Going kandid with Karan
Karan Johar talks about his stars... and Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna
Subhash K Jha
| Shahrukh Khan and Rani Mukherji in Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna |
| Karan Johar |
There's always the downside of fame. And no one knows this better than Karan Johar, who has lately had colleagues taking potshots at him. Recently Ram Gopal Varma created a flutter by announcing that he was looking forward to Karan Johar's Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna because he loved horror films.
Karan takes a deep breath. "I'll speak on this once and for all," he says. "In my opinion, Ram Gopal Varma is one of the finest filmmakers of our country. His Satya, Company and Sarkar make a trilogy of terrific gangster films. When he has so much work on hand I wonder why he keeps obsessing with what I do! I know he doesn't respect my work. But could he please keep quiet about what I do?"
Right now Karan is editing Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna. As we talk there's a truckload of people waving and squealing as they spot Karan at a traffic signal.
Karan has flagged off the cult of star-directors in Bollywood. "I don't know whether I should take credit for that, although I'd love to," he smiles. "I do love people. I love interacting with everyone from friends to fans. Somewhere that innate warmth reaches out to people."
After a gruelling post-production schedule this week Karan leaves for London from where he'll be off to Cannes with pal Preity Zinta for the international marketing of KANK. "Since KANK is releasing in August I hope to facilitate the film's international distribution. I also hope to experience the little side- pleasures of Cannes, like strolling down the avenues and watching new films. I'm a major film buff…Bollywood, Hollywood…just gimme my daily flick. Going with Preity is an added pleasure. We both talk non-stop. Between the two of us, we leave no room for a third person to talk…Unless it happens to be Abhishek Bachchan who beats us both hollow. Even Preity has to shut up when Abhishek starts talking. Yup, Abhishek takes the cake when it comes to gabbing."
In KANK, Karan has directed Abhishek for the first time. "I wouldn't like to say much about the film right now. For once I'll let the audience and critics see the film, and then I'll say whatever I have to," he says. "I don't know what people expect from me this time, but it's a very simple film. Shah Rukh Khan will obviously be the film's mainstay the world over. His popularity in European countries like Germany and Poland is almost unreal. My distributor in Paris said he felt as if Elvis Presley had been reborn when he saw the ovation Shah Rukh got during the premiere of Veer-Zara. So naturally he's the biggest USP of KANK."
Karan hopes KANK will further consolidate Bollywood's global impact "We saw what a film can do abroad when Lagaan, Devdas and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham were released. I hope KANK goes several steps further than K3G."
Karan disagrees with Naseeruddin Shah who feels Indians only hallucinate about Bollywood's worldwide impact. "I don't know why Naseersaab said that," he says. "The globalisation of Hindi cinema is certainly no illusion for me. I think we rock the world over."
Karan feels our cinema is ready to rock globally. "We're shaping up to be one of the most self-reliant entertainment industries in the world. The eyeball exposure for our cinema is growing constantly. I hope the Indian film industry meets with unparalleled success in the coming year."
As for KANK, it releases on August 11. "To say I've butterflies in my stomach would be an understatement. I feel I'm going through labour pains," he says.
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