For someone who sits proudly at the helm of Dharma Productions and has personally shepherded some of Hindi cinema’s biggest star launches, you might expect Karan Johar to eagerly roll out the red carpet for his own children. But beneath the glamorous façade of modern showbiz lies an intensely unforgiving, high-pressure arena. In an unexpectedly vulnerable conversation, the veteran filmmaker-producer revealed that he is actively discouraging his twins, Yash and Roohi, from following his footsteps into the film business.
Speaking candidly about the sheer emotional toll and relentless scrutiny of Bollywood, Karan laid bare his deep-seated paternal anxieties. “Well, look, as I said, it’s not an easy place. It’s tough. I am almost dissuading my children from the business. And everybody says, ‘Why are you doing that? Why are you doing that?’ “I am like, look, I will be too old to protect them at that time,” Karan said.
Weighing in on his heartfelt dilemma, close confidante Kareena Kapoor Khan offered a refreshingly different perspective on modern celebrity parenting and sheltering instincts. “But I feel maybe the protection is also what is causing the issue. I think sometimes we just have to, like, probably just… you know, we’re all so protective towards our children,” she observed, suggesting that kids often learn best through raw, unfiltered experience.
Kareena further reminisced about how their own parents allowed them to stumble and grow within the cutthroat industry: “I feel sometimes our parents just let us go and say, ‘Karni hai toh karo, you know, karo. You have to go and ‘ragdo.’” Karan quietly agreed with her take, admitting that balancing protective instincts with hard industry reality is an ongoing, daily struggle.
Having welcomed Yash and Roohi via surrogacy in February 2017, Karan has always worn his heart on his sleeve as a devoted, loving single father. While the twins grow up surrounded by film scripts, cameras, and rich cinematic heritage, their father’s foremost wish remains protectively grounded: keeping their innocent peace completely intact.
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