Raanjhanaa, directed by Aanand L. Rai, has been in theatres for ten years, since then, critics have frequently attacked the movie for glamourizing stalking. It appears that the movie supports Kundan, played by Dhanush, in his obsessive pursuit of Zoya, played by Sonam Kapoor. In a recent interview, Abhay Deol, who was also in Raanjhanaa, remarked that although the movie “was true to the subject,” it lost its essence in the “process of glamorising it.”
During a conversation with Hindustan Times, Abhay mentioned, “The film portrayed things that do happen and was true to the subject. The filmmaker’s motive was also to have empathy and show the evolution of a character. But there is no doubt that there is this formula that Hindi films go for which is to add glamorisation.”
He further added, “In the process of glamorising it, the film lost the essence of his message, which was about love and respect and boundaries. That was the intention with which the filmmaker came in. It was quite the opposite of what may have come out purely because we have to glamorise everything in order to make it commercially digestible, but there are some things which cannot be made palatable”.
Abhay Deol was in the garb of Jasjeet, Zoya’s boyfriend in the film. According to Abhay’s social media post from 2020, “history will not look kindly on this film for its regressive message.” He averred, “It’s been a theme in Bollywood for decades, where a boy can (and should), pursue a girl until she relents. Only in cinema does she do that willfully. In reality we have seen time and again that it leads to sexual violence of some sort. Glorifying it on screen only leads to blaming the victim.”
