Anupam Kher claims Laal Singh Chaddha did not suffer because of boycott trend: Not a great film
File image of Anupam Kher and poster of Laal Singh Chaddha
Veteran Indian actor Anupam Kher has said that the 'boycott Bollywood' trend did not lead to the dismal performance of Aamir Khan's Laal Singh Chaddha at the box office. The film was released in August 2022 and was an official Hindi remake of Tom Hanks starrer Forrest Gump. Laal Singh Chaddha was helmed by Advait Chandan and featured Kareena Kapoor Khan and Mona Singh along with Aamir Khan.
The film did not perform well at the box office and in its first weekend, which is often considered the most crucial in terms of earnings of a film, earned a meagre Rs 46 crore (USD 56 million approx). The film was later released on Netflix. Prior to the release of the film, it faced severe backlash as an old interview of Aamir Khan went viral where his comments were deemed as anti-national. #BoycottBollywood trended on social media which majorly hampered the film's viewership.
Now, in a recent interview with ANI, Kher has said that the film did not work because it was not a great one and that the boycott trend had nothing to do with its box office failure.
"Laal Singh Chaddha was not a great film. If it was a great film then no power would've stopped it. Aamir Khan's PK worked really well. The point is that you need to accept the truth," Anupam said.
"I am not for boycott trends, not at all but you can't stop somebody from doing what they want to do. But if your product is good, it will find its audience. In fact, they will go with a vengeance. And the only way to kill this trend is to make brilliant work," Kher further added.
Kher believes that the 'boycott Bollywood' trend would not affect a film. The actor said, everybody has freedom of expression and if an actor has the right to say anything about any situation, then they should also be brave enough to go through the situation. He was seemingly hinting at Aamir's old remark.
In a 2015 interview, Aamir said that his then-wife Kiran Rao had suggested they move out of India because of ‘growing intolerance’ in the country. The interview had resurfaced and caught attention on social media.
Kher will be next seen in Kangana Ranaut's directorial Emergency. He also has The Signature, Anurag Basu's Metro In Dino, and a thriller film called IB71 in his kitty. Aamir Khan has not announced his next project yet.
