After decades of dodging the 'is he, isn't he' looks from most people, from diehard fans to complete strangers at airports, Karan Johar finally gathered a bit of nerve.
He talks about his sexual orientation in the just-released biography, The Unsuitable Boy, excerpts from which took up a large block in Sunday's edition of a leading national newspaper.
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But then, the extract does not show Johar really talking about his sexual orientation. He admits he is part of the LGBTQ community, without actually doing so.
Predictably, many activists already feel betrayed that a popular public figure like Johar has not openly joined forces with them for the cause. That, however, is only part of the snag in the way the Bollywood filmmaker-cum-talk show host has chosen to associate himself with the identity.
Johar has said in the book: "Everybody knows what my sexual orientation is. I don't need to scream it out. If I need to spell it out, I won't only because I live in a country where I could possibly be jailed for saying this. Which is why I, Karan Johar, will not say the three words that possibly everybody knows about me in any case."
Which brings us to the question: Why bring it up so loud and clear now, when there is a biography to be sold? Why use this very excerpt as the one to introduce the book to the market? Surely, the book is full of other anecdotes, revelations and behind-the-screen reminiscences that are interesting enough to work as marketing ploys.
He is, of course, entitled to lead his life as he wishes to. And reveal as much or as little about himself as he wants to. However, Johar, the successful businessman of emotions that he is, also knows what sells. And he chooses a convenient time to come out of the closet, in a manner that seems most convenient to him.
During his two decades in the film industry, Johar scuttled the issue successfully. In fact, the subject was almost a matter of ridicule in some of his films (remember Sulabha Arya's reactions in Kal Ho Na Ho or Rishi Kapoor's stereotyped antics in Student of the Year?).
His television talk show, Koffee with Karan, is in its fifth season now, and never once did Johar — known for bringing out private details of his colleagues from the industry in front of the camera — ever open up on the topic.
He has always been uneasy talking about something as personal as sexuality, he says in the book. "I have never ever talked about my orientation or sexuality because whether I am heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, asexual, it is my concern. I refuse to talk about it...I have not been brought up to talk about my sex life."
And he could have got away without going into the specifics in the biography as well. Bollywood fans had more or less come to accept that Johar wanted to keep his sexuality inside his bedroom. They would probably have gladly swallowed all the little nuggets of inside information that he offered about on-set banter and off-set rivalry between stars and producers, and complained little.
Or would they? Johar's latest outing on television has been a damp one. The filmmaker tries too hard with his brazen act, the guests seem to be trying harder to laugh at their own jokes. His latest directorial venture, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, has been rated 5.8 out of 10 on imdb, and received mixed reviews.
Johar, who has created tremendous sensation with his films and TV show in the past, knows biographies don't go into Seasons. And unlike movies, there are no music rights here to drum up the earnings. So what does the showman do? He takes advantage of what he is best at — stirring up people's passions.
Unfortunately, like in his movies, here too, the issue of alternative sexuality remains a mere sticky element. Unfortunately, like his movies, here too, Johar chose to bring out the trailer with a party song.
