'Bollywood should stop doing PR': Karan Johar slams publicity overdrive, urges actors to 'let their work speak for themselves'

Criticising the use of paid publicity by Bollywood, Karan Johar emphasises that the industry will be better off if PR and marketing are not over used.

Filmmaker Karan Johar has called out the film industry's heavy reliance on paid publicity.

In a conversation with The Week, Johar criticised the use of paid PR by Bollywood and emphasised that the industry would be better off if publicity and marketing are not over used.

Responding to an audience's question about the publicity tactics used by actors, such as Janhvi Kapoor and Shanaya Kapoor, Johar said, "I think Bollywood should stop doing PR. It will be much better. They should let their achievement speak for itself because unfortunately all of the PR is now paid PR."

He added, "If you want to say 'You are looking gorgeous', you just have to pay. If you want to say that you are the best actor on planet Earth, you have to pay."

The director said that the industry has gone into overdrive mode and actors should rather let their work speak.

"I think we are in overdrive mode when it comes to PR. So whether they are doing method marketing or not is secondary; they should stop marketing themselves and let their work speak," he continued.

Further into the conversation, Johar clarified that he isn't pointing out Janhvi or Shanaya but addressing all the actors in general.

"I don’t mean the people you are talking about. I mean, everyone in general. Publicity and marketing are very important work categories, and they should be treated accordingly," he said while adding that paid PR has made it difficult to gauge what's connecting with the audience and what's not.

"But now, everything is available at a price, and that is something that could be deeply upsetting because then you really can’t gauge what’s connecting and what’s not. Now, you look at everything like, ‘Are people really liking it or have they been paid to like it?’," Johar added.

Karan Johar's upcoming projects

On the work front, he gave a brief update and teased that Season 9 of his hit talk show Koffee With Karan is likely to premiere around Diwali 2026.

Without giving much details, Johar also revealed that his 2006's romantic drama Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna is being adapted into a long format series.