Karan Johar said ‘awful things’ about fellow directors, called them ‘obsolete fossils’: Twinkle Khanna claims that’s why he hangs out with Gen Z

Childhood friends Twinkle Khanna and Karan Johar bantered at her book launch event in Mumbai on Wednesday evening, not holding back from throwing sharp jabs at each other. While Karan joked that Twinkle loves listening to the sound of her own voice, Twinkle made fun of his dedication to learning the ways of the Gen Z by hanging out with people half his age. She humorously called him a ‘vampire’ who ‘sucks out the blood’ of young actors.

Karan has admitted many times that he befriends young actors in order to stay relevant. But at the book launch event, Twinkle claimed that Karan told her that he doesn’t want to end up like some ‘obsolete’ directors whom he described as ‘fossils’. She said, “I know that you are a big advocate of the youth, we’ve discussed how you stay relevant.” Noticing Karan making a face in anticipation of another joke at his expense, she continued, “No, don’t make that face. I’m not saying anything bad. You said you were immersing yourself among young people, which is why you love Shanaya, Anaya, Alia and Alaya…” Karan corrected her, and said that he’s actually friends with Ananya, and Twinkle replied, “You know Anayas as well.”

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As Karan made a face again, Twinkle continued, “We had a very long conversation. We were talking about directors we can’t name, but he said that they’re obsolete, they’re fossils, he said all these awful things about them. And then he said, ‘You have to be relevant, that’s why I hang around with young people’. I said, ‘Yes, but I don’t like people, I can’t hang around with them’.”

Twinkle admitted that both she and Karan are ‘fossils’, because the world that they grew up in no longer exists. Karan has addressed his fascination with the younger generation, many of whom he invites on Koffee with Karan. He also spoke about the sort of clothes he started wearing some years ago, and attributed his loud fashion makeover to a ‘mid-life crisis’.