Totally dependent on the casting director for the choices in Ghost Stories, says Karan Johar

After moderating a conversation between actresses Kareena Kapoor Khan and Alia Bhatt at the Movie Mela event held before the 21st Mumbai Film Festival, filmmaker Karan Johar was asked a question about the aspiring talent who seek to break through in the industry.

“I think there used to be a myth really that you have to get in touch via via people,” Johar said. “I think the process has been streamlined in the last five or six years. We have legit casting directors that meet a lot of talent. We have multiple casting directors who actually give you opportunities on various platforms, be it film, digital or television.

“For somebody like me, I recently cast a short film that I’m directing for Netflix. It’s part of the anthology that I do. I was actually totally dependent on the casting director for all the choices in that. I didn’t know anyone personally. I worked with an entire crew of about seven or eight new actors. I didn’t know them, they didn’t know me. I went through the casting director process. I think all that is changing,” he said.

Artistes Avinash Tiwary and Mrunal Thakur are part of the cast of the short film being directed by Johar for the Ghost Stories anthology which will be streamed next year on Netflix.

Johar’s next feature film as director will be the historical epic Takht (2020). He revealed at the Movie Mela that even though the two actresses Kapoor and Bhatt will star in the period film, they won’t share any screen space.