Did Karan Johar just react to recent allegations against him? Says ‘hum jhukne waalon mein se nahi’

On Saturday, Karan Johar seemingly responded to a few members of Bollywood who had slammed him after an old video had surfaced showing him ‘admitting’ to try and sabotage actor Anushka Sharma’s career. Actor Kangana Ranaut, filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri and writer-editor Apurva Asrani had all responded to the director’s comment said on a panel in 2016. (Also read: Vivek Agnihotri, Apurva Asrani slam Karan Johar over his old video: ‘Someone’s only hobby is to make or break careers’)

Taking to his Instagram Stories, the filmmaker shared a cryptic but rather heavy Hindi poem about staying strong amongst lies and accusations. He wrote, “Laga lo ilzaam, hum jhukne waalon mein se nahi.., jhoot ka ban jao ghulam…., hum bolne waalon mein se nahi…, jitna neecha dikhaoge…, jitne aarop lagaoge…, hum girne waalon mein se nahi…, humara karam humari Vijay hai…aap utha lo talvaar… Hum marne waalon mein se nahi…(State the allegations, I’m not amongst those who will bow down / Become a slave to lies, I won’t say anything / However much you try to slander and show me in a bad light, I will not fall / My goodness is my victory / You can use any swords, I will not die).”

The Anushka video went viral not soon after Priyanka Chopra had also shared in a podcast about the reasons why she relocated to Hollywood. The actor had shared that she felt cornered in Bollywood and wasn’t getting the work she wanted to as she ‘had beef’ with certain individuals in the industry. However, at the recent Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre grand opening last week, Priyanka was seen greeting Karan warmly at the event with her husband Nick Jonas.

Karan’s production banner’s last film Selfiee, starring Akshay Kumar, failed at the box office earlier this year. He has been accused of casting only insiders from the industry. Later this year, he is set to launch Sanjay Kapoor and Maheep Kapoor’s daughter Shanaya Kapoor in the film Bedhadak.

Karan’s last feature film as director was with Ae Dil Hai Mushkil in 2016. He directed segments in the anthologies Lust Stories (2018) and Ghost Stories (2020). He is returning to directing features with Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani in July 2023. The film stars Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan and Shabana Azmi.