Karan Johar calls himself a 'born feminist' while reacting to criticism of gender politics in 'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge'

Karan Johar’s 'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge' (DDLJ) has been celebrated as a Bollywood classic, but it has also faced scrutiny for certain scenes. One particular moment that drew criticism was when Shah Rukh Khan’s character, Raj, misled Kajol’s Simran into believing they had slept together after she was intoxicated. The scene has been a focal point in discussions about gender representation in cinema. Now, Karan Johar has spoken about these issues and called himself a “born feminist.”
In a conversation with Lilly Singh on her YouTube channel, he acknowledged past storytelling choices and how they influenced his perspective as a filmmaker. Karan reflected on how his views on gender representation in cinema have evolved over the years. He recalled being called out by Shabana Azmi for Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which led him to reconsider his responsibility as a filmmaker.

Despite identifying as a feminist and believing in equality, he admitted that his early films did not fully reflect these values. This realisation motivated him to create 'Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani', a film that not only explored family dynamics and romance but also challenged patriarchy and addressed cancel culture. As a self-proclaimed feminist, he felt these topics were crucial to highlight in contemporary storytelling.

"Because in my heart, in my head, in my being, I am a born feminist and I was like, ‘I am that person.’ I believe in equality. I believe in correct gender politics so why am I not positioning that entire belief on celluloid. And that’s why Rocky Aur Rani mattered to me because I needed to say what I needed to say." he added.
Discussing the 'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge' scene, Karan admitted that no one on set anticipated it would be re-evaluated years later.
Karan also noted that his early films were shaped by traditional Bollywood storytelling, but as Hindi cinema evolved, so did his approach to filmmaking.