Mumbai: On the birth anniversary of his late father, filmmaker and producer Yash Johar, Karan Johar took a trip down memory lane and remembered the man who continues to hold a special place in his heart.
Sharing cherished memories of his father, Karan recalled his warmth, humour, kindness and the invaluable life lessons he passed on to him. The filmmaker also recalled the emotional final days he spent with Yash Johar and shared the heartfelt conversation they had after one of his chemotherapy sessions. Sharing his rare childhood photos, Karan wrote, “happy birthday papa, miss you everyday.”
The text on the image read, “I remember Kuch Kuch Hota Hai had released and I decided to buy my very first designer jacket in celebration! I proudly walked into the Burberry store and bought the only jacket that fit me (those were my mega plus size days)…I wore it and in my head I was looking rather smashing (the origin of my delusion). My father looked at me perplexed and asked, “Beta…yeh kya hai…?”
“With pride, as if I had conquered Bond Street itself – I said “Papa yeh Burberry hai!” He took a deep Punjabi breath and said “Beta yeh Burberry nahi…Bahut buri hai…” I was shattered and then almost immediately burstout laughing! That was my father – rooted, basic and very very funny…”
Karan Johar added, “He was also my biggest fan. Even when I looked like I had eaten an entire country and was trying for over an hour to zip myself into very stretched pants, he would say “puppy fat hai…chala jayega…” And then on many occasions he would say, “Tu itna handsome hai – hero ban ja! Horse riding kyun nahi seekhta?!”Can you imagine me horse riding on Juhu beach??? Or being a mainstream hero??? My mother always took me aside after papa’s hyper raja beta delusions and bought me back to earth by saying and I quote, “Son you cannot be infront of the camera and certainly not on a horse.”
“But my father was my hero. His values, his kindness, his unmatched humility and his ability to be so selfless that it almost seemed inhuman. In his last days he told me post his chemo session, “I don’t want to leave mom and you but I feel like I am going to…Just promise me you will always be kind…success means nothing if you’re not kind. And take care of mom, like i have.” When he was on the ventilator and I knew there wasn’t a ray of hope – I knew something was stopping him from travelling to the other side, I whispered in his ear, “Papa I will take care of mom like a parent and a child…I promise.”
The note further read, “His levels began to drop and very soon…he went…He was waiting to hear just that…He left a void in my life 22 years ago that I refuse to fill…and I never will…When you lose a parent, you gain a god. He is my god. I pray to him everyday. What a blessing that is for me…. Miss you papa…everyday.”
The first image shows Karan Johar as a child posing with his father, while the next features him posing alongside his father and mother.
Yash Johar passed away on June 26, 2004, in Mumbai at the age of 74 after battling cancer and suffering from a chest infection. He left behind a lasting legacy in the Hindi film industry. He founded Dharma Productions in 1976. Over the years, he produced several acclaimed films, including “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai” and “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.”
(IANS)
