Will Bollywood ever miss a chance to stumble on Pakistan?

'Dhurandhar' ignites firestorm as critics slam violence, distortions and political theatrics

Bollywood's upcoming spy thriller 'Dhurandhar' has triggered sharp criticism at home and abroad after its trailer release, with viewers accusing the filmmakers of peddling fantasy, exaggeration and heavy-handed anti-Pakistan narratives dressed up as espionage realism.

The trailer portrays Karachi's Lyari as a ravaged war zone, showing Ranveer Singh as a RAW operative navigating supposedly hostile streets while Arjun Rampal, playing a Pakistani intelligence officer, appears in hyper-aggressive sequences that many viewers say bear no resemblance to the real Lyari.

Indian audiences have also mocked the storyline, calling it fictional and embarrassing, noting that director Aditya Dhar has relied on highly imaginative leaps to depict real Pakistani figures such as Chaudhry Aslam and Rehman Dakait, whose actual roles were limited to gang warfare and police encounters.

In the film, Rampal's character is branded the 'Angel of Death' whose approval is portrayed as essential for Pakistani politics, while Akshaye Khanna's Rehman Dakait is labelled an 'Apex Predator' and Sanjay Dutt's Chaudhry Aslam is introduced with the fantastical title 'The Jinn'.

The trailer also includes images of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, PPP flags and recreated political settings, drawing complaints that Bollywood is once again exaggerating instability for dramatic payoff rather than grounding the story in verifiable facts or genuine historical context.

Criticism intensified when a prominent Indian YouTuber accused the director of crossing "a limit of cheapness," arguing that the trailer normalises torture and uses graphic violence for shock value, even comparing its brutality to extremist execution videos masquerading as entertainment.

Indian social media users echoed similar concerns, calling the film a mix of fake nationalism, distorted history and a disjointed fantasy script, with several commenters mocking it by suggesting Bollywood started making a sequel to Balakot and somehow ended up in Lyari.

Observers in Pakistan argue that India's cinematic hostility has escalated, highlighted by casting choices such as Dutt as the late SSP Chaudhry Aslam and Khanna as Rehman Dakait, roles widely criticised online for abandoning credibility and leaning into sensationalised political theatrics.

The storyline also hints at unrelated real events such as the 1999 Kandahar hijacking, prompting questions about whether the filmmakers are stitching random historical moments together merely to inflate dramatic tension without respecting timelines or factual relevance.

Commentators note that 'Dhurandhar' now joins a growing list of Indian films criticised for excessive violence, including 'Kill' and 'Animal', sparking broader debate about Bollywood's tendency to glorify gore while claiming to portray patriotism or geopolitical conflict.

Some analysts argue that Bollywood's repeated misfires stem from a shortage of original scripts, suggesting that historical figures are increasingly being forced into fabricated narratives to manufacture anti-Pakistan propaganda under the guise of high-stakes thriller storytelling.

The backlash gained further momentum when Pakistani commentators observed that ignoring domestic storytelling creates a vacuum that foreign filmmakers exploit, warning that Pakistan's heroes and histories risk being distorted if not owned and articulated by Pakistan itself.

Set for release on 5 December, 'Dhurandhar' is already mired in controversy, with even many Indian viewers arguing that its attempts at realism collapse under exaggerated violence, political overreach and a familiar obsession with depicting Pakistan as a perpetual battlefield.