Filmmaker Karan Johar sparked widespread speculation after netizens noticed major changes to his Instagram following list, with the director unfollowing several Bollywood celebrities, close friends and collaborators.
Among those reportedly removed from his following list were Shah Rukh Khan, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Malaika Arora, designer Manish Malhotra, and his Student Of The Year protégés Varun Dhawan, Sidharth Malhotra and Alia Bhatt.
Actor Kartik Aaryan, who is set to headline Karan’s upcoming production “Naagzilla”, was also missing from the filmmaker’s following list.
Even actress Ananya Panday, who recently starred in Karan-backed film Chand Mera Dil, was reportedly unfollowed.
Interestingly, Karan continued to follow Priyanka Chopra, while the remaining notable names on his list included Dharma Productions CEO Apoorva Mehta and business partner Adar Poonawalla.
His account now reportedly follows only around 74 people despite having nearly 17 million followers.
As rumours and online discussions intensified, Karan addressed the controversy through his Instagram Story, clarifying that the move was part of a “digital detox” rather than any personal fallout.
He explained that he wanted to reduce the time and energy he spends on social media and urged people not to turn the matter into “national news”.
“It’s a DIGITAL DETOX!!!! Am unfollowing everyone to reduce my time and energy spent on the gram!!! This can’t be national news for gods sake… please clickbait something else! This is irrelevant!” he wrote.
Karan remains highly active on social media, frequently sharing updates from his personal and professional life, including posts featuring his children Roohi and Yash, along with commentary on Bollywood trends and current topics.
On the work front, Karan recently produced Chand Mera Dil, starring Ananya Panday and Lakshya, which received mixed reviews after its release on May 22. He is next producing Naagzilla, headlined by Kartik Aaryan. (IANS)
