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Prince William praises filmmaker Karan Johar as 'icon' at Earthshot Prize event

The Prince of Wales met with Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar at the Earthshot Prize ceremony, expressing admiration for his work and acknowledging his role in strengthening the initiative's reach across India.

LSN India · 20 October 2026

Prince William praises filmmaker Karan Johar as 'icon' at Earthshot Prize event

Prince William recently interacted with acclaimed filmmaker Karan Johar at the Earthshot Prize event, where he commended the Bollywood director for his contributions to the environmental initiative. The Prince referred to Johar as an "icon," recognizing both his influence in Indian cinema and his efforts to amplify the Earthshot Prize's message in India.

During their meeting, Prince William highlighted the significance of engaging prominent cultural figures in advancing global environmental causes. Johar's involvement has been instrumental in connecting the Earthshot Prize initiative with Indian audiences, leveraging his substantial platform and influence within the entertainment industry.

The Earthshot Prize, launched to identify and scale solutions to the world's greatest environmental challenges, has emphasized the importance of building partnerships across regions and industries. The interaction between the Prince and the filmmaker underscores the initiative's strategy of collaborating with influential voices to drive awareness and action on sustainability issues across diverse markets in South Asia.

Karl Johar, known for directing iconic Hindi cinema productions, has expanded his role beyond filmmaking in recent years to engage with social and environmental initiatives. His participation in the Earthshot Prize reflects the growing trend of entertainment industry leaders lending their platforms to global development and environmental causes.

Photo: Karan Johar at the IIFA Rocks event at MetLife Stadium, New Jersey, July 2017. Laura Lee Dooley via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0).