Karan Johar was teased for his voice as a child

Director Karan Johar may have successfully branched out as a TV and awards show host but he was teased at school for his feminine sounding voice and even took classes to improve his baritone.

The director says, in retrospect, he would not change how he sounded as a child.

"When I was a child, there were many 'Hichki' moments. The one that I wouldn't have changed today, is that I had a very girlish voice when I was a child. I had a very squeaky voice and I used to get teased a lot," Johar told Rani Mukerji.

The director said he found a teacher who helped instill confidence in him about his voice.

"At those times, societal pressures were such that it (my voice) was a big 'hichki'. I felt lesser and I was made to feel abnormal. And I felt like I needed to overcome this to be the person that I wanted to be. But today, times are different and we are all more evolved. I hope that if this kind of a hiccup comes in people's lives that they shouldn't change their core persona. But I did," he added.

Mukerji plays the role of an aspiring teacher with Tourette syndrome in her new film "Hichki".

Directed by Siddharth P Malhotra and produced by Maneesh Sharma, "Hichki" is set to be released on March 23.