SUMMARY
The COVID-battered film industry in India was expecting to make recovery with many big-budget movies lined up for release in 2022. But even huge budgets and star power couldn’t save most from bombing at the box office. While many factors contributed to the poor showing, including stale storylines, lacklustre entertainment value, and a growing library of OTT releases, one factor that constantly dominated headlines was the numerous boycott, or #bycutt, calls against several big releases. Shah Rukh Khan’s upcoming Pathaan is already facing the brunt of the boycott trend over a month before it even hits the theatres. Here is a list of the biggest movies of the year that faced the boycott trend on social media.
1 / 7
Laal Singh Chaddha | Aamir Khan’s Rs 180-crore remake of Forrest Gump (1994) tanked without a trace. While the movie received mixed reviews due to its lack of originality, the movie was also at the centre of a boycott trend. The movie was boycotted over Aamir’s old comments about feeling unsafe in the country and his meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The actor admitted being heartbroken over the trend and asked audiences to watch the movie. Aamir’s previous outing Dangal (2016) had also faced the boycott trend but managed to be a smash hit. (Image: YouTube)
2 / 7Pathaan | Shah Rukh Khan’s return to the silver screen hasn’t even been released but that hasn’t stopped netizens from pre-emptively boycotting the movie. The reason for the boycott is over Shah Rukh Khan’s comment about rising intolerance in the country and his support of Pakistani cricketers. People also found more reasons to complain after the movie’s first music video, Besharam Rang dropped. From the colour of Deepika Padukone’s bikini to SRK’s religious identity, the boycott brigade found plenty to complain about. (Image: YouTube)
3 / 7Liger | Vijay Deverakonda’s Hindi debut movie ‘Liger’ was on the receiving end of the boycott trend for an interesting reason. Vijay Deverakonda angered boycotters by saying that the boycott trend was going too far. The result? His film was boycotted. (Image: YouTube)
4 / 7Raksha Bandhan | Akshay Kumar’s fun family drama Raksha Bandhan also faced the fire of the apoplectic social media users who boycotted the movie over writer Kanika Dhillon's comments on ‘gau mutra’. The movie was boycotted at the same time as Laal Singh Chaddha with Akshay Kumar stating that the boycott trend did not make much sense. (Image: YouTube)
5 / 7Brahmastra | Ayan Mukerji’s epic Brahmastra stars Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt. Despite being a movie about the Hindu religion, the movie faced heavy pushback on social media over Ranbir Kapoor’s decade-old comments about liking meat including beef. (Image: YouTube)
6 / 7Adipurush | Prabhas’ Adipurush is another movie that is facing the boycott trend before it even hits the theatre. The movie was facing backlash over its “poor VFX”, and the alleged Islamification along with criticism for its depiction of Ramayana. (Image: YouTube)
7 / 7Gangubai Kathiawadi | Alia Bhatt’s Gangubai Kathiawadi was also boycotted on social media over nepotism and the choice of artiste. The boycott army wanted Kangana Ranaut to play Gangu. The film, however, managed to smash expectations at the box office and Alia’s performance impressed all. The movie showed that despite boycott trends, movies can be successful on their own merits. (Image: YouTube)
