Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; April 24, 2018)

After a lukewarm reception to the fifth season of Koffee With Karan — criticised for serving as a promotional platform for films instead of having celebrities engage in uninhibited banter — the team behind Karan Johar’s chat show is working on revising the content of season six.

Barring the engaging Rapid Fire, which demands bit-sized controversial answers from guests, the unit is working on eliminating all existing rounds from the upcoming series. We hear five new game ideas are currently being designed. One among them will be a truth-or-dare round. “We hope the segment encourages revelations that are interesting and controversial. That is what the show was originally celebrated for,” says a source from the unit.

The developments come after the crew reflected upon the misses in the last season. “We knew we encountered certain problems in season five, and brainstormed on a few new concepts. This time, the show will be spicier. Karan has decided to prevent pairing costars. The trend is convenient, and sometimes important. But he intends to avoid doing so this year.”

Johar tells us that the unit is working hard to chalk out appropriate schedules ahead of the release later this year. “The sixth season will be out this year for sure. Currently, we are working on the timeline. By the end of this month, we will decide when the telecast can take place,” he says.

The source adds that while they start rolling in September, and are immediately eyeing a November telecast, they may advance the airing if the artistes’ line-up is decided by the month end. For now, as has been previously reported, the makers hope newly-wed Anushka Sharma and hubby Virat Kohli can kickstart their show. “Karan is trying to get them on the couch. He is also eyeing Anand Ahuja [Sonam Kapoor’s rumoured beau], apart from looking at welcoming a big international star,” says the source, quick to add that the industry’s leading men, the three Khans — Aamir, Salman and Shah Rukh — “will surely be part of it”. “ But, unlike in the last season, they will be encouraged to talk about their personal lives instead of their movies,” the source promises.