure, manipulation and heartbreak as each of them then begin competing against each other to win the prestigious title.

Karan Johar’s protégé, Varun Dhawan, rumored to have signed Ekta Kapoor’s next!

Filmmaker Karan Johar and producer Ekta Kapoor have shared a long-standing friendship. The two have recently been in the news after plans for their next film together hit airwaves. Ekta Kapoor has now taken interest in Karan’s protégé Varun Dhawan who made his debut with the Dharma Productions chief’s fifth directorial venture, Student of the Year. Varun made his debut with two more promising newcomers, Siddharth Malhotra and Alia Bhatt in the lead. The son of veteran filmmaker David Dhawan, Varun is now on his way to a long and fulfilling career, after a dream launch in Karan’s glamorous campus romance.

As per rumors, Varun Dhawan has been signed by Ekta Kapoor to star in a big-budget south Indian film remake. The producer has spent nearly Rs. 2 crore to purchase the rights to this Telugu film. according to a report in a reputed daily, “Except for Ekta and her core team, no one knows what film this is. Varun has been confirmed for this film, which is apparently Ekta’s most ambitious project till date. It’s going to be a classy romantic comedy. She wants it to be like a modern-day Himmatwala (1983), but the treatment will be plush: on the lines of The Wedding Crashers (2005). The film will go on the floors by mid-year.”

And that’s not all. Ekta Kapoor will also surprise the audiences with her choice of the leading lady and director. Also, director-producer Karan Johar seems to have no qualms when it comes to his mentees signing up with production houses away from home.

Karan Johar wishes Bollywood to change for the better in 2013

karan Johar

The world brought in the New Year with parties, special moments and resolutions. While most of us seek to bring about changes in our respective lives in 2013, director, producer and the head of Dharma Productions, Karan Johar, has decided to keep his life on track, following his older mantras instead of settling for a full-fledged change. The filmmaker has had a successful year at the box office with films produced and directed by him being proclaimed hits.

In 2012, Karan Johar produced the remake of the cult favorite, Agneepath and Shakun Batra’s hit, Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu. Besides these, Karan Johar also directed the blockbuster campus romance, Student of the Year, starring newcomers Siddharth Malhotra, Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt. These films took the box office by storm and have further encouraged the director-producer to roll out more films in the future!

Speaking about his plans for the New Year, Karan articulated, “Personally, I don’t want to change anything about myself. Professionally, my focus will be on expansion with the right content. The collaborations of creative minds will be of paramount importance. I have been trying to do that for some time now, but co-productions and partnerships are the best way for the entire industry to go forward. That’s how I plan to move ahead.”

Karan seeks a change in the Bollywood industry and hopes to bring back the good old days where the way things worked was a mile away from the way B-town functions today. “I want the industry to go back to the working style and fraternityhood (sic) they shared in the ’40s and ’50s,” added Karan Johar.