Abhay Deol says ‘let’s not demonise entire Hindi film industry' for making popular movies

Abhay Deol says people may even buy tickets to films so that they watch and criticise the film, or just ‘hate-watch’ it.

Abhay Deol has said that he does not believe in cancel culture, adding that the Hindi film industry should not be "demonised" for making films that have an audience. Abhay was talking about the recent hatred towards Bollywood that is often seen online on various social media platforms. ()

Abhay Deol responds to the 'cancel culture' against the Hindi film industry.

In his career, Abhay Deol has mostly been part of experimental films - those that do not fall under the category of massy and masala entertainers. He made his debut in 2005 with Imtiaz Ali's Socha Na Tha. He has since featured in films such as Dev D, Manorama Six Feet Under (2007), and Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! (2008). With films like Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara and Raanjhanaa, Abhay made space for experimental cinema that also worked at the box office.

Asked to comment on the ‘cancel culture’ against Bollywood, Abhay told ETimes, "Let’s not demonise the entire Hindi film industry for making movies that have an audience. There’s a certain section of the audience that will go ahead and watch the film so that they can express their dislike towards it. Some people will buy tickets to hate-watch certain movies, but they will buy that ticket and that’s the truth.”

Abhay added, “For me, the human condition and people aren’t black and white. However, I support those who want a genuine change. There are people who legitimately do not watch Bollywood films because they cannot relate to it. There is a universal cinematic language that we haven’t been a part of because we are catering to our bubble. Those people are in the right to ask for a change. Those with an agenda are just taking advantage of situations."

Talking about his own experimental work and how things work nowadays, Abhay recently told HT Brunch, “What I was trying to do with films like Manorama was to make people understand that Indians are also capable of that kind of acting and that kind of storytelling. The new platforms are not in the business of carrying that legacy forward. Their risks are more calculated. It’s small experiments, backed by big business. You need creative minds and usually creative minds and business minds don’t co-exist.”

Abhay was most recently seen in the Netflix web series Trial By Fire. He essayed the role of a victim's father in the web series that is based on the book, Trial By Fire: The Tragic Tale of the Uphaar Fire Tragedy by Neelam Krishnamoorthy and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy. Neelam and Shekhar were parents of victims of the real-life tragedy of the Upahar Cinema fire incident in Delhi.