Once regarded as the pinnacle of cinema excellence and star-laden glamour, Bollywood award shows are quickly becoming more about optics (or at least perceived optics) and less about merit.
The latest edition was no different – another hyped, underwhelming evening overflowing with public relations stunts, no identifiable A-listers, and award-worthy choices that raised eyebrows. Here is a rundown of everything that felt “off” about the recent Bollywood “celebration of cinema”.
1. Flop Actors Getting Their Sh** Together On Stage For PR Gimmicks
When was the last time you saw a true star performer recommit to an awards stage with bona fide shelf space of five, six, or seven consecutive massy hits?
Now award stages are hijacked and used as rehabilitation for flop actors (i.e., those whose last movie at the box office was post-pandemic and had three to five years of box office non-success) – only to lift off with an excessively staged and rehearsed showbiz number with the added orchestrated PR articles propping it along for what they wanted the public to deem a “comeback performance”.
No one is buying it on social media after this charade, as many questioned:
“Are we here celebrating cinema or mending its reputation?”
2. Awards For Mediocrity: An Actress winning awards for poor comic performance
Let’s discuss the big question:
How did an actress win for a loud act – a film that literally average at box office and was “nearly” dead among critics? Critics described it as another run-of-the-mill, forgettable movie; audience attendance and ticket sales opened Bangalore cinemas and forced us to close our fridge doors early (via the displeasure of wasteful ticket purchases).
And yet, here we go — this award show collecting a performance trophy like a bag of goodies. Merit? Popularity? Jury vote? For none of them did it genuinely matter.
The award was nothing more than a consolation prize — a participation trophy bundled in fashion finesse.
3. Everything Is An Output Of Paid PR — From Appearances To Accolades
Behind the glitz of awards and appearances, many were granted to people via paid PR. There’s a difference between buzz and manufactured buzz — and this awards show was absolutely soaked in the manufactured variety.
Sources confirmed bundles of PR packages that sold months in advance, and there were PR packages that let you buy even “viral moments”, red carpet presences, and shoutouts that had been locked down by PR deals long ago.
The event came off as much more of a brand push rather than a genuine contribution to the film industry.
4. Where Were The Stars?
No Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone, Hrithik Roshan… Full stop.
Not sugarcoating it — none of the top-tier Bollywood stars were in attendance.
No Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone, or Rajkummar Rao.
When your headliner and marquee names are absent and the auditorium is filled with “up-and-coming influencers” and Instagram stars, can you really call it an awards show? They didn’t even include any pre-recorded bytes, and that speaks volumes about the legitimacy and credibility of the awards.
5. Pathetic Film Promotions Took Over The Platform
If you thought you were tuning in to see an honouring of cinema’s best, you were wrong. Instead, you got a wash of poorly disguised promotion for forgettable films that most don’t even give a second look to on YouTube.
Many performances and shout-outs were part of promotional clauses that bypassed real effort. This was not an award show; it was just a big marketing campaign of mediocrity!!!
BoxOfficeWorldwide Verdict
To state that it wasn’t an award show, it was a formal PR trade fair dressed in gold confetti and fake standing ovations.
Big stars boycotting, unbelievable winners going home with trophies, flopping films taking airtime — whatever the latest Bollywood award ceremony was,
It was not allowed to be an honourable celebration of excellence.
Maybe it is time we let the merit take the limelight, not a media plan.
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