From Karan Johar Fallout To Arjun Kapoor’s Hamper Revenge: Biggest Moments From Varun, Janhvi’s ‘KWK 9’ Episode
From Karan Johar’s fallout with his guests to Janhvi Kapoor and Varun Dhawan’s candid confessions and Arjun Kapoor’s hamper revenge, revisit 20 memorable moments from the episode.
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Old grudges have a way of resurfacing on Karan Johar’s couch. This time, even the host had some explaining to do. Add two outspoken co-stars, a brother with a long memory and a highly coveted hamper, and the ingredients for a memorable ‘Koffee With Karan’ episode were all there. After Salman Khan’s season opener and Vijay Deverakonda and Rashmika Mandanna’s appearance, Season 9 welcomed Varun Dhawan and Janhvi Kapoor for its third episode.
Streaming on JioHotstar from October 28, the episode brought the ‘Bawaal’ and ‘Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari’ pair together, with Arjun Kapoor arriving later to judge their rapid-fire round.
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The conversation moved from bruised friendships and difficult professional choices to fatherhood, relationship plans and a phone call that produced an entirely unexpected revelation. Here are the moments that made this visit to the Koffee couch worth talking about.
1. Karan Johar Admits He Stopped Talking To Both His Guests
The biggest relationship drama initially involved the host himself. Karan acknowledged that he had stopped answering Varun’s calls and messages after a release-date disagreement. Varun apparently made matters worse by telling him to “stop acting like a child”. Karan felt a boundary had been crossed; Varun couldn’t understand why their closeness didn’t allow that level of bluntness.
Janhvi’s estrangement was discussed separately, with both describing the hurt as something resembling a breakup. She said she gained six kilos while they weren’t speaking and began losing weight after they reconciled. Varun claimed credit for encouraging her to attend Karan’s birthday celebration, where she and Karan finally met, cried and patched things up.
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2. Janhvi Addresses Peddi Controversy Head-On
The episode’s most serious discussion concerned ‘Peddi’, directed by Buchi Babu Sana and starring Ram Charan alongside Janhvi. Addressing criticism of her character Achiyamma’s presentation, she acknowledged that aspects of the film involved problematic objectification and troubling ideas about consent.
Janhvi questioned whether she should have challenged those choices more forcefully. While explaining the pressure actors can feel to follow a director’s instructions, she also acknowledged that her privilege gave her greater power to object. She said she had expressed discomfort during filming and post-production, describing it as “a violating experience in a way”. Her hope was that the controversy would make filmmakers reconsider how they present female leads.
3. Chasing A Blockbuster Made Janhvi Lose Her Original Clarity
Janhvi admitted that the pressure to deliver a major commercial hit had started influencing how she viewed her career. When Karan asked about the blockbuster moment that might take her to the next level, she acknowledged wanting that breakthrough. But she also recognised how many ingredients of a successful film lie outside an actor’s control. Somewhere in that pursuit, she felt she had lost the clarity with which she entered the industry.
Looking back at ‘Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl’, ‘Mili’ and ‘Good Luck Jerry’, Janhvi explained that their smaller reach and greater risks still came with a sense of self-respect. That feeling now mattered deeply to her.
4. Janhvi Confirms Shikhar Pahariya Is Her Partner
Karan asked a direct question about Shikhar, and Janhvi gave a direct answer. She confirmed they were dating and questioned the effort involved in tiptoeing around a relationship people already knew about. She still wanted some privacy, but no longer seemed interested in performing elaborate secrecy.
As for marriage, her answer was that it wasn’t happening for another two to three years. That was her stated outlook, rather than a wedding announcement. She also spoke about how she and Shikhar had remained connected through different phases of their lives, including periods when they were involved with other people.
5. Shikhar Quietly Put His Studies On Hold After Sridevi’s Death
One of the episode’s most moving stories concerned something Janhvi only discovered later. When Sridevi died in 2018, Shikhar was studying in London. According to Janhvi, he took roughly half a semester off and returned to Mumbai.
He subsequently stayed at a friend’s house in Juhu for a month so he could be nearby if she needed him. Janhvi explained that they weren’t meeting every day; the significance lay in his quietly making himself available.
6. A Turbulent Flight Made Varun A Shikhar Fan Too
Varun had his own reason to praise Janhvi’s boyfriend. Recalling a flight with the couple, he described himself and Janhvi becoming increasingly frightened by turbulence while Shikhar remained reassuringly calm.
Shikhar ended up holding both their hands and comforting them. Varun joked about liking him even more than Janhvi after getting to know him. The anecdote briefly turned the relationship discussion into the story of two nervous passengers and their remarkably composed companion. Shikhar wasn’t on the couch, but he certainly emerged with some glowing testimonials.
7. Varun Regrets His Old Box-Office Boast
Karan revisited Varun’s earlier confidence about his box-office record. During a 2018 appearance, the actor had declined to swap careers with Ranbir Kapoor or Ranveer Singh, pointing to their failures while stressing his own successful run.
Looking back, Varun suggested that boasting about his hits might have jinxed him. He now preferred to let the work do the talking. His example of someone who handles the industry’s unpredictable fortunes well was Ajay Devgn, whom he praised for treating people consistently through success and failure. The younger Varun had brought the swagger; the current one appeared much less interested in keeping score.
8. ‘Student Of The Year’ Trio Are Now Parents To Daughters
Karan’s observation about his former debutants brought a sweet moment of nostalgia: Varun, Alia Bhatt and Sidharth Malhotra are all now parents to daughters.
Varun recalled Alia talking about wanting children when she was around 19, during their ‘Student Of The Year’ days. He had expected her to become a parent first, but imagined Sidharth would follow before him. Years after their fictional campus competition, the conversation had moved to their children and family lives. For viewers who remember those early interviews, that was quite a passage of time to take in.
9. Ranbir’s Parenting Impresses Varun, While Lara Controls The Playlist
Varun was full of admiration for Ranbir Kapoor’s relationship with Raha, joking that seeing him as a father made him feel inadequate by comparison. Janhvi promptly reminded Varun that he was a good father too.
His own parenting battles, he explained, currently centre on music. Two-year-old Lara is obsessed with Michael Jackson’s ‘Beat It’ and wants to hear it repeatedly – “like 68 times”, according to her father’s amused account. Varun’s argument was simply that Michael Jackson had other songs. He also described himself and Natasha Dalal as practically “fielders” during their energetic daughter’s mornings.
10. Arjun Kapoor Arrives To Complicate The Competition
Arjun Kapoor joined later as the special rapid-fire judge, bringing both his friendship with Varun and his sibling equation with Janhvi into play. He received a mock lifetime-achievement tribute.
Varun wasted little time putting him to work. Asked whose advice he would take on his career and marriage, he chose Arjun for both. Anyone expecting an impartial, interruption-free judging process had clearly underestimated the friendships involved.
11. Varun’s Alibaug Teasing Puts Arjun In The Spotlight
During a discussion about celebrity hall passes, Varun shifted the attention to Arjun, suggesting that he had someone in his life. He also teased him about his visits to Alibaug.
Arjun pushed back, questioning the assumptions Varun was making from meetings and photographs. The exchange produced plenty of curiosity, but it did not amount to Arjun confirming a relationship. What it did establish was that inviting a close friend onto a celebrity chat show comes with the possibility of becoming the subject of the questions yourself.
12. Janhvi’s Dating Advice For Veer Pahariya Comes With A Concert Warning
Asked what dating advice she would give Veer Pahariya, Janhvi replied: “Never take her to a concert.”
The joke appeared to nod to the widely discussed AP Dhillon concert interaction involving Tara Sutaria and the speculation surrounding her reported breakup with Veer. Janhvi didn’t establish why that relationship ended, and her one-liner shouldn’t be treated as confirmation of those rumours. As a rapid-fire answer, though, it needed very little explanation to get everyone’s attention.
13. Ravi Kishan Gets An Unexpected Fan Club
Janhvi’s pick for reliably entertaining Instagram content was Ravi Kishan. His viral “Naam Ya Daam” exchange immediately supplied another round of laughter, with Varun and Arjun joining in around the “Money follows my brother” punchline.
It was one of those pleasingly specific answers that makes rapid fire entertaining. Between all the questions about relationships, careers and fellow actors, Janhvi had a very clear opinion about whose clips were improving her social-media feed.
14. Varun Picks Ranveer’s ‘Dhurandhar’ And Imagines A Sidharth Reunion
Asked to choose the more impactful performance between Ranbir’s ‘Animal’ and Ranveer’s ‘Dhurandhar’, Varun picked Ranveer.
A separate hypothetical question produced an entirely different kind of casting choice. Asked whom he would star opposite in an Indian version of ‘Heated Rivalry’, he named Sidharth Malhotra, joking about viewers who had wanted their ‘Student Of The Year’ characters to end up together.
15. Samay Raina’s Phone Call Produces A Surprise Girlfriend Remark
Even someone answering the phone could become a talking point. During the ‘Hey Karan, It’s Me’ challenge, Varun called Samay Raina and pretended to be reacting to something shocking he had heard.
Samay casually mentioned that he was spending time with his girlfriend. Once the Koffee connection was revealed, Karan naturally wanted to hear more. No partner was identified during the exchange, so the call offered a remark that sparked curiosity rather than a relationship announcement. Varun had called to earn a game point; the conversation supplied a headline along the way.
16. Shikhar Answers Varun’s Call, Leaving Janhvi With A Complaint
The phone-a-celebrity challenge briefly turned into a test of whose calls Shikhar Pahariya was answering. After missing Janhvi’s call, he picked up Varun’s, giving her co-star an irresistible opportunity to tease her. For someone who had already spent part of the episode praising Shikhar, Varun now had another reason to celebrate their friendship.
Janhvi eventually reached Veer Pahariya and finished the games round one point ahead. So, while Varun enjoyed his moment of triumph over the phone, she had the more useful victory on the scoreboard. There was still another prize to fight for, however: winning the games did not automatically make her the rapid-fire hamper winner.
17. Varun Misses Alia Bhatt Even More As A Friend Than As A Co-Star
Varun’s rapid fire made room for an affectionate admission about Alia Bhatt. Asked to rate how much he missed her as a co-star, he gave it seven out of ten – then raised the score to ten when it came to her as a friend. For fans who enjoy their on-screen pairing, that distinction made the answer especially sweet.
The two began their film careers together with ‘Student Of The Year’, and the episode had already revisited how much their lives had changed since then. This answer added a personal touch to that nostalgia. Amid a round packed with cheeky choices and comparisons, Varun’s fondness for his old friend came through in a refreshingly straightforward way.
18. A Broken Glass And Varun’s Protective Instinct Reveal Their Friendship
Janhvi and Varun’s friendship apparently came with an early warning: handle glassware with care. Janhvi recalled that scheduling difficulties had initially complicated her participation in ‘Bawaal’. Once her dates finally worked out, she was so excited to see Varun at a party that she broke the drinking glass in her hand. Varun jokingly remembered wondering what he had signed up for.
The conversation then became more affectionate. Varun said he had felt protective of Janhvi from the beginning, but getting to know her and discussing difficult personal subjects helped him recognise her emotional strength. He even began taking advice from her. The anecdote captured both sides of their equation: the chaotic co-stars who can laugh at each other and the friends who have developed a deeper understanding.
19. Arjun’s Long-Awaited Revenge Comes With An Unexpected Hamper
Arjun had apparently been keeping receipts. Remembering Varun’s earlier appearance with Anil Kapoor, he complained about repeatedly becoming the answer to unflattering questions. With the judging duties now in his hands, the opportunity to return the favour was practically gift-wrapped.
He preferred Janhvi’s rapid-fire performance, finding Varun unusually cautious. But just as the contest seemed to be heading towards a sibling victory, Karan changed the outcome and awarded the hamper to Arjun himself. Neither of the two contestants officially took home the coveted prize. It was a wonderfully ridiculous finish: Varun spent the round answering questions, Janhvi earned the judge’s approval, and the man brought in to assess them walked away with the reward.
20. Karan’s Farewell Turns Into A Hosting Audition – And A Rs 100-Crore Negotiation
With Season 9 presented as Karan’s final season, the conversation also carried a sense of farewell. Varun floated the idea of taking over as host, and Karan suggested that he could do the job. Before anyone could start imagining a permanent change behind the coffee table, though, a hypothetical Rs 100-crore offer produced a quick joke about Karan returning, with the filmmaker saying he would return “faster than light”.
The humour sat alongside a more affectionate goodbye as the guests signed their mugs and visited the Koffee wall. After an episode that revisited estrangement and reconciliation, those closing gestures felt particularly fitting. The couch had provided room for difficult admissions, old friendships and plenty of mischief – and even the farewell couldn’t escape a little bargaining.
