Karan Johar has called out Bollywood’s growing dependence on paid publicity, criticising the industry’s PR culture. In a recent interview, he said excessive marketing is overshadowing genuine talent. His reaction comes in response to a question about celebs like Janhvi Kapoor and Shanaya Kapoor opting for method dressing during promotions.
Karan Johar condemns Bollywood PR overdrive
In an interview with The Week, the filmmaker said, “I think Bollywood should stop doing PR. It will be much better. They should let their achievements speak for themselves because, unfortunately, all of the PR is now paid PR. If you want to say ‘You are looking gorgeous,’ you just have to pay. If you want to say that you are the best actor on planet Earth, you have to pay.”
Karan added, “So I think we are in overdrive mode when it comes to PR. So whether they are doing method marketing or not is secondary. They should stop marketing themselves and let their work speak for itself. I don`t mean the people you are talking about; I mean everyone in general. Because I think PR is becoming overdrive. There’s a certain way of doing it. Publicity and marketing are very important work categories, and these should be treated in that specific way.”
Karan said, “Now everything is available at a price, and that is something that could be deeply upsetting because then you really can`t gauge what`s connecting and what`s not. Are people liking it, or are they paid to like it? I don`t know; I can`t tell half the time. It’s confusing me because even I am sometimes paying for it.”
Karan Johar upcoming movies
Johar is reportedly preparing to direct his eighth film, a large-scale family drama backed by his banner, Dharma Productions. He is also backing Ananya Panday and Lakshya Lalwani’s Chand Mera Dil. Recently, while speaking at The Week, Karan revealed that he is now adapting Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna into a long-form series.
In the same chat, when asked about the return of his highly popular talk show, Koffee with Karan, he paused and said with a smile, “This year, Diwali, season 9.”
