Alia Bhatt’s recent comments in an interview has triggered a boycott call for her upcoming film, Brahmastra, with actor-husband Ranbir Kapoor. This comes after boycott calls marred the performance of one of the most anticipated movies, Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha as well as Akshay Kumar’s Raksha Bandhan. The latest boycott call for Brahmastra does not bode well for an industry that has delivered a string of big-budget flops. The boycott call also raises questions on Ranbir Kapoor’s capability of delivering a hit, following the dismal box office performance of Shamshera.
The calls to boycott Ayan Mukerji-directorial Brahmastra were revived after Bhatt, in an interview with Mid-Day said, “I can’t keep defending myself verbally. And if you don’t like me, don’t watch me. I can’t help it.” She was responding to a question on how trolling – she has been the subject of some vicious trolling – impacts her.
She had further stated that it is not something she can do anything about since people have something or the other to say, but she hopes to prove to them with her movies that she is actually worth the space she occupies. She said that she does feel bad but she hopes to shut such conversations with her movies.
However, netizens did not take her comments well, and slammed her for being “arrogant” with no gratitude towards the audience.
This campaign – like many others in recent times – has the potential to snowball into a huge boycott call. Many films have been jeopardised or already fallen to the altar of boycott calls, including Laal Singh Chaddha, Raksha Bandhan, Taapsee Pannu’s Dobaaraa, and Vijay Devarakonda-Ananya Panday’s Liger. This is over and above the spate of commercially flop movies in recent times including Attack: Part 1, Heropanti 2, Runway 34, Jersey, Jayeshbhai Jordaar, Dhaakad, Samrat Prithviraj, Anek and Jugjugg Jeeyo.
Now, for a movie to do well in such a climate is a tall order, considering how Bollywood has rolled out one flop after another and many that have sunk without a trace. But if a movie that is made on a budget of Rs 450 crore over a span of four years faces boycott calls, then it is looking at trouble. Brahmastra needs to struggle all the more, in such a case, to recover the costs.
Add to it the woes of being Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor – one who, despite delivering some of the biggest commercial and critical hits, is constantly at the receiving end of trolls, and one who offered one of the biggest flops of the year.
Kapoor’s hopes are also pinned on the success of Brahmastra. The actor, despite his acting chops, has given some big flops including Saawariya (2007), Besharam (2013), Roy (2015), Bombay Velvet (2015), Tamasha (2015), Jagga Jasoos (2017), Shamshera (2022). He would naturally be hoping for that one big hit with Brahmastra.
However, as they say, content is king. It remains to be seen how it plays out for Brahmastra as the clamor for boycott reverberates.
Also read: ‘Shamshera’ is Ranbir Kapoor’s 7th flop; biggest after 'Bombay Velvet'