"Cricketers are not invited."
Salman Khan is making a comeback on Koffee With Karan for its 9th season.
The makers have confirmed that he will be the first guest on this final edition.
The new season is set to premiere on JioHotstar starting October 14, 2026.
A promo released brought Salman and host Karan Johar together once again.
The promo also set the tone for what viewers can expect in the opening episode.
In it, Karan says: “Yeh season kahi bhi jaa sakta hai.”
This translates to him saying the season could go either way this time around.
Salman replies: “Jaa hi sakta hai. Ye to gaya hai, gaya hai.”
This roughly means he agrees that things have already gone a certain way.
Salman also promised viewers that the wait for the new season would be worth it.
The caption on the post read: “One last time, a koffee with the one & only bhai.”
Salman’s appearance comes as Johar prepares to bring the long-running show to a close.
The Bollywood star last appeared on the show during its fifth season back in 2016.
He had appeared alongside his brothers, Arbaaz Khan and Sohail Khan, during that episode.
That particular episode had also marked the show’s milestone 100th instalment at the time.
It revisited his much-discussed debut appearance from Season 4 of the show.
During that earlier episode, Salman had claimed he was still a virgin at the time.
When Johar brought up the remark again in Season 5, Salman maintained nothing had changed.
The brothers also shared anecdotes from their childhood during that memorable episode.
Other stars joining the upcoming season’s lineup have not been confirmed by makers yet.
In an earlier teaser, Johar addressed the camera directly while taking phone calls on screen.
He confirmed that the show was indeed ending for good this time around.
Johar said: “You heard it right. It is going to be my last season of Koffee With Karan.
“I’m not acting, I’m not pretending. It is my last.”
When a caller suggested the show should have ended a decade earlier, he responded sharply.
He said: “Thank you for asking, but I haven’t invited you for eight seasons, so I don’t plan to invite you for the ninth.”
Johar also addressed ongoing speculation around the guest lineup during the same teaser:
“No, no, no, cricketers are not invited. They are also not coming.”
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This remark directly referenced the fallout from Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul’s 2019 appearance.
That particular episode had triggered widespread backlash and brief suspensions for both cricketers.
He ended the teaser on a lighter note with a cheeky remark of his own.
“Darling, it’s my last season of Koffee With Karan. Why would I do anything controversial?”
Koffee With Karan first premiered back in November 2004 as Johar’s flagship chat show.
The show follows a couch-style format blending industry gossip with personal confessions.
It also features recurring segments, including the popular “Rapid Fire Round” over the years.
Over time, the show moved from television to digital streaming platforms successfully.
It regularly made entertainment headlines and sparked wider conversations within the film industry.
