Boycotting Bollywood seems to be one of the fasting growing online trends now. With the unfortunate death of Sushant Singh Rajput, Boycott Bollywood started as a Twitter trend. Now it has spread its wings over other social media as well. And, most of the times, these virtual boycotts were based on a very shallow premise. But, with the lukewarm reception to superstar movies like Laal Singh Chaddha, many have started dreading the Boycott Bollywood trend.
Recently, Sharukh Khan-Deepika starrer Pathaan became the target of boycott calls. After the makers released Pathaan’s song – Besharam Rang, ‘Boycott Pathaan’ started trending on social media. Some social media users and political party leaders were asking to boycott Pathaan because Deepika Padukone wore an orange dress in the song “Besharam Rang” – the color resembling saffron, which is sacred in Hinduism.
Despite the boycott calls, Pathaan has turned out to be a blockbuster. The movie has broken so many records at the box-office.
Pathaan is not the only movie that has faced boycott calls and still turned out to be a blockbuster. Even in the past, there have been movies that faced hate but turned out to be winners. From PK to Padmaavat, here are the movies that faced hate in various forms and still turned out to be winners:
Bollywood Movies That Were Boycotted But Turned Into Blockbusters
1. Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela (2013)
Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s love saga Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela starred Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh. The movie faced lot of criticism from multiple religious groups and communities. Some religious groups opposed the movie because of its former title Ramleela. The religious groups claimed that the former title Ramleela was misleading. Post-which, Sanjay Leela Bhansali changed the name Ramleela to Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela. The makers had to change certain “provocative” words in the film and delete scenes suggested by the CBFC. After so much hate, the movie turned into a whooping blockbuster. SLB’s desi Romeo and Juliet grossed over Rs. 200 Crores worldwide.
2. Lipstick Under My Burkha (2017)
Do you know Alankrita Srivastava’s Lipstick Under Burkha was denied a release by Central Board for Film Certification (CBFC). The board claimed that the movie was too “lady-oriented”. The movie was also publicly boycotted by a group of Muslim leaders in Bhopal for hurting religious sentiments. After so much struggle, the movie not only recover its production cost of Rs. 6 crores but also managed to earn over Rs. 26 crores at the box office. The movie also received critical acclaim and won many international awards.
3. PK (2014)
Aamir Khan’s PK received a lot of criticism online as well as offline. The movie drew so much criticism from many religious groups for hurting sentiments. Till today, many times, offensive movie clips are circulated on Twitter. Though the movie drew flak from Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad and theatres were vandalized, the film earned over INR 800 Crores, becoming one of the highest-grossing Bollywood films.
Bollywood Movies That Were Boycotted But Turned Into Blockbusters
4. Padmaavat (2018)
Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s other movie that faced endless controversies is Deepika-Ranveer-Shahid starrer Padmaavat. The movie embroiled in controversies since Day 1. The movie, initially titled ‘Padmaavati’, was about Sultan Alauddin Khilji’s attempt to kidnap the queen Padmaavati, who was married to Rajput ruler Maharawal Ratan Singh. From threats to film-set being vandalized to physical assaults, Padmaavat, faced a lot of criticism. Despite the threats and boycott calls, the movie turned into a super hit and collected around INR 600 crores worldwide, making it one of the highest-grossing Bollywood movies.
5. The Dirty Picture (2011)
Vidya Balan starrer is based on the iconic South Indian actress Silk Smita. The film’s first poster showed Vidya Balan posing sultrily with the three male leads – Naseeruddin Shah, Emraan Hashmi, and Tusshar Kapoor. The poster drew so much criticism that the criminal court of Nampally (Telangana) booked the actress for indecent photographs. Unfortunately, the petition also mentioned that the movie’s hoarding and posters were corrupting people’s minds. Despite the criticism, the movie became a critical and commercial success. The movie, which was made on the budget of Rs. 18 Crores, collected Rs. 117 Crores at the box office (as per the sources.)
6. Haider (2014)
Another movie that witnessed extreme criticism is Vishal Bhardwaj’s Haider. The movie is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, which is set during the 1990s insurgency in Kashmir. The movie showed the Indian army abusing human rights in Kashmir. From torture to extrajudicial killings to illegal detention of youths, the movie showed many controversial views. Despite the boycott calls, the movie was released and earned a lifetime collection of around INR 55 Crores. The movie also earned a lot of critical acclaim for its intelligent screenplay and hard-hitting performances.
Bollywood Movies That Were Boycotted But Turned Into Blockbusters
7. Brahmastra (2022)
Aryan Mukherjee’s Brahmastra also faced a lot of criticism and online hate. Boycott Brahmastra became one of the most regular trends that we saw on Twitter. The movie faced virtual boycott calls for various reasons. From Karan’s support for star kids to Ranbir’s beef comment to Alia’s take on nepotism, the movie faced boycott calls for quite some time. Despite the hate, the movie managed to cross INR 200 Crores and became one of Bollywood’s highest-grossing films in 2022.
8. Pathaan (2023)
We don’t think we need to say anything about Pathaan anymore. The movie has answered all the hate it received with audience love. With every passing day, the movie is breaking more and more records. Fans across the globe have gone bonkers with the movie. The movie is running houseful not only in India but also in UK, USA, Canada & more.
What do you think about the boycott calls? Tell us in the comments below.