Yami Gautam denounces Bollywood’s “extortion-like” hype culture; Hrithik Roshan supports her call for honesty in film marketing.

Bollywood star Yami Gautam has sparked a heated online controversy after publicly denouncing the film industry’s “extortion-like” and unsettling culture of sponsored hype. Her adamant statements, made the day before the premiere of her husband Aditya Dhar’s Ranveer Singh-starring movie Dhurandhar, have heightened debates on openness in Bollywood marketing. Her Kaabil co-star, Hrithik Roshan, promptly backed up her comments.

Yami Points Out a “Dangerous Trend” in Movie Marketing

In an open post on X, Yami said that certain people or organizations seek money under the guise of marketing, promising good publicity, but threatening to post critical things if the money isn’t paid. “This so-called trend of giving money, in the disguise of marketing a film, to ensure good ‘hype’ for a film is created or else ‘they’ will continuously write negative things (even before the film is released), until you pay ‘them’ money feels nothing but kind of extortion,” the author stated.

The actor cautioned that this approach is detrimental to the profession as a whole in addition to being immoral. She described it as “a plague that is going to affect the future of our industry in a big way” and called it a developing scourge.

“Everyone Will Be Bitten by This Monster”

According to Yami, the definition of success has been distorted by the normalization of this society. “Unfortunately, anyone who believes that it’s harmless and that we should do it because it’s the new ‘normal,’ is mistaken,” she said. Everyone will finally get bitten by this monstrous “trend.”

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She added that “it’s not going to be a pretty picture for many” if the reality behind the fabricated hoopla and twisted narratives of the previous five years were revealed.

In addition, Yami compared the Bollywood industry to the South, lauding its togetherness and urging its stakeholders to make amends. She added, “I implore our distinguished producers, directors, and actors to unite in order to stop this termite of a culture at this stage itself & discourage it.”

According to Hrithik Roshan, the biggest casualty is honest journalism.

Echoing Yami’s worries, Hrithik Roshan concentrated on the effect on journalistic integrity. “More than anything, the journalists’ true voice is the golden thing that gets lost and leaves them and all of us impoverished,” he stated.

“Without freedom of expression, without the truth helping us evolve, what job satisfaction can they or any of us hope for,” Hrithik continued, adding that genuine criticism is essential for artistic development.

Yami last appeared in the well-reviewed film Haq, and Hrithik’s most recent film, War 2, did poorly at the box office.