India Today Conclave 2017: I'd marry Shah Rukh Khan: Karan Johar
It's difficult to out-talk him, but he has recently been stung on his own show. Branded the "movie mafia", Karan Johar nevertheless is all about frankly speaking, with a few caveats of course.
At India Today #Conclave17 ongoing at Grand Hyatt, Mumbai, the Bollywood masterblaster of words, moods and movies took centrestage to pour his heart out, carefully courting controversy. Speaking to Koel Purie Rinchet, in a session that sounded like a palindrome of both of their shows - Heart to Heart Koffee with Karan on the Couch | Love Beyond Boundaries - Karan Johar, Bollywood's own gossip guy braved questions and the heat.
Speaking on SRK, love, cinema, work, feeling lost, solitude, fame, money, passion, lust and almost every clumsily familiar yet eerily distant aspects of life, Johar regaled the audience with mirth, humour and a good dose of snark.
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| Photo: Indiatoday.in |
Here are some of the key lines he said.
On public life
"Being relevant is sometimes strategic."
"I love being trolled with all my heart. Being relevant is strategic. After a film like My Name is Khan, I made Student of the Year for younger kids, I wanted them to know what I was, what I am doing."
#Conclave17Don't miss! Watch @karanjohar responding to Twitter trolls in the most funny manner LIVE https://t.co/VHffbecDJh pic.twitter.com/Hbwl0aaUx7
— India Today (@IndiaToday) March 18, 2017
On Bollywood
"Sensitivity runs very high in my industry."
"Aspiration is fantastic, delusion is not."
"Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt are the most talented in the industry."
#Conclave17.@karanjohar has this beautiful message for youngsters LIVE https://t.co/VHffbecDJh pic.twitter.com/NqK9zOeYgA
— India Today (@IndiaToday) March 18, 2017
On personal life
"I love hearing abuse, I am completely a sadist. I was called a pansy, effeminate in school. I even had speech therapy to try and correct it."
.@karanjohar was bullied, called pansy & how he dealt with people at that time, he spills everything at #Conclave17 pic.twitter.com/Cbq6mwVYDC
— India Today (@IndiaToday) March 18, 2017
"Anil Ambani gave me my father's letter. It was my bible for me for the next few years."
#Conclave17.@karanjohar talks about the letter his father left for him with Anil Ambani LIVE https://t.co/VHffbecDJh pic.twitter.com/Gz0UdyWCJr
— India Today (@IndiaToday) March 18, 2017
"My honesty on several topics is one of the reasons I want to connect with people. Sometimes your imperfections can channelise your thoughts. It is okay to be imperfect. Everything in life in not like a hallmark card."
"Most of us walk the path of grey and not white or black."
"I am who I am and am very proud of it."
On sexuality
"I am not apologetic about my orientation, reality and certainly not about my cinema."
#Conclave17My sexuality is definitely a big topic of discussion, that's why I wrote about it in my autobiography:@karanjohar pic.twitter.com/FwNL8d1iwC
— India Today (@IndiaToday) March 18, 2017
"My sexuality has been constantly talked-about."
"Being honest, being a public figure, is very important."
On love
"I'd marry Shah Rukh Khan. He has a nice bungalow."
#Conclave17My father was very progressive in his ideologies and thoughts: @karanjohar LIVE https://t.co/VHffbecDJh
— India Today (@IndiaToday) March 18, 2017
"In today's time love can't transcend everything, rather hatred can."
"Love is a beautiful thing. I love people who love love. Self pity is the most wonderful thing to be in, but one has to get out of that zone after some time."
"A happy marriage jolts me, infidelity does exist."
"The vacuum within forced me to took up parenting. I'm the mother of my children."
#Conclave17: I am the mother of my children, says @karanjohar #KaranJohar https://t.co/WmRFX7Bi0Y pic.twitter.com/Kyv19QJnoG
— India Today Showbiz (@Showbiz_IT) March 18, 2017