Karan Johar Reveals Akshay Kumar's Punjabi Negotiation Tactics; Says 'When He Doesn’t Want...'

Karan Johar, who recently released Nadaaniyan starring Ibrahim Ali Khan and Khushi Kapoor, is now all set to enthrall audiences with his first Punjabi movie under his Dharma banner. The director recently attended the trailer launch of Gippy Grewal’s Akaal, which will be released in cinemas on April 10 in both Hindi and Punjabi. During the event, he reminisced about his childhood days in the industry, when most directors and producers were Punjabi. He highlighted how, even today, actors like Akshay Kumar switch to Punjabi while negotiating.

Karan Johar shared an interesting personal anecdote about his father conversing in Punjabi with distributors while his mother spoke Sindhi, which sometimes left him confused. During a media interaction at the trailer launch of Akaal, he said, "All the producers and directors came from Punjab. Whether it was Manmohan Desai’s set, Yash Chopra’s set, or J Om Prakash’s set, everyone used to speak in Punjabi. The hero was Punjabi. The heroine was South Indian. It was almost like a template." He also recalled how his father, Yash Chopra, used to speak in Punjabi, adding, "My father used to speak to the distributors in Punjabi in the morning. I knew Punjabi very well, but my problem was when my mother woke up and started speaking in Sindhi. That’s when I got confused. I completely understand Punjabi."

Revealing how Akshay Kumar talks in Punjabi during negotiations when he doesn't want people to understand what he is saying, the director of Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani added, “Even today, when Apoorva Mehta is the main negotiator and Akshay Kumar doesn’t want Apoorva to know what he wants to say, he talks to me in Punjabi (laughs)."

Talking about his upcoming production venture, which is his first Punjabi film, Akaal is written and directed by Gippy Grewal, who also stars in the film. It is the first Punjabi film to be presented in Hindi on such a massive scale. Produced by Karan Johar, Adar Poonawalla, Apoorva Mehta, Bhumika Tewari, Gippy Grewal, and Ravneet Kaur Grewal, it will be presented by Karan Johar and Apoorva Mehta’s Dharma Productions. The film is slated for release on April 10, 2025.