7 life lessons we learnt from birthday boy Karan Johar

A filmmaker, a host, an actor and a hopeless romantic… Karan Johar, with his love for love has taught us many lesson not only through his films but through his life as well. He, with his nonchalance and unmatched zest for life has mentored many young actors and inspired many more.  One of the biggest names in Bollywood, Karan has conquered many hearts with his warm personality. 

As the man turns 48 today, we list down seven things, we learnt from the way he lives his life. Take a look. 

1. Fatherhood is the new motherhood

Karan Johar took everyone by surprise when he announced the birth of his children Roohi and Yash through surrogacy a few years ago. The names of his two kids have  special meaning for him. Yash is named after Karan’s father and late filmmaker Yash Johar, and Roohi is a rearrangement of the alphabets of his mother’s name Hiroo. In his autobiography, An Unsuitable Boy, Karan Johar had expressed a desire to adopt a child or have a surrogate child as his old-age insurance policy. He revealed that he’s aware of his constraints and since he wasn't ready to decide on his life partner just yet, he went ahead and fulfilled his dream of fatherhood. He wrote, “I don’t know what I’m going to do about it but I feel like I would like to be a parent. I don’t know how it’s going to happen but I do feel the need because I have plenty of love to offer and I’d like to take it forward. This feeling needs a release and requires a platform. And that platform could be by being a parent. I have prepared myself mentally, physically, emotionally and logistically to ensure that my children get all the unconditional love.”

2. It’s ok to admit failures

Karan Johar has excelled at everything he’s tried his hands on… well almost. He has excelled as a director and a producer . If there's one area that's left wanting, it's acting.  Even though Karan Johar was seen as Shah Rukh Khan’s friend in Aditya Chopra’s love saga Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, he made his full-fledged acting debut with Anurag Kashyap’s Bombay Velvet, a retro-themed film based on the Mumbai mafia. The fact that Anurag Kashyap was directing the film and  Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharma were starring in it, got everyone excited even more.  However, the film failed to impress. 

He was also seen playing a double role in Welcome To New York. This film too featured big wig stars like Sonakshi Sinha, Diljit Dosanjh, Boman Irani, and Riteish Deshmukh. And even though it had a cameo by popular names like Salman Khan, Aditya Roy Kapur, Sushant Singh Rajput, and Rana Daggubaati, the film failed at the box office. Karan played a double role in the film. However, instead of finding  an excuse for his failure,  Karan took this failure in his stride. After the release of Welcome To New York, Karan admitted he was a flop actor. He said, “I am a big flop actor. None of my films run. I did Bombay Velvet and Welcome to New York and both didn’t work. Nobody should cast me in any film. I should not be taken. No viability with me. I am a very big flop actor.” Now, where would you find a superstar so open about his shortcomings?

3. The art of apologies

Karan found himself in hot water after the controversial episode with Kangana Ranaut.  Nepotism became the talk of the tinsel town after that. A few weeks later, Karan took a dig at Kangana at an event he hosted. People called it distasteful, even the industry folks didn't approve of it.  

Karan then stepped up and apologised  and took complete responsibility for his remark. He said, “The idea of that joke was entirely mine, so I take the onus of the idea of what we said. And I think we went a bit too far with the Kangana mention…I regret it.”

4. It is ok to switch off the Miss Congeniality mode

Yes, he's loved by everyone.  And the reason is he's as real as they come. Karan revealed that earlier, he felt the urge to be nice to everyone but now, he wants to be true to himself.  He said, “I feel like I don’t want to be nice to everyone anymore and I don’t want to be there for everyone like I have been before. At least a decade of my life, I have pretended to be someone else. I want to be a little more real. I have lied through my teeth sometimes, I have made fake praises and I have brushed some issues under the carpet, I don’t think pretending to be someone should be on anyone’s agenda,” 

5. The fear of death

Karan Johar mentioned that his life changed after he lost his father Yash Johar. Since then, his biggest fear has been losing his loved ones. In fact, if you’ve noticed Karan has always tried  to connect the audience with that emotion through his film.  In many of his films, the protagonists have suffered  the pain of losing a loved one. Be it Shah Rukh Khan in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, or Ranbir Kapoor in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. 

6. Being unapologetic about your style

Karan Johar’s world of cinema is all about glitz and glamour. Beautiful women, men with chiseled bodies,exotic locations and strong storylines are the elements of every Karan Johar film.  His heroes fly in helicopters to commute and drive Lamborghinis to college. While some people might argue against his idea of cinema, he doesn’t let them affect his belief. 

7. How to carry forward your father’s legacy

When Yash Johar passed away, Dharma Productions lost its founding father and was in desperate need of a leader. While Karan Johar was still grieving his loss, he realised that he had a massive responsibility on his hands now. Karan smartly invested in the right movies that helped Dharma cement its position as one of the biggest production houses in the country today. We’re sure that Yash Johar is proud of his son.