4 Mar – Disha Patani recently defended filmmaker Karan Johar amid continuous claims that the "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" director keeps glorifying "nepotism babies". The actress, who spoke to the media at the "Yodha" trailer launch event recently, shared that she was just a mere model when Karan discovered her at 18.
"If I am an actress today, it is also because of Karan Johar; because he was the one who actually spotted me when I was modelling. I was just 18. I feel like I wouldn't have been here, if he hadn't spotted me at that time. So when people say whatever... I am an outsider. So I feel like this is the opportunity that he gave me," she said. It is noted that Disha's first Hindi movie was the 2016 biopic, "MS Dhoni: The Untold Story".
Meanwhile, Karan dismissed the idea that he only works with children of Bollywood stars, saying, "[Filmmaker] Shashank Khaitan is our brand ambassador of an outsider. Sagar and Pushkar (directors of "Yodha") represent outsiders. So, the next time anyone trolls us, they should look at Yodha because the lead is also an outsider. So are Raashii and Disha. Hence, I think I deserve another crown now. Whoever may have tried to behead me, watch out for Yodha!" It is noted that Karan has been slammed in the past for making most of his films with children of Bollywood royalties like Alia Bhatt (daughter of producer Mahesh Bhatt), Janhvi Kapoor (daughter of producer Boney Kapoor), and Sara Ali Khan (daughter of Saif Ali Khan) among others.