Veteran actor Anupam Kher recently gave a shoutout to Ranveer Singh's Dhurandhar and its director Aditya Dhar, saying the spy action film has risen above accusations of being called as "propaganda" and added the response to the film was a "slap on the faces" for those attempting to label it.
In a video message, the actor noted that he felt "peace and pride" witnessing the success of Dhurandhar despite having no association with the film. He congratulated and praised Aditya Dhar saying the filmmaker did not rely on patterns or preconceived formulas.
"But I like Dhurandar from Aditya Dhar. Not only because he is a Kashmiri. He comes from a family of people who were persecuted. And with his work, he has shown what success is all about. And what courage is all about. Not only because of that. As a filmmaker, he has not followed any pattern or formula. No formula. Just conviction," he said.
The actor also went on to quote examples of few iconic films such as Godfather, Sholay and Mughal-e-Azam, along with his films Saaransh, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jaayenge, A Wednesday and Khosla Ka Ghosla!, stating how they "give a new perspective to cine-goers."
Responding to the film's "propaganda" accusation, Anupam Kher underlined how Dhurandhar emerged as a "big slap" on people who critiqued it. He drew examples from his films The Accidental Prime Minister and The Kashmir Files and stated how certain people tried to prove they were propaganda vehicles and were successful in doing so. "There was a clique of people who were behind proving propaganda to the film. This is the same clique who tried to prove propaganda in my film The Accidental Prime Minister, and they were successful in doing that. The same people tried to prove propaganda in The Kashmir Files, and they were succeeded by 30 per cent. That’s because they started a debate. Dhurandhar is a big slap on such people’s faces," he said, adding, "He has slapped them. Don’t teach us what propaganda is. You are not going to decide what is a propaganda film. Don’t make us feel small. That is what the audience is saying to people like that."
He further shared that when people want "to make art look small for his purpose, for his selfish purpose, then one day art turns around and slaps you once and says that you can't make me look small." Concluding the video message, the actor reiterated his pride and happiness on seeing the film succeed at box office.
Taking to the comment section, Aditya Dhar wrote: "Wow. This truly means so much, sir. Such pure emotion and generosity in your words… And to be mentioned in the same breath as those films is an honour I do not take lightly at all."
The line you said 'Don’t make us feel small, that is what the audience is saying,' holds so true in today’s time. It has always been my intention as a film maker. Words like these push me to do better. I hope to keep making films that are honest, fearless and hopefully stand the test of time. Truly overwhelmed right now!!"
Meanwhile, Dhurandhar has broken box office records once again to breach the Rs 1000 crore mark within 21 days. The film follows the story of an Indian intelligence operative (Ranveer Singh as Hamza Ali Mazari), who infiltrates Pakistan's underworld at the behest of an Indian spymaster Ajay Sanyal (Madhavan). The film has been receiving rave reviews from celebrities and fans following its release, but is also criticised for catering to right-wing ideologies and its hyper violent narrative.
The cast also features Akshaye Khanna as Rehman Dakait, R Madhavan as Ajay Sanyal, Sanjay Dutt as Chaudhary Aslam, and Arjun Rampal as Major Iqbal of the ISI. Sara Arjun took on the role of the female lead for the first time in this film after being part of several projects as a child actor.