Karan Johar: I'm trying very hard to keep my kids away from the paparazzi

He’s a director, producer, actor, talent show judge, TV show host, and an RJ. It’s difficult to label Karan Johar because he does it all with ease, passion and dedication. As Koffee With Karan goes on air today, the filmmaker is busy judging the fifth season of India’s Got Talent. Simultaneously, work on the projects helmed by his production house moves ahead smoothly. On the home front, he gets a lot of help from his mother, Hiroo, to look after his children — Yash and Roohi. In the midst of his busy schedule, the maverick personality spoke to After Hrs about juggling his various duties. Over to him...

You are dabbling in many things — production, direction, chat show, radio show, acting, TV shows, etc...

Many people have told me I’m taking too much of everyone’s screen time. Some might also feel I’m the Jack of all trades, master of none (laughs). There are two ways of looking at it. But I do everything with all my heart.

Kareena Kapoor Khan had joked that you are seen on every channel. What does your mother think of your schedule?

I think, my mother has given up on me. She’s honestly fed up of seeing me run around like a headless chicken. One day, I’m shooting for a radio show, on another, I’m filming my talk show or the talent hunt. And, obviously, there are meetings happening for my film. She asks me, ‘Are there two of you? Am I not aware that I have another son? What’s going on?’ In between all this, I have to make time for my babies, too.

Does it become difficult to juggle all these responsibilities?

No, luckily, all of it has come together very well. Whether it’s my radio show or India’s Got Talent or Koffee With Karan, it follows from one to the other. But I enjoy this craziness. If you give me a day where I have nothing to do, I’d go mad. I don’t understand the concept of a holiday. For me, my work is my holiday.

And the numbers are proof — you are doing exceedingly well in every department...

Everything that I do, I want to give it my all. I was trained to do that ever since I was a child. I don’t care if I’m number one, two or three. But if there’s a list, I want to be on it (smiles). I have FOMO (fear of missing out) about work. I feel I need to be everywhere. It’s a bit of a disorder, actually (laughs), I have to kind of address it eventually because one’s not growing any younger.

You don’t seem to have any qualms about being yourself on the small screen?

I don’t know how to fake it after a point. People do tell me that I’m a filmmaker and I should be serious. But I gave up on that a long time ago. If someone wants me to dance and people think I’m not meant to do it because I’m a director, I don’t care about it. I will still dance and if I look stupid doing it, it’s fine. Others can judge me, misjudge me or enjoy it. One day, on Jhalak Dikkhla Jaa when I broke out into a dance, everyone got a heart attack. That time, everyone was looking at me as if I’ve gone mad. But I wanted to promote Student Of The Year (2012). Nobody knew Sidharth (Malhotra), Varun (Dhawan) or Alia (Bhatt), and I danced on Radha, so that people noticed it.

In what ways do you make sure you are there for every milestone in your kids’ lives, despite the strenuous schedules?

My mother and I are doing it together. My mom is a mother-cum-grandparent-cum-obsessive-grandparent (laughs). She’s in their nursery 24x7. It’s come to a point that she’s become their official nanny or nurse. She’s a helicopter grandma and she does everything amazingly. I’m the supervisor who gets all the information on them. Every hour, I get an update, which can be a video or pictures of the two kids. When she’s not around and I’m there, I have to keep her posted. We both have nanny cams attached to our phones. In fact, my mother has stopped watching Bigg Boss and now is watching our own reality show in my children’s nursery. So yes, Bigg Boss has been officially replaced by the nanny cam in my house.

How do you deal with the growing paparazzi culture where your children are concerned?

As a parent, I’m trying to keep my kids away from what they don’t deserve. Why are their pictures being clicked? Only because they are my children? That’s why, they aren’t really out and about. I’m trying very hard to avoid it. I was photographed only when I achieved something. Before that, nobody knew me and my father, too, wasn’t in the limelight like that. I’m trying to give them a little bit of a sense of normalcy in their existence. But unfortunately, I can only try up to a point.