As Koffee With Karan, one of Indian television’s most iconic English-language talk shows comes to a close, filmmaker and host Karan Johar has spoken up about the widespread online criticism directed at couples like Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh, and Rashmika Mandanna and Vijay Deverakonda, following their joint appearances on his show.
Padukone and Singh kicked off Season 8 with their first joint appearance on the show. The pair’s passing remarks about the early stages of their relationship sparked widespread discourse online, with many prominent voices coming to the couple’s defence. Addressing the reaction to Padukone and Singh's episode, Johar called it “downright regressive,” in an exclusive conversation with THR India.
“They are beautifully in love. Such good actors in love with each other,” Johar noted.
He further argued, “They were just being honest about their lives. Since when should honesty be judged? You should be appreciative of someone's honesty.”
On the speculation and commentary around Mandanna and Deverakonda's relationship, Johar drew a distinction between expressing an opinion and prescribing what the couple should do.
“Everyone's entitled to an opinion. But when you start telling them what to do in that relationship, I have a very big problem.” Johar said he strongly objected to viewers suggesting how the couple should lead their relationship. “Who are you? Are you a counsellor? Are you a lawyer? Are you a member of their family?”
Johar also disagreed with online chatter targeting the pair's family members following the discourse around their appearance on the show. “You are commenting on their families. You can have an opinion on any celebrity. Don't demean their families. Their families weren't on that couch.”
He revealed that such detailed scrutiny was not limited to these two seasons or the two couples, explaining that similar scrutiny had followed individual guests, including himself, in the past.
Johar attributed part of the intensity of the reception to the economics of online content, acknowledging that the commentary, criticism and detailed analysis of the show and its guests is a form of work for creators and pages who build an audience online.
“At every given point of time, every line said is micro-analysed. If you want to, and if you think that your clickbait headline or your content piece about the show is going to get you a certain amount of viewership, that's also great.”
He continued, “You're doing your job and I'm doing mine. They're doing their job because the internet is now very monetisable. If your job means clickbaiting something, rage-baiting something, and that is going to result in you earning from it, then it's fine. Or if you're just having an opinion, you're allowed [to]. It's a democratic nation."
Drawing a comparison to film criticism, Johar noted that he has no issues with critics disliking his work, but takes issue with reviews telling audiences not to watch a film. “I have no problem with a critic saying this is a bad film. I have a problem when they say don't watch it,” he said, applying the same standard to the relationship commentary.
Johar concluded, “Don't tell a couple what they should do. You can analyse what you think of them, but you can't give them their endgame. Vijay and Rashika are an exceptionally happy couple, Ranveer and Deepika are an exceptionally happy couple.”
Watch the full interview with Karan Johar on The Hollywood Reporter India's YouTube channel later this week