This story is part of a Civic Media Observatory investigation into the Indian media ecosystem. Find out more about our mission, methodology, and publicly available data. Over the past few years, there has been a rising trend in which the Bollywood film industry is losing its fans while, at the same time, Hindu nationalist leaders are gaining fans. A Civic Media Observatory investigation shows that this has led to unprecedented criticism of Bollywood films and actors over their liberal views and allegedly “anti-Hindu” agenda. The most recent incident that is part of Bollywood’s broader cancel culture is the targeting of veteran Bollywood actors Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor. Their film, Lal Singh Chaddha, which was released in theatres worldwide on August 11, 2022, was entangled in controversies before and after its release. The film is the Bollywood remake of the popular American film Forrest Gump. It tells the story of Laal, played by Aamir Khan, and Rupa, played by Kareena Kapoor, and the hardships they face. Before the release of the movie, social media was buzzing with the #boycottlalsinghchaddha hashtag, and both Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor were targeted for being “anti-national.” There were posts that appealed to the audience to boycott the movie to teach Khan that he needs to conform to the Hindu-nationalist narrative. Right-wing groups shared clips of Aamir Khan from 2015 when he stated that his Hindu wife feels unsafe in India because of the growing religious intolerance and because of the rising sense of “insecurity, fear and despondency” in the country. Kareena Kapoor Khan, who is married to actor Saif Ali Khan, has been targeted time and again for marrying a Muslim actor and giving her children Islamic names. The criticism began not with the content of the movie but with Aamir Khan. At a press event, he even pleaded with the audience to not boycott his film and clarified that he is not “anti-national” by exclaiming that he “loves this country” and audience should not think otherwise. With the Hindu-nationalist Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) coming to power in India in 2014, right-wing Hindu ideology has come into the mainstream political and cultural conversation. Research for Global Voice’s Civic Media Observatory shows that Bollywood is blamed for “giving prominence” to Muslim actors, for not making films that have a “nationalist spirit,” and for the “derogatory depiction” of Hindus. Right-wing groups directly relate the religious identity of the actor with the values they present onscreen and use that to amplify their Islamophobic sentiments. This is a departure from the past, when Aamir Khan and fellow Muslim leading man Shah Rukh Khan enjoyed a cult following. Now, Hindu fundamentalism has become the new ground for fandom in India. In India, cricket and Bollywood have been considered religions. Now, Hindutva ideological attacks are casting a shadow on both of these, drawing the fans away from artists and athletes towards provocative nationalist orators, celebrities who come out in support of the Hindu nationalist ideology, and BJP leaders like Prime Minister Narendra Modi and chief minister of the state Uttar Pradesh, Ajay Singh Bisht, who goes by Yogi Adityanath. Our research shows that right-wing groups have identified Bollywood families and the entire industry as their target, claiming that they are liberal elites trying to brainwash the country by bombarding Indian people with anti-national, pro-English speaking, Western and anti-Hindu cultural symbols in their movies. This narrative reached a new height when a Bollywood actor, Sushant Singh Rajput, died by suicide in 2021. Right-wing groups called the death a murder that was orchestrated by nepotistic Bollywood families against an outsider. A recent example of this culture of suspicion and outrage is the uproar against a nude photoshoot done by actor Ranveer Singh. CMO analysis shows that it was perceived as anti-Hindu because it challenged the typical notions of patriarchy and was considered to violate Indian cultural values. The combined hatred towards Muslim stars of Bollywood and their allies from Hindu Bollywood families has resulted in a dynamic shift that affects not only how mainstream consumption of entertainment is shifting, but also how fandom is changing allegiances. Aamir Khan at the National Media Museum, UK in 2010. Image via Flickr by National Science and Media Museum. CC BY-NC-ND. Aamir Khan is one of the most prominent actors in Bollywood. He has acted in some of the highest-grossing Bollywood films such as “Lagaan,” “3 Idiots,” and Dangal. All of these films raised some important societal concerns. He also hosted a talk show Satyamev Jayate that focused on raising awareness around social issues.