What Really Happened to Karan Johar’s Dream Film ‘Takht’?
In 2019, filmmaker Karan Johar announced a grand period drama called ‘Takht’. The movie was based on the power struggle between two royal brothers during the Mughal Empire—Aurangzeb (Alamgir) and Dara Shikoh—at the end of Emperor Shah Jahan’s reign.
Karan Johar had described it as “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham set in the medieval era.” The film was supposed to be one of Bollywood’s biggest projects, with a massive budget of ₹250 crore and an all-star cast.
Star Cast and Roles
The cast included:
- Anil Kapoor as Shah Jahan
- Vicky Kaushal as Aurangzeb
- Ranveer Singh as Dara Shikoh
- Kareena Kapoor Khan as Princess Jahanara
- Bhumi Pednekar as Princess Roshanara
- Alia Bhatt as Dilras Banu, Aurangzeb’s wife
- Janhvi Kapoor as Nadira, Dara’s wife
Why Was It Such a Big Deal?
At the time of its announcement, Takht was called the most expensive Bollywood film ever made. Its budget of ₹250 crore was even higher than Thugs of Hindostan (₹220 crore), which held the record back then. It was expected to be bigger than Baahubali Part 1 (₹180 crore) and Pushpa: The Rise (₹100 crore).
COVID-19 Stopped the Shoot
The film was supposed to start shooting in March 2020, and its release date was planned for December 2021. But then came the COVID-19 pandemic, which shut down all film shoots.
Karan Johar once shared in an interview:
“That film is very close to my heart. I had spent two and a half years preparing it. We were ready to start shooting on April 24. But then in March, the pandemic hit us. The film was so grand that we needed 1000 workers on set every day.” (Also read: Emotional Abuse, Divorce Drama & Hidden Truths: Ravi Mohan’s Explosive Statement on Aarti)
Why ‘Takht’ Was Never Made
In June 2020, after Sushant Singh Rajput’s death, a massive backlash against Bollywood began, especially targeting nepotism. Karan Johar became the face of this debate, and many star kids were being trolled online.
Since Takht had three star kids in lead roles, it became an easy target for criticism.
After the lockdown ended and things slowly returned to normal, Karan Johar still did not restart Takht. Instead, he stayed silent for some time, even quitting Twitter.
In 2021, he announced a new film called “Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani”, and ‘Takht’ was quietly shelved.
Also read: Anil Kapoor Teams Up with Shah Rukh Khan in ‘King’ – Fans Can’t Keep Calm.