Karan Johar speaks out on Pandya controversy

Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar feels “very responsible” about the repercussions that cricketers Hardik Pandya and K.L. Rahul have faced since they made some misogynistic remarks on his chat show but says he has no control over answers that come his way. Johar who is currently at the World Economic Forum, spoke about the controversial episode .

“I have to say that I feel very responsible because it was my show and my platform. I invited them as guests, and so the ramifications and the repercussions of the show are my responsibility. I have had so many sleepless nights wondering how can I undo this damage, who is going to listen to me… ” said Johar

Pandya and Rahul faced a lot of flak for their comments on women when they opened up on their personal life on Johar’s celebrity chat show “Koffee With Karan”, aired on Star World. Follow Spotlife Asia for the latest News and Updates.

The film maker, who has mostly had Bollywood celebrities as guests on his shows, said: “I have no control about the answers that come my way. And post the show, I have a control room which has about 16-17 girls. The show ‘Koffee With Karan’ is run entirely by women and I am the only man there. None of them came up. Some thought, ‘Oh, he’s wild, he’s crazy, he’s cracked, he’s mad, he said funny things…’ No one came and told me it was inappropriate or that ‘Karan, maybe we should edit it’, and as a result, I didn’t think… I regret what has happened to them (Pandya and Rahul).”

Following the episode, the two cricketers were sent home midway through a three-match ODI series in Australia.

The filmmaker added: “I don’t care about the TRPs… People don’t understand that an English language show is never dependent on its ratings. We are nowhere on the radar of ratings. It was meant to be my show, and I want to say it, it is frivolous, sometimes a completely borderline, ridiculous, irreverent, candid, ‘stop making sense’ is our mantra… That’s the show.