Karan Johar’s ‘Koffee With Karan’ to end after ninth season

Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar's celebrity chat show Koffee With Karan will end with its ninth season, bringing the curtain down on a 22-year run that made it a fixture of India's entertainment industry.

Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar’s celebrity chat show Koffee With Karan will end with its ninth season, bringing the curtain down on a 22-year run that made it a fixture of India’s entertainment industry.

The final season will begin streaming on JioHotstar on Oct. 14. The show, which debuted in 2004, has aired eight seasons and 161 episodes.

The programme has featured some of India’s biggest film stars and sports personalities, with Johar asking guests about their friendships, romances, marriages and careers.

“Koffee With Karan has been such a large part of my identity in the entertainment industry… I still can’t believe it’s been 22 years and now this will be my ninth season,” Johar said, according to Variety.

Johar said he had enjoyed hosting the programme but wanted to devote more time to filmmaking.

“I want to spend the next decade of my life directing more movies… telling many more stories… so with a heavy heart I am making this season my last,” he said.

The first episode in 2004 featured Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol. The inaugural season also included Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

The show has also faced controversy. In 2019, an episode featuring Indian cricketers Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul was removed from the Hotstar platform after remarks made by Pandya about women prompted widespread criticism.

Pandya and Rahul were suspended by the Board of Control for Cricket in India while the controversy was investigated. The suspensions were later lifted.

In 2022, Johar briefly suggested on social media that the show would not return, but later clarified that it was moving from television to streaming on Hotstar.

Announcing the final season, Johar said it would be his last time hosting the programme, describing the decision as “emotional and personal”.

“This will be the last time I will be on a couch that has been synonymous with conversations, candour and well… controversies,” he said, adding that he hoped the show’s “legacy of love” would continue.