Padmaavat, Laal Singh Chaddha, Brahmastra: Bollywood, boycotts, and bans

Don’t pander to their needs and wants, and suffer, in silence or on social media. Hindi cinema’s tryst with boycotts and bans isn’t new. Gulzar ’s piercing portrayal of politics in Aandhi in 1975, right amid the Indian emergency, gave a hard time to the people in power in that era. The gripping narrative and galvanizing performances didn’t let the film die a lonely death. It lived on and still does.

The history continues… 2022 is here but the mindsets are just as backward, or perhaps the anger is far more raging, and propelled further by celebrities’ statements and interviews maybe. In the case of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat , the period dream (and drama) he made in 2018, was nearly demonized before its release. “No filmmaker should go through what I had to,” the filmmaker’s horror and disappointment reflected in an interview after the success of what was slammed and scrutinized even before people saw it. The aftermath? It was the second-highest grosser of 2018, with praises heaped on the leads for their commitment to their characters.

Ashutosh Gowariker’s Jodhaa Akbar had met with similar fate. The Rajput community accused the filmmaker of distorting historical facts that led to the ban of this saga in as many as three states, including Rajasthan, where it was based. Good thing the ban didn’t stop the film from being a commercial success.

In 2011, Prakash Jha’s middling take on reservation and caste politics in the star-studded Aarakshan had to go through bans and protests in many parts of the country. The drama was banned in Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Punjab. It was alleged that certain dialogues in the film hurt the sentiments of the minority communities. When it released at the box-office, it didn’t set the cash registers ringing exactly and it could be due to a now show in many states across the country.

But all these examples have reasons. The recent fate of films has stemmed from a new culture that has popped up all of a sudden- Boycott. Multiple hashtags have been formed that allow social media users to express their disappointment and disdain towards actors and filmmakers. One of the earliest and latest victims was Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha . A video of Kareena asking people not to watch her films if they choose not to went viral in no time. Aamir’s video of revealing how his former wife Kiran Rao didn’t feel safe in India was brought back to memories too. Result? The actor’s return to celluloid after four years nearly went unnoticed. Critics have argued it was the content that failed the actor, but somewhere, the brunt did give him a burn.

They have now moved on to Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra: Part One-Shiva . Here, the reasons are plenty and preposterous. Alia too, out of irritation and anger, asked people to not to watch her forcefully, very recently in an interview. The clip has made its way to social media. Karan Johar has been dragged into the mess and mayhem too. All the personal grudges have been unleashed on this Superhero trilogy. A superhero can overpower any hurdle but not hate. Will Shiva (Ranbir Kapoor) be able to battle this emotion?

All eyes on 9th September.

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