Mumbai

Filmmaker Karan Johar on Friday said he feels immensely proud that his home production Dhadak 2 has been screened at several Ivy League universities in the United States, marking a rare crossover of mainstream Hindi cinema into global academic spaces.

Starring Siddhant Chaturvedi and Triptii Dimri, the 2025 romance drama is directed by Shazia Iqbal. The film has drawn praise for its layered exploration of caste discrimination and how deeply it permeates everyday life, told through the friendship and love story of two law students.

With its transition from cinema halls to university auditoriums, the film has sparked critical discussions on contemporary Indian cinema and social stratification.

Johar, who produced the film under the banner of Dharma Productions, shared his thoughts on Instagram Stories, reflecting on the international response to the film.

“‘Dhadak 2’ being screened at all the Ivy League universities is such a great moment of pride for us. The love and respect it has garnered over the past few months has been overwhelming. I give all credit to the immensely talented Shazia Iqbal for being such an important voice and storyteller. She is the soul of our film,” Johar wrote.

According to media reports, the film has already been screened at Yale University’s Luce Hall by the Department of Political Science and at Brown University’s Watson School of International and Public Affairs. Upcoming screenings are scheduled at Columbia University and Princeton University.

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The Hindi-language film is a remake of director Mari Selvaraj’s acclaimed Tamil movie Pariyerum Perumal.