Bollywood’s latest film Dhurandhar has sparked significant criticism following the release of its trailer, with much of the backlash coming from Indian social media users themselves. The film portrays Karachi’s Lyari district as a war zone, with the story featuring Ranveer Singh as a RAW agent who infiltrates ‘hostile’ Pakistani territory. Arjun Rampal plays Major Iqbal, a Pakistani intelligence officer who is obsessed with “making India bleed.”
The film’s portrayal of Lyari as the “heart of terrorism in Pakistan” has been particularly contentious. R. Madhavan’s character, Ajay Sanyal, is loosely based on India’s National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval, and is depicted as believing that Lyari must be infiltrated to combat terrorism. The movie uses political imagery associated with Pakistan, including a rally of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), images of Benazir Bhutto, and the party’s flags, which further adds to the controversy.
Critics, especially in Pakistan, have slammed the film for perpetuating an anti-Pakistan narrative and for distorting the true nature of Lyari’s history. Lyari, known for its gang wars, is depicted in Dhurandhar as a battleground of terrorism, ignoring the complex ethnic and political struggles that shaped the area. The film’s portrayal of real-life figures such as Rehman Dakait, Arshad Pappu, Chaudhry Aslam, and Uzair Baloch, who were pivotal in the gang wars, has been ridiculed, with many pointing out that these individuals’ roles in Karachi’s history should not be exploited or misrepresented by Indian filmmakers.
The film, set to release in December, has become a point of contention, not only because of its unrealistic and sensationalized portrayal of Pakistan but also because it taps into India’s growing nationalist sentiment, which often involves distorting Pakistan’s internal struggles for dramatic effect. Critics argue that Bollywood has exhausted its own historical narratives and now resorts to appropriating Pakistan’s struggles, turning them into fictionalized, exaggerated stories that serve to position India as a dominant force in its neighbor’s internal affairs.
The controversy highlights a broader issue of cultural appropriation, with many questioning why Bollywood feels entitled to tell stories about Pakistan’s past, particularly when they misrepresent the reality of its people’s pain and struggles. As Dhurandhar draws closer to its release, it has already become a symbol of Bollywood’s ongoing tendency to use sensationalism and distortion for dramatic and political purposes.
