I think it's very easy to generalize. Does Karan indulge in nepotism? Sure but to an extent. I mean Alia and Varun are kids from the industry so of course they have the advantage of knowing him through their fathers and getting the foot in the door as they say.
But what I find baffling is this notion that he is intolerant to outsiders. So many directors have been launched by Dharma and a lot of them aren't kids from the industry! People like Shakun Batra, Tarun Mansukhani, the guy who directed Brothers, Shashank who has directed two movies now for Dharma are all outsiders. Hell some of his closest friends are outsiders! Be it Shahrukh , Niranjan or Manish.
I also find it amusing that as soon as Sid's name comes up, one is told of the rumors that linked him to Karan.Karan has been even linked to Shahrukh for crying out loud. So this insistence that he would only launch an outsider if that outsider is involved with him is preposterous to say the least. As for Sid being talentless..ha! The guy got quite a bit of critical acclaim for HTP, Kapoor & Sons and even movies like Ek Villain!
Someone mentioned television, wasn't Sidharth Shukla part of HSKD? I think he's also someone who has been seen at some of Karan's parties. He too is an outsider.
Nepotism without being talented can only get you so far in the industry! The fact that Alia and Varun are darn talented is something you can't take away from them. Yes, perhaps they have been given quite a few opportunities due to Karan but they have been able to sustain their stardom due to the talent they possess.
I think most people know of YRF having these three movie deals with a lot of actors they have launched. Quite a few who have been launched by YRF have talked about how they consult Aditya when it comes to a lot of their career decisions. I feel like the same goes for Dharma. Sid, Alia and Varun were launched by Dharma so I don't think it's that surprising that Karan is playing a role of mentor to all three of them.
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