Anupam Kher on the massive success of Pathaan: The audience never boycotted cinema

One of the biggest box office triumphs in recent Indian cinema is the spy thriller Pathaan, which stars Shah Rukh Khan in the lead role. The film, directed by hitmaker Siddharth Anand, has demonstrated once again that if movies are well-made and promoted, moviegoers will return to the theatres in massive numbers. In its whole theatrical run, Pathaan, the fourth film in Yash Raj Films' espionage franchise, is expected to smash numerous other previous box office records.

In a recent interview with DNA, veteran actor Anupam Kher talked extensively about the enormous success of Shah Rukh Khan's most recent film. The actor stated, "No one gets influenced to watch a film by following a trend. If you liked the trailer of the film, you want to watch it. If the movie is well-made, no one has the power to sabotage it. People will even go to watch the film with a feeling of vengeance against the hate trend."  

After Besharam Rang, the first song from the movie, was released last year, Pathaan became embroiled in controversy. Many people criticised it because of Deepika's outfit, particularly her saffron bikini. The song offended some people, who opposed it for supposedly hurting their religious feelings. On social media, there was also a boycott trend for the movie.

"The audience never boycotted cinema. We had gone through the pandemic, there were lockdowns, and people were asked to sit in their houses. This has happened after 100 years or something. During this phase, audiences did look out for other means of entertainment. The OTT platforms saw a boost, and they started watching the films with ease. To bring them out of fear takes some time," Anupam Kher remarked.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Anupam's upcoming movie is Shiv Shastri Balboa. Neena Gupta, Nargis Fakhri, and Sharib Hashmi play significant parts as well. It is produced by Kishore Varieth and directed by Ajay Venugopalan. It will release on February 10 in theatres.