‘Koffee With Karan’ is a celebration of narcissism

Karan Johar

Each episode of Karan Johar’s (KJo) Koffee with Karan Season 7 has been about salivating, and objectifying the male domain with remarkable ease. So much so for being progressive at 50, Mr Johar.

Think about it. The Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt episode brought in silly chatter from the dreamy-eyed, newly-minted bride. Ranveer, in his almost navel-stroking, unbuttoned shirt, smothered the jury (where do they come from in that odd shot?!) with his trademark over-the-top machismo.

Of course, Ranveer then proceeded to tom-tom his booty, parading and mimicking other stars. The thrust of the Sara Ali Khan and Janhvi Kapoor session was the cheesy squabble over the latest beefcake in Bollywood, Telugu superstar Vijay Deverakonda. Who’s dating whom and who wants to sleep with whom seemed to be the crux of the script, even as the dimwits blubbered.

Of course, Vijay arrived an episode later, with signature lazy, laconic, Liger-esque ease in his sexy drawl, wowing the natives. We can’t say the same about the barely-there neon number in Ananya Pandey, drooling all over him. Why do women have to come across as bimbettes?

The cheese talk was played again, and the sex talk amped up further. The guy walks away with it all, including the hamper, in almost every episode. From Ranveer to Vijay to Akshay Kumar — who appeared with the talk-of-the-town, Samantha Ruth Prabhu. She’s done innumerable movies but what’s gained maximum traction for her is the recent chartbuster, the 'Pushpa' item number 'Oo Anatava', and her cryptic split from actor Naga Chaitanya.

Of course, Johar snooped and sleuthed around her not-so-amicable divorce, persistently, for bits of juicy gossip fodder. He then turned magically the next moment to the widely revered epitome of monogamy, Akshay Kumar.

That was an uncool cut on the show just like the handling of the broken family and no-dad-around situation for Sara Ali Khan. There was a sudden stab in the warm up to Janhvi Kapoor on her well-rounded family support system. Perhaps KJo forgot that Sridevi chose to be involved with a married man, and her girls bonded with their step siblings just recently, over her unfortunate demise.

While there is nothing much to write home about, so far, of the women and the grey matter they bring to the show, Samantha stands out as a candid expression of wit and intelligence in categorically and rightly stating that KJo, has, over the years, perpetuated the sunshine belief that marriage is 'Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham' whereas in reality it is 'KGF'. Her timely rejoinder of what she, as a female actor draws in for a complete film, is what a male actor like Akshay Kumar draws in a day, was on point. Note, there was no contesting her claim.

A cringe fest attracting trolls and trite with relish, 'Koffee With Karan' so far has degenerated effectively into an idle gossip loop, celebrating narcissism and nepotism-bias to another level.