Love a bitch

Karan Johar confides his latest film derives from his own heartbreak, his loneliness. Raghuvendra singh gets a rare glimpse of the hotshot filmmaker.

It’s tough to be in the limelight always. It’s tough to speak about love and heartbreak especially when the world wants to listen, criticise and possibly dissect every word you speak. But Karan Johar is not one to shy away from his own emotions. He may not wear them on his sleeve all the time but that doesn’t mean he’s not feeling fuzzy or fragile. Teasers of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (ADHM) have set the precedent for passion. That’s the key word for Karan’s countless interactions, both personal and professional in the film industry. He’s everyone’s friend and possibly one of the few people in showbiz who truly understand what makes and breaks relationships in the glitzy but fragile world of the stars. In a candid mood he shares matters of the heart and the deepest secrets that make Hindi cinema and its glamorous alleys such a rollercoaster ride. Excerpts from an intimate chat...

Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (ADHM) seems to be about love and longing…

It’s a personal film. It’s about things we all have been through. It’s not a love story; it’s a story about love. It’s about how you react to heartbreak. It’s about unrequited love, onesided love. I loved this couplet by Faiz Ahmed Faiz, “Gar baazi ishq ki baazi hai, jo chaho laga do dar kaisa, Gar jeet gaye to kya kehna, haare bhi to baazi maat nahi.” Loosely translated it means that one never actually loses in the game of love. Even if you lose in love you’re still a winner. That’s the thought on which I’ve based ADHM.

Does it resonate your life?