“My reputation as a serious filmmaker is collaterally damaged by my other activities,” Karan Johar

Few would dispute the fact that My Name Is Khan is the best film Karan Johar has directed so far. “I am certainly proud of it,” he tells us as he gets ready for Sidharth Malhotra and Kiara Advani’s reception. “It stands tall in my oeuvre to this day. If you ask me what made it so special I’d have to give the credit to Shibani Bathija. This was the first time I surrendered completely to the vision of the writer. And I think we succeeded in bringing a certain heft to my cinema, normally not associated with me.”
Karan admits My Name Is Khan left him emotionally drained. “It was two back-to-back serious dramas Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna and My Name Is Khan. After thes two, I purposely made a candyfloss film like The Student Of The Year.”

Karan gives a large chunk of the credit for the success of My Name Is Khan to Shah Rukh Khan. “The volume of research he did on the Asperger’s Syndrome, and the time he took off to get the speech and body language right just showed his dedication to the film and role. I rank his performance in My Name Is Khan as among his career’s best along with Chak De, Swades and Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa.”
Asked to pick his favourite moment from My Name Is Khan, Karan says, “The moment on the hill when Rizwan confesses his love for Mandira. I think there is an innocence in their love which no longer exists in any relationship. Love has become just a swipe. What Mandira and Rizwan shared was real and honest.”

Would Karan Johar like to revisit the lives of Rizwan and Mandira? “You mean, make a sequel? No, once I tell my story I move on. I know there was a sequel to my Student Of The Year. But that was not directed by me. So no. I wouldn’t like to revisit My Name Is Khan. But I hope Rizwan and Mandira have another child by now, and that they have mended their broken marriage.”

Despite being phenomenally successful, admits he is not been taken seriously enough as a filmmaker. “Maybe because I do so many fun things that do not tally with the image of a… quote-unquote… ‘serious filmmaker’. But if I had a chance to do my career all over again I would still do everything exactly the same way. I would still judge Jhalak Dikhla Jaa with the same fervor as directing My Name Is Khan.”