Mumbai: As much as it delivered a solid dose of entertainment, IIFA stage this time was also a platform to bury the hatchet, and work in collaboration.
Bollywood multi-hyphenate Karan Johar, and actor Kartik Aaryan, who were once at loggerheads, looked much more at ease, and in their elements on the IIFA stage, so what if they roasted each other in a rap battle? And hey, it’s not like Karan Johar is new to roasting.
A promo from the broadcast of the IIFA awards ceremony, which was held in Jaipur, shows the two gentlemen squaring off in a rap battle.
With Karan Johar and Kartik Aaryan as hosts, expect the unexpected and a whole lot of fun!
Tune in now to watch them own the stage at the NEXA IIFA Awards 2025, only on ZEE TV!
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— IIFA (@IIFA) March 16, 2025
While the monotone beat for the rap battle was obnoxious, and the lyrical flow was ludicrous, the content of the rap battle more or less worked. Both KJo and Kartik called each other’s films out, particularly those which were massive commercial disasters born from the throes of passion and tall ambitions.
If KJo has ‘Kalank’ holding a dark spot in his filmography, Kartik has ‘Shehzada’, a remake of the Allu Arjun-starrer ‘Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo’, which snatched away his chance of officially reserving the title of ‘The crown prince of Bollywood’. While the battle got intense in the middle, eventually not just peace prevailed but it also threw the spotlight on their new collaboration ‘Tu Meri Main Tera, Main Tera Tu Meri’.
The film was announced in December last year, and has been in the news as it marks a significant moment since Karan Johar and Kartik Aaryan team up for the first time after a previously planned project did not materialise.
The fallout between Kartik and Karan became one of the most talked-about controversies in the industry, especially after their much-anticipated film ‘Dostana 2’ was shelved. However, after a period of tension and distance, the two decided to reconcile and collaborate on a new project.