Karan Johar Breaks Silence on 'Nepo Mafia' Tag: 'If You Give Us the Flak, Then Today Give Us...'

Karan Johar is undoubtedly one of the most talked-about celebs in Bollywood. Love him or hate him, the filmmaker has come a long way in showbiz and is an inspiration for many. He has battled against all odds and created a name for himself as one of the most successful filmmakers of Indian cinema. He is currently busy with his recent production venture titled Kill, which also marked the debut of actor Lakshya. The action thriller recently had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.

At the press event, Karan Johar was asked how he decided if Kill was good fit for his production house, to which Karan said that he has been trying to break the perception that Dharma only makes family films. “I have been trying to break this perception that Dharma Productions is burdened by because I still get asked ‘Oh you only make family films’ or ‘you only make NRI-friendly films…or ‘You make films about rich people’. It’s really ridiculous that you get slotted.”

He added, “You are doomed by perception. If my name was Karan Kashyap, I would do so much better with a certain section of people. It’s like I’m doomed by my own name.” Karan also shared that people forget all of his films like Raazi, Kapoor And Sons, Lust Stories, Bombay Talkies and Agneepath. Instead, they focus on films like Student of the Year.

As Karan Johar launches Lakshya with Kill, he was asked if it was a reminded to people who call him ‘nepo mafia.’ He stated that the reminder is “in your face.” He further added, “You criticize us for everything. You curse us. You speak about the fact that we support and encourage nepotism, nepo babies, all the flak that comes to us.” He continued, “I wanna say if you give us the flak, then today give us the credit. Lakshya is a rank outsider. This is a very expensive film mounted entirely on him.”

Kill is written and directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhat and produced by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and Guneet Monga’s Sikhya Entertainment. Apart from Lakshya, the film also stars Raghav Juyal and Tanya Maniktala.