Aryan Khan’s directorial debut ‘BA****DS OF BOLLYWOOD’, or the ‘BASTARDS OF BOLLYWOOD’ (not much of a spoiler even if you haven’t seen it), was a highly-anticipated project and turned out to be an absolute laugh riot on top of a breathtaking climax. The refreshing tone, bold direction, and the hilarious easter eggs just made this much-awaited project an extremely solid and breathtaking watch. Yes, it’s a bit late to write on the show but I was waiting for the buzz to calm down, so as to present a more grounded piece.
Satirical Tone and Mindfu**ing Climax
‘BA****DS OF BOLLYWOOD’ presents the most satirical and hilarious take on the inside world of Bollywood. From nepotism, ‘movie mafia’, movie critics, extra-marital affairs and spoiled brats; the show touched upon everything in the most funny manner. Just Aryan Khan directed a show themed on nepotism-outsider stuff is a sarcasm in itself, but in a positive way.
Aasmaan, an outsider in the industry, who has made a breakout debut with a movie titled ‘Revolver’ is now entering the complex world of Bollywood. From here, the show touches on the concept of three-movie contracts, egos of big producers and movie mafia, and how a young actor, especially an outsider struggles amidst this.
The story delves into the ‘Outsider Vs Nepo Kids’ debate with Aasmaan (Lakshya) confronting Karishma Talwar, daughter of superstar Ajay Talwar (Bobby Deol) at a roundtable, which the viewers can relate to the Sidhant Chaturvedi and Ananya Pandey face-off at Rajeev Masand’s show. Later Aasmaan and Karishma start liking each other, which does not go well with latter’s father, Ajay Talwar who goes tooth and nail to stop the two.
In between, there is the emotional touch of Aasmaan’s middle-class family, the politics of the powerful in the industry, role of underworld. Ultimately, the story leads to a confrontation between newcomer Aasmaan and superstar Ajay Talwar, leading to an extremely crazy, unexpected, and mindfu**ing plot twist which will blow up each and everyone. Doesn’t matter, how many crazy plot shows you would’ve watched, you CAN’T see it coming. I mean, just WOW. It requires a lot of conviction, courage and clarity to pull off an ending like this, and there is no doubt in saying Aryan knocked it out of the park.
Hilarious Easter Eggs and Cameos
A huge USP of the show is the solid easter eggs and cameos it presents throughout the show. Karan Johar, in his extended cameo, is almost a pivotal character of the story. Playing a powerful producer by his own name, he calls himself ‘Movie Mafia’ and hilariously says, “Tumhe pata hai mujhe outsider kitne pasand hai (You know how much I like outsiders). Everyone knows how sarcastic that sounds.
Another hilarious cameo – already the talk of town – was none other than Emraan Hashmi, as the ‘intimacy coach’ for the actors. Now, I don’t even need to explain how funny that sounds already. If that was not enough, Raghav Juyal’s “Kaho Na Kaho” rendition went viral as hell. The “Akkha Bollywood ek taraf aur Emraan Hashmir ek taraf” has been the talk of the town ever since. And the less I talk about Raghav Juyal’s crazy comic timing, the better. The “aasmaan aasmaan bedroom mein karna…” bit was just next level.
Aryan didn’t even spare his father, Shah Rukh Khan. By all means, SRK got a king-sized entry, but the “ghante ka King” reference and the fun banter with Rajat Bedi, is way too funny. Also, in the award function, when SRK himself presents the award for Best Actor to Lakshya for his debut was a fitting tribute to SRK by his son. Also, the way Aasmaan dedicates the award to his father, it is reminiscent of how SRK dedicated his denut award to his late mother.
In addition to these, there are dozens of more cameos; from Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, SS Rajamouli, Ranveer Singh, Ranbir Kapoor, and many more. The best thing about these cameos is they blend seamlessly in the setup and none of them seems forced or dragged from its natural course. Arshad Warsi, in his extended cameo plays a don ‘Gafoor Bhai’, who threatens and funds movies. The reference was a subtle reflection on the time, when underworld had a significant control on the industry. Another character, who got a major revival after the series was Rajat Bedi, with his “pehchana mujhe” and “spoof calls” stole the show as an underrated forgotten actor.
Aryan, the director
I don’t have any doubt in saying that Aryan Khan killed it on his debut. The very theme of ‘BA****DS OF BOLLYWOOD’ is not an easy one to pull off and choosing this as his debut project was a daring call. The sharp and fearless direction, whether in terms of high-octane action, use of cuss words or even the self-trolling comedy, were at point. And, who can forget the Sameer Wankhede reference as an officer who emerges chanting ‘Satyamev Jayate’ and deliberately tries to target Bollywood stars. Even how the episode ends with ‘say no to drugs’ frame followed by the credits ‘Directed by Aryan Khan’ is laugh riot. Well…there couldn’t have been a ‘colder’ revenge.
A show like this could only have been pulled off by someone extremely well-versed with the industry. And, that’s exactly what helped Aryan in making the whole setup look so funny yet real. Another thing which stood out for me was the clarity in Aryan’s vision as a director. As I said above, none of the cameos were dragged or felt deliberate. Anyone can get carried away when having so many big stars for cameo options but blending them so well in the plot deserves applause. For trivia, the whole Aamir-Rajamouli scene was written impromptu after Aryan saw them near the location of the shoot and requested for a cameo.
Another example was the precision, Aryan showcased in casting the characters. Almost everyone seemed exactly where they needed to be. For context, Aryan had contacted Rajat Bedi, who was somewhere overseas, for the role and even told him that this role is only designed for him. Raghav Juyal, Arshad Warsi and even Emraan Hashmi were some of the characters whose impact was elevated just because of the spot-on casting.
As I said, Aryan pulled off a great debut in a not-so-easy genre. I would actually like to see him direct some feature films for the big screen. And yes, I can’t wait to see a Aryan Khan x Shah Rukh Khan collaboration for a big-scale project. It will actually be a huge disappointment if that doesn’t happen. Also, it feels really good watching Shah Rukh Khan and his whole family, particularly Aryan, so happy after what they all went through just a few years back. Anyways, I would like to congratulate Aryan Khan for making a sensational debut and would wish him all the best for future projects (hoping for many more).
