Karan Johar Reflects on the Box Office Failure of Jigra

Alia Bhatt’s Jigra, released in 2024, failed to make a mark at the box office despite high expectations. Nearly a year later, producer Karan Johar has addressed the film’s reception, sharing his thoughts in an interview with Suchin Mehrotra.

According to Johar, the team had complete faith in director Vasan Bala’s vision and storytelling approach. “Vasan’s meta-referencing, quirks and style of absolutely breaking the grammar of filmmaking, such things may not always land, right? But should he stop making films like this because of that? No! He must always make films that he believes in.”

Johar acknowledged the emotional impact of the film’s underperformance. “‘Yes, we were disappointed, dejected and sad. But we are all very proud of that film, even today. Even now, we have a group comprising Vasan, me and Alia. Vasan has a brilliant self-deprecating sense of humour. He will make fun of himself in the most unique way possible. We still send messages on that group. Like I will go and chat about this. I do believe that a decade or two later, we will reference Jigra as something that broke ground, something that Alia was brave to do, something that Vasan was brave to contribute to and the rest of us were so brave to do. I am very proud of Jigra. There are films that I am not proud of that have failed… this film may have failed at the box office but for me it is a success story and I will maintain it.’”

The action-drama revolved around a gripping prison-break narrative, exploring the extent a sister would go to protect her brother. Backed by Dharma Productions, Jigra hit theatres on October 11, 2024.