New Delhi: The new season of Koffee with Karan is fast approaching, and with it, no doubt, will come its own set of iconic pop culture moments.
From Alia Bhatt’s infamous presidential blunder to Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul’s problematic comments, Koffee with Karan has repeatedly shown that a celebrity chat show can have consequences far beyond the couch.
Karan Johar’s show, across eight seasons, has built its reputation on candid conversations, rapid-fire questions and playful jibes. But sometimes, seemingly “innocent” answers have turned into full-blown controversies.
The show, which returns for its ninth and final season on 14 October, has triggered online outrage, caused celebrity rivalries and even created evergreen memes.
Here are five controversies that spilt on KJO’s couch.
1. Name the President of India
One wrong answer turned into one of Bollywood’s most popular memes. Marking her debut appearance on the show in season four, a 20-year-old Alia Bhatt was asked to name the President of India during the rapid-fire round. She confidently answered Prithviraj Chavan instead of Pranab Mukherjee, who held the office at the time. The couch erupted in laughter, and so did the internet.
The clip went viral, with social media users mocking Bhatt’s general knowledge and questioning whether her privileged background had insulated her a bit too much.
This embarrassment has followed the actor for years. A year later, in August 2014, Bhatt teamed up with the comedy group All India Bakchod (AIB) for a video inspired by the incident. Titled “Alia Bhatt – Genius of the Year,” the video follows the actor as she checks into a fictional “mental gym” to fix her intelligence.
Earlier this year, during the promotion of Alpha in Jaipur, an audience member teased her by shouting “President of India.”
“Haven’t you watched Latent?” Bhatt responded, referring to Samay Raina’s Netflix show India’s Got Latent, where she appeared as a guest. However, she later named President Droupadi Murmu, earning applause and cheers from the audience.
The episode remains a reminder of how a harmless rapid-fire question can create a celebrity narrative that is difficult to shake off, even after years in the industry and countless awards.
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2. A cricketing storm
When cricketers Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul appeared together in 2019 for season six, it perhaps created the biggest controversy the Koffee couch has ever witnessed. It was the first time any cricketer had walked onto Johar’s chat show, and it soon turned into the last as well.
Pandya’s comments about his relationships with women, including comments widely condemned as sexist and misogynistic, caused heavy criticism and backlash. The cricketer spoke about his sexual experiences and how openly he discussed them with his parents.
Some of his comments were criticised for objectifying women, while Rahul’s comparatively held-back responses did little to prevent the controversy from engulfing both players.
The fallout extended well beyond social media. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) suspended both cricketers and ordered them to return from India’s tour of Australia pending an inquiry. Pandya apologised publicly, saying the nature of the show had carried him away.
The suspensions were eventually lifted, and the players were fined Rs 20 lakh each by the BCCI ombudsman. This also sent out a message that Koffee with Karan could have consequences in professional sport, making this far more than just a celebrity controversy.
3. Ranbir Kapoor? Endorse a condom brand
In 2010, during season three of Koffee with Karan, Deepika Padukone and Sonam Kapoor appeared together on the couch for their debut. It wasn’t the newcomers’ looks or movies, but their unfiltered comments on Padukone’s ex-partner, Ranbir Kapoor, that made it the most talked-about episode.
When asked what Ranbir should endorse, Padukone suggested a condom brand, a statement that quickly became a headline. The two actors also questioned his boyfriend skills, with Sonam joining in on the teasing.
The statements reportedly upset Ranbir’s parents, veteran actors Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Kapoor. Years later, Karan Johar recalled that he had to step in to manage the fallout, acknowledging that the conversation had gone further than he anticipated.
The controversy did not end with the episode. Ranbir later described the show as having brought a barrage of negativity into his life, while Sonam said the incident had affected her relationship with him. The two made their debut together with Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s romantic drama Sawariya in 2007.
Padukone, however, maintained that the episode had not caused a personal issue between her and Ranbir. The two later collaborated in Ayan Mukerji’s Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013).
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4. ‘Flag bearer of nepotism’
Karan Johar has time and again been blamed for endorsing nepotism in the film industry. But before 2017, it was said in a hush-hush manner. It was on his very Koffee couch that Johar was accused of doing so.
Kangana Ranaut appeared on the couch with Saif Ali Khan in season five and confronted Johar over Bollywood’s preference for star kids. Ranaut had said that if she were ever to have a biopic, KJo would fit the role of the villain. She even called him the “flag bearer of nepotism” and accused him of running a “movie mafia”.
Ranaut questioned the opportunities available to outsiders and accused Johar of favouring actors from established film families. Her comments left Johar visibly shocked.
The filmmaker later responded to the criticism in public discussions, and the term “nepotism” became a recurring word in conversations about Bollywood.
But Johar, too, kept the controversy going by revisiting the topic of nepotism again and again in his talk show.
5. Open relationship drama
The opening episode of season eight caused a major online debate when Deepika Padukone spoke candidly about the early stages of her relationship with her now-husband, Ranveer Singh. Her comments about dating without immediate commitment prompted intense scrutiny around their relationship.
Padukone explained that she wanted to remain single after previous difficult relationships and was initially reluctant to commit. She said that while she and Singh were initially getting to know each other, they were technically free to see other people. However, they kept returning to one another. She eventually committed after he proposed.
Some viewers interpreted her remarks as a revelation that the couple had been in an open relationship. And it soon became a talking point, prompting supporters to question why a woman’s dating history attracted such intense judgment and public debate.
(Edited by Insha Jalil Waziri)