'Karan has changed completely from the boy I grew up with'

'Today, as a film personality, he is bigger than Dharma Productions.' 'But he is still warm and loyal to his friends from school, college, and work.'

Karan Johar turns 50 on May 25, and film-maker Nikkhil Advani, who has known him since school, owes his career to him.

Advani assisted KJo on Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, and made his own directorial debut with Kal Ho Naa Ho under the Dharma Productions banner.

Nikkhil tells "I'm waiting for Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani because I know Karan will rock the world with his next directorial... He understands that after the pandemic, people want to see happiness, and he has gone back to what he does best. He owns that space and I know he will rewrite the rules and set new benchmarks in the genre."

Karan and I were together in High Mumbai's Green Lawns Lawns School; he was in the batch junior to me.

We were in the same house.

Since Karan didn't play sports like us, he got bullied a lot, even though he won all the debates and elocution competitions.

I remember both Karan and Apoorva Mehta (the present CEO of Dharma Productions) were standing for head boy and Karan was busy making posters for his best friend.

After we passed out, I went to St Xavier's college, he to HR college. He would do fashion shows with some of my friends like Anaita Shroff.

'Karan knew the script of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai by heart'

When he was assisting Adi (Aditya Chopra) on Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, we met backstage at the Screen Awards.

On learning that I was assisting Sudhir Mishra on Iss Raat Ki Subah Nahin, Karan told me he wanted to bounce off a script he'd written.

I lived on Warden Road (south Mumbai), and went over to his place in Nepean Sea Road (also in South Mumbai) where he narrated the first half of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai to me.

It was fantastic!

Karan was looking for an associate director and I joined Dharma Productions in 1998.