The latest Bollywood film in the line of fire is Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone-starrer Pathaan that will hit theatres on January 25, 2023. The film is one of the biggest releases in the March quarter that exhibitors are counting on for strong business at the box office.
The bone of contention in the Pathaan row is the film's song titled Besharam Rang (shameless colour) that released on December 12 and set off a furore over the saffron-coloured swimwear that Padukone wore.
Raising objections against the costumes, among many others, was Madhya Pradesh minister Narottam Mishra, who said the song reflects a dirty mindset and unless the objectionable parts were changed, the film may not be allowed to release in the state.
On December 16, a complaint was filed before a court in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district, seeking the registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and others for hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus in the song. The same day, Vishva Hindu Parishad workers staged a protest in Madhya Pradesh's Bhopal by burning posters of the song.
A complaint has also been filed with I&B ministry office to seek ban on the song.
Boycott Bollywood
Like Pathaan, some other big Bollywood films, including Aamir Khan-starrer Laal Singh Chaddha (LSC), Akshay Kumar's Raksha Bandhan and Ranbir Kapoor's Brahmastra bore the brunt of the Boycott Bollywood trend. Other films that were boycotted were Vijay Deverakonda and Ananya Pandey's Liger and Ajay Devgn's Thank God.
Laal Singh Chaddha was boycotted because of Aamir Khan's 2014 film PK, which, according to fringe groups, had made fun of Hindu deities. Eight years after PK's release, the Sanatan Raksha Sena in Varanasi went door-to-door asking people not to watch Khan's new release and had even urged Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to ban the film.
Clashing with Laal Singh Chaddha in theatres was Raksha Bandhan that released on August 11 and faced boycott call because of Hinduphobic remarks by the film's writer Kanika Dhillon which were brought to the fore by a group called Rashtriya Hindu Parishad before the film's release.
Then came the call for a boycott of Ranbir Kapoor's Brahmastra over his statement that he is a beefeater, which was made during an interview in 2011. The Rashtriya Hindu Parishad said its activists will blacken the face of those who go to theatres to watch the film.
Ajay Devgn’s Thank God was boycotted by the Chitra Gupta Mahasabha on the depiction of Hindu deity Chitra Gupta in the film.
Telugu actor Vijay Deverakonda, who supported Aamir Khan over the Laal Singh Chaddha controversy, faced the boycott of his big venture Liger.
Liger, which released on August 25, tanked at the box office with collections to the tune of Rs 20 crore after having been made on a budget of around Rs 100 crore.
Box office impact
Film distributor Warangal Srinu, in a published interview, said the boycott culture was one of the main reasons behind Liger's underperformance. Many trade analysts also noted that Bollywood biggies failed this year due to the Boycott Bollywood trend on social media.
The boycott calls for Laal Singh Chaddha also impacted the film's box office business. The movie collected Rs 11.7 crore on the first day, the lowest opening for an Aamir Khan film in the last 20 years. The actor's venture before LSC, Thugs of Hindostan, had clocked Rs 52 crore on its opening day.
Abneesh Roy, Executive Director, Edelweiss Securities,, pointed out that one reasons for the poor advance bookings for Laal Singh Chaddha, one of the biggest releases of 2022, was the social media backlash and boycott calls the film faced.
Laal Singh Chaddha, with a production cost of Rs 180 crore, earned Rs 58.73 crore Raksha Bandhan collected Rs 44.39 crore after having been made on a budget of Rs 100 crore. Both releases recorded low occupancy in the range of 20-25 percent.
Producers like Anand Pandit, who has produced movies like The Big Bull and Sarkar 3, among others, believes that negativity harms collective morale and business. Another producer noted that movie audiences that look for validation via reviews and positive word–of-mouth before they book their tickets, get impacted by boycott calls.
Making a boycott call creates an environment of unease fear and uncertainty, said Prashant Gupta, Founder & CEO, Caerus3Advisors & Think-Tank, an advisory firm.
Bollywood business
The share of Hindi (Bollywood) language films to overall India box office business currently stands at 35 percent, lower than 44 percent in 2019. The average gross collection of the top five Bollywood movies, including Brahmastra and Laal Singh Chaddha for PVR dropped by 37 percent in the September quarter in FY23 at Rs 25.6 crore versus Q2 FY20, when the average collection was around Rs 41 crore.
With Rs 3,030 crore in Hindi box office collections so far, revenue is expected to recover to 80-85 percent of pre-Covid levels in FY23, and fully recover by FY24.
This year, between March and November, when theatres had reopened after the Omicron wave and Covid-19 restrictions had eased, July, August and November saw the lowest box office collection at Rs 645 crore, Rs 757 crore and Rs 711 crore. The total box office collection between January and November this year stood at Rs 9,751 crore.
In the March quarter of FY23, multiplexes like PVR and INOX are betting big on Pathaan for a strong recovery in Bollywood's box office business. According to PVR's Joint Managing Director Sanjeev Kumar Bijli, the growth momentum in box office business in Q3 of FY23 will continue in Q4 due to content pipeline that includes Pathaan and Alia Bhatt's Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani.
While it is too early to predict how much money Pathaan could make at the box office, film trade analysts said the movie is expected to be a blockbuster. Whether the boycott call hurts its prospects remains to be seen.
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