Updated: October 3, 2020 7:14:20 am
Karan Johar’s response came after an old video of a star-studded party at his residence resurfaced on social media. (Photo: Karan Johar / Instagram)
Days after he denied ties to two people questioned by the Office of Narcotics Control in its ongoing investigation into Bollywood stars (one of the two was later arrested), filmmaker Karan Johar announced in a tweet addressed to the prime minister. Narendra Modi on Friday that the “film fraternity” will come together to portray the “courage, values and culture of India” for the celebrations of the 75th anniversary of Independence.
Johar called it “a new beginning of the great age of storytelling to appreciate the soul of the idea called ‘India’”. In a statement posted on Twitter, Johar said: “Taking inspiration from our Honorable Prime Minister, from whom we also seek sustained guidance, we members of the film fraternity are privileged to announce our plan to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Independence.”
Honorable PM @Narendra Modi hee … we are humbled and honored to curate stories of our great nation as we celebrate 75 years of India’s independence @RajkumarHirani @aanandlrai @ektarkapoor #SajidNadiadwala #RohitShetty #DineshVijan #ChangeWithin #IndianFilmFraternity @PMOIndia pic.twitter.com/zypmyRf2Qg
– Karan Johar (@karanjohar) October 2, 2020
The tweet comes a week after Johar, in response to NCB’s ongoing investigation, said that he had never used or promoted narcotic drugs, and that I did not know either of the two people. He had also threatened legal action against “defamatory and malicious” statements and news that “had unnecessarily subjected me, my family, my colleagues and Dharma Productions to hatred, contempt and ridicule.”
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One of the two, Kshitij Prasad, an employee of a sister company to Johar’s production house, Dharma Productions, was later arrested.
Several Bollywood stars, including Deepika Padukone, have so far been questioned in the NCB investigation that was accelerated after the arrest of Rhea Chakaraborty in a case related to the suicide of Sushant Singh Rajput.
In its announcement on Friday, Johar said the film fraternity was “honored and honored to curate stories of our great nation as we celebrate 75 years of India’s independence.” He tagged other filmmakers such as Rajkumar Hirani, Aanand L Rai, Ekta Kapoor, Sajid Nadiadwala, Rohit Shetty, and Dinesh Vijan, as they would be handling projects as part of this initiative.
Johar is also expected to lead some of the projects, which will be part of the #ChangeWithin initiative spearheaded by Hirani to mark the industry’s commitment to ‘nation building’.
Last October, several Bollywood A-listers traveled as a group to Delhi to meet with Prime Minister Modi and agreed to make films that project the life and values of Mahatma Gandhi. The #ChangeWithin initiative was discussed at the meeting. Johar did not participate, but was present at a previous meeting of this type in January 2019. A selfie taken at the meeting with Modi was widely used by the BJP in the months leading up to the elections.
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Friday’s statement read: “It is our stories that make us who we are, and every corner of our country has an empowering story to tell. Last year we made a special film about the 150th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi, directed by Rajkumar Hirani. Followed by several significant initiatives, we have come together to celebrate the spirit of the freedom movement … Many more creative contributors will join us in the times to come. “
Kapoor and Rai retweeted Johar’s tweet. Kapoor, a prominent film and television producer, tweeted: “Thank you, Honorable Prime Minister @narendramodi ji! Just being included in your vision of our country is a great honor. Excited to be in such august company, recreating and curating stories that made our great nation stand tall with hope and integrity! Jai Hind! “
Also tagging Modi in their tweet, Rai wrote that they are “honored and gratified to make our little contributions with stories that exemplify” the “integrity and pride of our great nation as we celebrate 75 years of India’s independence.” Jai Hind “.
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