A close friend of Shahrukh Khan, he assisted Yash Chopra's Yash Raj Films during the early days of his career, making his directorial debut with the mega-hit Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998). He also had a popular chat show named "Koffee with Karan" (2004) The success of "KKHH" made him one of the most high-profile directors in the Hindi-language Mumbai Film industry, popularly known as Bollywood. Also a close friend of Aditya Chopra, he has been a creative member of Yash Raj productions such as Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995), Veer-Zaara (2004), Dil To Pagal Hai (1997), and Mohabbatein (2000). Johar's success has guaranteed him worldwide distribution of his production company, Dharma Productions, for many years to come.