Ae Dil Hai Mushkil will owe its success to Raj Thackeray

I had no hopes of watching Karan Johar’s latest movie in the theatres, for entirely personal reasons. However, after seeing the MNS-ruling government organised extortion racket on Johar, I am determined to watch the movie. If only to express solidarity with Johar for enduring this nuisance and to indirectly show our might (as aam junta) by standing up to goons and bullies who question art. I suspect I won’t be the only one.

Similar circumstances have helped movies do well in the past. Let me share three examples:

1. Vishwaroopam: Kamal Hassan’s 2013 spy thriller faced severe protests from Muslim groups who had not watched the film, but perceived it to be detrimental to their religious sentiments. Post a 15-day official ban on release of the film in Tamil Nadu and some territories (India and overseas) and following the muting/ morphing of "controversial scenes", the movie released to packed houses. It is today the fifth highest grossing Tamil film of all time, having made Rs 220 crore.

2. Bang Bang: Hrithik Roshan’s first film post his divorce in 2014 generated Rs 340 crore – the highest a film starring Roshan in the lead role had ever made. The movie was trashed by critics for being a weak copy of the Tom Cruise starrer Day and Knight. While no one can quite understand why the film was such a big hit, an explanation by my male friends perhaps provides some introspection. The men had decided to show Hrithik their solidarity in the wake of the divorce settlement he was to pay his then wife (incidentally rumoured to be Rs 340 crore) and flocked the theatres to ensure that box office collections were big enough for him to tide over the financial burden. Considering the Indian movie going audience continues to be largely male, it is hard to reject this rationale.

3. Bajirao Mastani: Historical stories when re-made into movies, tend to see friction from fringe groups over the depiction of certain characters. In this case, the descendants of Bajirao and Mastani had several objections to how their ancestors were portrayed. A few petitions were filed in Pune and Mumbai , but the courts did not interfere with the release of the film, effectively quashing the petition.

The movie went to on make Rs 351 crore, earning a place in the top 10 highest grossing Hindi movies of all time. Similarly, when the Hindi film Jodha Akbar was released, the Rajput community protested over the depiction of its people in the film, resulting in the movie being banned in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Uttarakhand. The Supreme Court lifted this ban and allowed the movie to be screened. The movie made Rs 115 Crore on an investment of Rs 40 crore and was declared a semi-hit.

It may not be wrong to draw similar inferences in the case of Jism 2 (the movie featuring former pornstar Sunny Leone, that raised the collective moral hackles of India and had then Press Council of India chief Justice Katju coming to her rescue imploring people not to treat her as an outcast). This sequel to the 2003 movie Jism (that also had sexually titillating content starring then successful model couple Bipasha Basu and John Abraham) went on to make more money than the original. Jism was called an “above average” film, whereas Jism 2 was declared a hit. Similarly, Leone starrer Ragini MMS 2 made Rs 65 crore at the Box office, whereas the original Ragini MMS made only about Rs 9 crore.

Other examples of controversial Indian movies doing well include Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Insaf ka Taraazu, Murder, and Oh My God.

A movie critic friend of mine once said the best way to hurt a movie’s prospects is by not watching it. On the face of it, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, appears to be an urban romantic drama – not very different from the films Johar is known to have made in the past. Although the movie has plans to release all over India, it is quite clear who the target audience is likely to be – urban upper middle class youth, who can understand the lifestyles and challenges of the protagonists and perhaps appreciate their choices in the movie. But now, thanks to the "controversy" surrounding it, curiosity may get the better of all people and drive them to the movie halls.

Perhaps, Karan Johar may privately thank Raj Thackeray and the MNS later for the publicity?