Bollywood’s Portrayal in The Ba***ds of Bollywood Sparks Debate

Actor-producer Viveck Vaswani has expressed concerns over the portrayal of the Hindi film industry in Aryan Khan's debut series, The Ba***ds of Bollywood. The Netflix show, which marks Aryan Khan's entry as a creator, has sparked conversation for its darker depiction of Bollywood.

Reacting to the content, Vaswani said in an interview with Vickey Lalwani, “I have never seen anything like this,” expressing discomfort with what he described as an exaggerated representation. He also urged for balance in storytelling, adding, “Let there be good people too.”

Elaborating further, Vaswani objected to a specific scene that, according to him, presents an extreme image of the industry. “You are showing a woman being kicked to the ground by a director. I have never seen anything like this in the industry. I have not encountered such evil people here,” he said.

Expanding on his criticism, Vaswani stated, “If you are making something called The Ba***ds of Bollywood and want to show the darker side, that’s fair, but let there be a Yash Chopra, who has been decent. Let there be a Yash Johar, or let there be a Viveck Vaswani who has always helped people. Let there be good people too,” he concluded.

Vaswani, who is known to have supported Shah Rukh Khan during his early days in Mumbai, also addressed the larger conversation around privilege. He rejected suggestions that the superstar had an easy start, stating that Shah Rukh Khan “did not come into the industry with a golden spoon,” emphasizing that his journey was built on persistence and effort.