The Silence of Celebs: Karan Johar, Mahesh Bhatt, and Others Navigate the Fallout

Mahesh Bhatt and Karan Johar were two media-friendly celebrities who, during the lockdown, unexpectedly gagged themselves. Following Kangana Ranaut's and Arnab Goswami's and certain political leaders' harsh criticism of the two and their conviction for Sushant Singh Rajput's killing, Karan received constant abuse from social media users, including calls to be a thug and a murderer. Mahesh discovered old pictures of him holding his daughter Pooja close to his lips and cuddling with actress Rhea Chakraborty (who starred in a Bhatt disaster, Jalebi). The pictures were smeared with sexiness everywhere, giving the impression that he was a predator rather than a loving father figure or a gregarious director who liked to prop himself up on impressionable shoulders.

Karan said that unplugging from social media helped him cleanse, but in reality, he sought treatment. Gradually, he made his way back to the limelight, first presenting a Bigg Boss shadow series on OTT before Salman Khan made a comeback with the official one. Following that hiatus, Karan got back on track, produced an opulent feature picture, gave another season of Koffee With Karan his all, and is back pouting as boldly as ever at the podium. However, wounds are real. They haven't been dismissed with apathy, however, as Karan has been enough irritated by Kangana's nepotistic jab that he decided to make a program called Showtime based on the insider-outsider paradigm. Hopefully, he will finally let it all out and quit whining on all the platforms that he can. It's getting old. It's time to stop acting like the largest victim of trolling and put the hurt tone that you received from being branded the ringmaster of nepo-kids to rest.


"What distinguishes your view of the industry from that of Aryan Khan's Stardom?" With everyone eager to share insider information about the film business, that is the question that over-the-top platforms are posing. Since Karan is familiar with every nuance of Aryan's show, Showtime will be unique.

In contrast to him, the well-known dial-a-quote Mahesh Bhatt remains mostly silent, except from the odd expression of grandpa-like appreciation for a "miracle" named Raha. He declined requests for interviews, saying, "I'm saving it all for my memoir, which I'm writing." "Seeing movies through a lens is like a seagull diving into the ocean and barely touching the surface," he said. So long as he stays silent, there will be more in-depth explorations of his life and thoughts than his films could provide.

Many well-known individuals are avoiding Mikes for the same reason. Rakesh Roshan wants to save all of his brother Rajesh's personal and professional experiences for his family documentary, The Roshans. He brags, "We're the only film family with such a variety of talents." Both of his parents were musicians. Rajesh proceeded in their direction. Rakesh experimented with acting, producing, directing, and distribution of films. His son Hrithik was the cherry on top. Perhaps RR will come to the realization that written and spoken words can express much more depth and detail than a film, just as Mahesh Bhatt has.

Son Rohan has instructed Ramesh Sippy to shut up and stop talking about Sholay. The film's 50th anniversary will be celebrated with a number of events building up to a big climax in August 2025. We'll capture whatever Sippy and the other performers and artisans of Sholay have to say about the cult classic for its golden anniversary. Without bringing up Sholay, any discussion with Sippy would be incomplete, and the amiable director is only steering clear of official interviews at the moment due to the omerta.

Therefore, immortalizing their experiences on celluloid and paper via books, films, and supposedly fictitious web series has become the newest pleasure of the affluent and famous.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Press Time staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.