Karan Johar New Directorial Movie - Page 4

Originally posted by: RaniPreityAish

Yes, I agree although I think KJo has lost his magic now. Not sure it would be the same if he made a movie with SRK now but would love to see him with any of the pairings you mentioned.

Urmila especially because Chamatkar was one of the first movies both she and SRK ever did, so neither was a big star then. Always felt they should have had at least one movie set during the time when both were established stars. Dil To Pagal Hai came closest to featuring the both of them since Urmila quit after one day of filming.

Really, why do you say that? I remember it came out very critically acclaimed especially since it got much exposure in the west and even Oscar buzz for a while. Even at Filmfare, it won 3/4 of the big awards, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Actress, only losing out on Best Film. Not to mention that financially it was the highest grossing Indian movie overseas, breaking KANK's record.

Interesting idea that his new movies are essentially remakes of his older ones. I think Rocky aur Rani also takes elements from KANK with the adultery storyline of the older generation.

Now, don't get me wrong. It's a decent movie. But most of the acclaim was because people were surprised that KJo pulled off a serious movie or for SRK's performance. On its own, it really didn't blow people away.

You can use the power of hindsight too. Dil Se and Swades were flops at the time but have stood the test of time and aré considered classics today. MNIK isn't mentioned in the same breath as those two movies.

Indian awards are bogus as we all know.

Proper critical acclaim is like when RDB, TZP, Queen, or Bajrangi came out. There are others too. MNIK, whilst a good movie, was super charged by the KJo factor in the media. Even today, people fondly recall KJo's over-the-topic movies like KKHH or K3G over MNIK. If MNIK had clicked like, say TZP, KJo most likely wouldn't have made SOTY.

I do think it's the best he could have done in tackling a serious theme, but KJo simply isn't made for "profound" cinema.

Originally posted by: Filmistan

Now, don't get me wrong. It's a decent movie. But most of the acclaim was because people were surprised that KJo pulled off a serious movie or for SRK's performance. On its own, it really didn't blow people away.

You can use the power of hindsight too. Dil Se and Swades were flops at the time but have stood the test of time and aré considered classics today. MNIK isn't mentioned in the same breath as those two movies.

Indian awards are bogus as we all know.

Proper critical acclaim is like when RDB, TZP, Queen, or Bajrangi came out. There are others too. MNIK, whilst a good movie, was super charged by the KJo factor in the media. Even today, people fondly recall KJo's over-the-topic movies like KKHH or K3G over MNIK. If MNIK had clicked like, say TZP, KJo most likely wouldn't have made SOTY.

I do think it's the best he could have done in tackling a serious theme, but KJo simply isn't made for "profound" cinema.

Yes, I can see the comparison to Dil Se and Swades. Both are definitely classics today and have endured whereas I don't see MNIK discussed in the same breath.

But I think another factor is that MNIK is a very American story. It deals with a specific period of American history that you can't really comprehend unless you lived in the west (specifically America and to a lesser extent, England) during the post-9/11 era. That's why it was a blockbuster overseas and broke all records. I don't think most people in India would be able to connect or relate the same way. All the movies you listed above are quintessentially Indian in their story and characters. RDB, TZP, Bajrangi, and Dil Se all take place in India and deal with Indian issues. Queen might not take place in India but like English Vinglish, it's about an average Indian woman and her experiences abroad. And Swades was an NRI coming to India after many long years away and learning what he can do to help his community rather than from abroad.

So I think the lack of attention to MNIK also depends on this factor. I live in America so I think it's better remembered and recognized by NRIs here whereas I never see it discussed online by Indians living actually in India. Also, when people discuss KJo's movies, they're more inclined to discuss his filmi stuff with songs and glamour like KKHH and K3G. MNIK is a much more serious film so for NRIs who may deal with racism and prejudice on a daily level and want to feel connected to their roots, MNIK is not an escape factor. It's too accurate to their daily lives to provide an escape unlike KKHH and K3G which reminds them of what they think India was like before they left. Which is also why KJo's films resonate more abroad because he presents an idealized, anglicized version of India and like you said, people don't look to KJo for social issues. There are other filmmakers who specialize in that.

Awards being bogus is not an exclusively Indian thing. That's true in any country and in fact, not even just for countries. Something like the Nobel Peace Prize really has no value when you look at some of the people who have been given it with so much blood on their hands. Indian awards aren't any more rigged or genuine than any other country's awards.

Originally posted by: RaniPreityAish

Do you think KJo's intentions were spiteful? SOTY really doesn't have any major roles for adult male characters outside of Rishi Kapoor. Maybe Varun's father but that was rather limited in screentime and also quite villainous. If KJo wanted SRK in all his films, including even a cameo here like he usually gives to Kajol when she's not playing a lead, then the Rishi Kapoor character was really the only one suitable. Although I don't think SRK could afford to play a gay character in that time or even now, so he was never going to be able to accept it anyway.

It's been such a long time since I've seen MNIK that I really don't remember the climax or pacing issues. It's a good film but one that is very emotionally involving and hard to digest over and over, so I find it less repeatable than Karan's more filmi movies with SRK.

I know you said SRK had issues with KANK and MNIK. Also that Kajol had issues with MNIK's second half where she felt she didn't have enough presence. I know that's a big deal for Kajol since she turned down 3 Idiots during that era as the female lead's role wasn't strong enough for her taste (which was obvious to anyone since Aamir stopped giving his female co-stars meaningful roles ages ago).

1st paragraph: No, not "spiteful" but inconsiderate knowing very well the attempts throughout the years to label SRK as gay. It's okay to 'play' with this conception in a fun-sequence like with Saif in KHNH but making him play a gay character as supporting role in a superficial 'remake' of KKHH...bad taste.

3rd paragraph: Imo, Kajol is right to having had issues with the 2nd part of MNIK and her reduced presence in favour of an over-extended Rizwan-in-Wilhelmina (which not only destroyed the pace of the movie but also felt 'cheesy' to me...it was just too much). I genuinely was astonished when I read that she made a cameo in a SOTY song. And she also went to Karan's KWK with her cousin Ayan (2014), her husband (2018) and Rani (last year). But she made no other movie with/for him.

He should make a movie where he plays all the characters. That I would watch.

Originally posted by: Clochette

1st paragraph: No, not "spiteful" but inconsiderate knowing very well the attempts throughout the years to label SRK as gay. It's okay to 'play' with this conception in a fun-sequence like with Saif in KHNH but making him play a gay character as supporting role in a superficial 'remake' of KKHH...bad taste.

3rd paragraph: Imo, Kajol is right to having had issues with the 2nd part of MNIK and her reduced presence in favour of an over-extended Rizwan-in-Wilhelmina (which not only destroyed the pace of the movie but also felt 'cheesy' to me...it was just too much). I genuinely was astonished when I read that she made a cameo in a SOTY song. And she also went to Karan's KWK with her cousin Ayan (2014), her husband (2018) and Rani (last year). But she made no other movie with/for him.

To be fair, most of the rumors of SRK being gay usually had him linked to Karan. I think the other man he was most closely linked to was Arjun Rampal. In terms of older male roles, the Rishi Kapoor character is the only prevalent one in SOTY so if SRK had wanted any role in the movie, that was the only one really available. Sometimes there are stories that simply don't feature roles for actors who otherwise most frequently star in these movies. Like Farida Jalal was offered the grandmother role in KHNH but she refused it because she wouldn't go from playing Jaya's contemporary in K3G to her senior. But there was no other pivotal role in the movie that fit Farida's age group.

I know KJo said he wanted SRK and Kajol to cameo in Rocky aur Rani but didn't feel comfortable asking, especially after SRK did a cameo in Brahmastra already. I think while Kajol and Kjo are friends again, they aren't as close after the ADHM fiasco. There seems to be a slight distance still left over. KJo seems to have become closer to Rani since then. Rani helped promote KKHH's anniversary with KJo and SRK, not Kajol. Rani and KJo went to Australia together and the filmmaker panel. I think having kids close in age plus Rani now being married to KJo's best friend, Adi, and also understanding more the duties of being a producer/head of a production company, means these two have more in common now.

And like I said in a prior post, the reports that 90s actresses like Kajol and Aishwarya are not happy with the state of the industry and how movies are being produced may also explain the lack of closeness between Kajol and KJo now. I know many have speculated that Kajol and SRK also seem to have some distance now.

Distance may also have to do with age and the children (as you rightly think about Karan and Rani). Nysa and Yug (especially Nysa) have to find their foot in what they will do in future and SRK also works with his children on different fields.

I'm still interested what Karan will do in future with financing having become a major problem.

Originally posted by: Clochette

Distance may also have to do with age and the children (as you rightly think about Karan and Rani). Nysa and Yug (especially Nysa) have to find their foot in what they will do in future and SRK also works with his children on different fields.

I'm still interested what Karan will do in future with financing having become a major problem.

I forgot know if Kajol said Nysa is interested in working in the industry or not. I thought I read years ago that Nysa said she didn't want to become an actress and Kajol supported this but I feel that's changed and that somewhere along the lines, Nysa did want to be launched after all. Based on how neither Kajol or SRK have been asking KJo to launch their kids, it's safe to say both know he's not the star maker he thinks he is.

I'm proud of Aryan for wanting to direct instead of act. I agree with what others stated that in this industry, it's very hard to be accepted if you have a relation already in the industry.

Anil Kapoor had to retire from lead roles when Sonam started her career. He even pursued Hollywood with Slumdog Millionaire and Mission Impossible. Only when Sonam left film did Anil really return to lead roles again. Karishma was also told by her mother to phase out of acting so her sister could have a place. Aamir and Salman's brothers never made it.

And I feel Abhishek may have had a better chance had his father retired from acting. So I can see why people say that SRK's kids have no chance if he's still around which hopefully he always will be.

As am I, especially considering that he doesn't seem to have one interesting movie in the works.

I am more interested in character actors. No Jaya Bachchan, Farida or Shabana Azmi this time. I will prefer Shoma Anand, Jaya Prada, Anita Raj and there are plenty of great veteran actresses out there to add value to his directorial venture.

https://x.com/bolly_talkies/status/1832336695372431407

Latest video of him

Maybe he has started to be another version of himself ... (there already had been other times when he had shed weight, btw.)

That's a nice picture from last year