When we talk about Bollywood, one name that instantly pops into our minds, apart from the big B-Town actors, is Karan Johar. Not just a director, Karan is also known for his superhit talk show Koffee with Karan, where he gets celebrities to spill some of the most entertaining Bollywood secrets. But did you know that long before he became one of the most powerful names in Indian cinema, Karan Johar was actually a child actor? Yes, before he ruled Bollywood with blockbuster films and gossip, he was just a teenager making his debut on Doordarshan.
Karan Johar’s forgotten debut on Doordarshan
In 1989, long before OTT or mega-budget web series, India’s national channel Doordarshan aired a science-fiction show called Indradhanush. Directed by Aanand Mahendroo, the show ran for just 13 episodes, but it remains one of DD’s most ambitious and imaginative projects. The story is about a group of kids who build a computer, only to discover it hosts an alien prince from the Andromeda Galaxy. When one of the kids is kidnapped, they go on exciting time-travel adventures.
Among the young cast was a teenage Karan Johar, who played one of the lead kids. The show also had Jitendra Rajpal, Ameesha Jhaveri, and Sagar Arya, along with actors Vishal Singh and Akshay Anand, who went on to have successful television careers later. The cast also had veteran actors like Girish Karnad and Vikram Gokhale, who appeared in key roles. Interestingly, filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker and actor Urmila Matondkar also made brief appearances in the show.
Karan Johar’s journey at RK Studios
Indradhanush was shot at the iconic RK Studios in Mumbai, the same place where some of Bollywood’s greatest films were made by Raj Kapoor. For a teenage Karan, being on that set was nothing short of magical.
Years later, in 2020, Karan took to X (then Twitter) to share his memories about that experience. He wrote, “RK Studios is more than a mega institution of Indian cinema, it has also shaped many personal memories for me. My fondest memory wasn’t as a director but as an actor! I was 15 and shooting for a TV serial called Indradhanush which was being filmed there. I remember standing at the gate of RK Studios, excited to get on set and walk through the corridors where the great Raj Kapoor created some of the most memorable films.”
Karan Johar: From child actor to blockbuster filmmaker
After Indradhanush, Karan briefly appeared as Shah Rukh Khan’s friend in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. But his heart was always behind the camera. He started working as assistant director to Aditya Chopra on DDLJ before making his own directorial debut in 1998 with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, and Rani Mukerji.
The rest, as they say, is history. From Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham and My Name Is Khan, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, to Rocky aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, Karan went on to become one of India’s most successful and richest filmmakers.
Though he did return to acting decades later, playing a villain in Anurag Kashyap’s Bombay Velvet (2015) with Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharma. But his true legacy lies in storytelling, not performance.