Bollywood actor Kareena Kapoor has chimed in on the ‘Boycott Bollywood’ campaign that has been repeatedly trending online. Speaking at the Indian Chamber of Commerce-Young Leaders Forum event in Kolkata on Sunday, the actor said that she does not agree with the emerging trend of calling for a boycott of movies and ‘cancel culture’ because it would take away the ‘joy and happiness’ from one’s life.
Notably, the trend originally gained traction following the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June 2020, sparking debate about the industry’s nepotism and major production houses’ gate-keeping mentality. This ‘boycott Bollywood trend’ affected Kareena Kapoor and Aamir Khan’s ‘Laal Singh Singh Chaddha,’ Akshay Kumar’s ‘Raksha Bandhan,’ and Ranbir Kapoor-Alia Bhatt’s ‘Brahmastra’ in recent months.
The latest film facing this boycott trend is Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘Pathaan’ over the film’s song, Besharam Rang. Kareena Kapoor’s remarks came amid calls for a boycott of this upcoming release.
The actor, who believes that watching Bollywood movies is the only way a person can find joy in life, said, “I don’t agree with it (the boycott trend) at all. If that (boycott of films) happens, how will we entertain, how will you have the joy and happiness in your life, which, I think everybody needs and which cinema and films are promising, which we have always done, which films have always done. Agar films nahi hogi toh entertainment kaisa hoga (what about entertainment if there are no films)?” the Laal Singh Chadda actor said.
“What About Entertainment?” Kareena Kapoor On ‘Boycott Bollywood’ Trendpic.twitter.com/sSkBmd8dmH
— NDTV Videos (@ndtvvideos) January 22, 2023
This is not the first time Kareena Kapoor had addressed the boycott trend in Bollywood. Prior to this, when the movie Laal Singh Chaddha, in which she starred opposite Aamir Khan, was released, she had urged people not to boycott the film.
“But the fact is that they shouldn’t boycott this film, it’s such a beautiful film. And I want people to see me and Aamir on screen. It’s been three years, we’ve waited so long. So, please don’t boycott this film, because it’s actually like boycotting good cinema. And people have worked so hard on it; we’ve had 250 people work on this film for two-and-a-half years,” Kareena Kapoor Khan said at the time.
It is notable that these remarks from Kareena Kapoor come after the utterly disappointing opening of Laal Singh Chaddha amidst widespread calls to boycott the movie. Several social media users pointed out the U-turn taken by Kareena Kapoor Khan, referring to the remarks she made in 2020 saying that people who don’t want to watch films should not watch as nobody is trying to convince them.
Be careful what you wish for, wishes do come true sometimes 😹 👏👏#BoycottLaalSinghChaddha pic.twitter.com/eksk7dU2Wb
— Amit Kumar (@AMIT_GUJJU) August 12, 2022
Back in 2020, Kareena Kapoor stated during the nepotism debate that it is the people who have made them stars and that nobody is forcing people to go and watch movies. She had said, “The audience has made us, no one else has made us. The same people pointing fingers are the ones who have made these nepotistic stars right? Aap jaa rahe ho na Film dekhne? Mat jao. Nobody has forced you. So I don’t understand it. I find this whole discussion is completely weird.”
