Here's why we love Karan Johar's Show

Days before the new season of Karan Johar’s criminally entertaining talk show, Karan and I were chatting about the return of the show when Karan said something very pertinent.

“Those who love the show will watch it. Those who hate it will also watch it.”

_Koffee With Karan_ is that forbidden pleasure which everyone enjoys: it could be upfront or sneakily. But enjoy, everyone does. Karan’s proximity to his star guests exceeds the precincts of anchorage by aeons. He is close friends with almost everyone he interviews. Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt who were on his inaugural episode are both very close to Karan, Alia much more than Ranveer and Ranveer much more than Ranveer’s wife Deepika.

Ranveer, I am told, snuggles up to Karan, hugs and cuddles him on the sets of _Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani_. He looks at Karan with unmistakable love.

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Karan tells me Ranveer has a special tuning with everyone in his life. He can mimic the person in front of him and he does so not to mock but to show his love for the other.

“If not an actor Ranveer would have made a perfect standup comedian,” says Karan. Standup’s loss is Karan Johar’s gain. Ranveer Singh kickstarted Season 7 of Koffee With Karan with such a huge roar of showmanship, it was like watching a one-man entertainment band regaling at Bandstand.

An hour after the first episode Karan Johar is flooded with congratulatory calls and messages. “It’s as if I just got married,” Karan Johar jokes as only he can. The maiden episode is a whammy, the box office equivalent of a blockbuster, all thanks to Ranveer Singh’s showmanship.

“Let’s not take away from Alia’s contribution,” the protective godfather rises to the occasion. Two other god-daughters Janhvi Kapoor and Sara Ali Khan will be seen together in the next episode. Karan gushes that he “loves them both” and they are a riot in their episode.

I guess it’s the company they keep. Every star is a riot on Koffee With Karan, some more than others. In fact, some of Karan’s buddies have this time said no for the show. These include his best friend Shah Rukh Khan, and his virtual son-in-law Ranbir Kapoor. Katrina Kaif also refused to be on the show, so Karan had to pair Katrina’s husband Vicky Kaushal with Sidharth Malhotra.

Damn! Life can be such a witch.

So what’s the jadoo (magic) of Koffee With Karan? The star value, the irreverence, the fun factor or the revelatory tone that the host teases out of his guests?

“All of this, I think. People love to see their favourite stars opening up on my show. No, it’s not because of what is mixed in the coffee. It’s called friendship trust and confidence,” says Karan.

Two years ago, says Karan, it seemed he wouldn’t be able to return with another season of Koffee With Karan. There was an irrational hate wave directed at Karan Johar after Sushant Singh Rajput’s sudden death. Fans of the dead star accused Karan of boycotting Sushant during his lifetime. Exactly why Karan was obligated to work with Sushant, no one knows. OP Nayyar never composed a song for Lata Mangeshkar.

Now the same is happening with Kartik Aaryan, with the nepo(tism) bomb being hurled at Karan. But the Kartik-Karan war is over. Kartik may even be a guest on one of the episodes of Koffee With Karan.

How has the show become a benchmark of show shimmying?

“Is it? I am just happy that people watch it,” Karan sighs. He credits the success of his show to the two previous chatshow hosts before him who redefined the talkshow space: Tabassum and Simi Garewal.

I am told Tabassum and Simi Garewal don’t miss a single episode of Karan Johar’s show.

Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based film critic who has been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out. He tweets at @SubhashK_Jha.

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