In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter India for his upcoming film The Diplomat, actor John Abraham commented about his thoughts on the current state of Bollywood, touching on two key issues: the “sadistic mentality of some people in the industry” and the “changing nature of secularism” in Hindi cinema. Abraham expressed concern about a toxic trend where people take pleasure in the failure of others’ films. He pointed out how quick the industry is to “write people off” when a movie doesn’t do well. Instead of joining in this negativity, Abraham said he makes an effort to celebrate his peers’ successes. For example, he personally congratulated actor Vicky Kaushal and producer Dinesh Vijan on the success of their film Chhaava, which is currently setting fire at the box office. These comments come just before the release of his own film, The Diplomat, on March 14.
Abraham also mentioned that he feels Hindi cinema is “not as secular as it used to be.” This statement, however, feels a bit unclear and even contradictory when you look at Bollywood’s history. Over the years, Hindi films have reflected the social and cultural realities of their time, but the idea of secularism in cinema has always been mostly one-sided. For instance, movies like PK (2014) faced backlash for scenes that many Hindus felt mocked Hindu gods, particularly Bhagvan Shiv, leading to protests and discussions about whether the industry was targeting or being insensitive towards Hindu sentiments. Similarly, a web series called Leila (2019) had portrayed Hinduism in a very poor light. These examples show how creative freedom has sometimes clashed with religious feelings, raising questions about whether Bollywood has truly been secular.
In later years, there’s been a noticeable shift toward films that celebrate Hindu historical figures and warriors. Movies like Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior (2020) highlight the bravery and sacrifices of Hindu leaders, aiming to create pride in India’s cultural and historical heritage. While some see this as a way to correct past mistakes of Bollywood, others, like Abraham, seem uneasy about it, calling it “less secular”. But celebrating Hindu history doesn’t automatically mean ignoring other communities. True secularism means giving equal respect to all religions, not favoring or sidelining any. Telling stories about Hindu heroes can be seen as balancing the narrative, especially when Hindu are India’s majority community. How respecting the sentiments of the majority and giving importance to the unsung heroes makes the industry “less secular” is something that is beyond common sense.
Criticizing these films as “non-secular” while ignoring past movies that may have unfairly portrayed Hindu symbols feels like a double standard. Secularism shouldn’t mean erasing the cultural stories of the majority. Secularism doesn’t mean forgetting our regional heroes and instead glorifying the invaders. In a country where Hinduism is practiced by most people, celebrating its cultural icons can help build a shared identity and provide role models, with whom our youths can relate! Yes, this shouldn’t come at the cost of excluding or disrespecting other communities, but it is definitely a step in the right direction that we are seeing a trend of celebrating our unsung heroes of the past.
If we have films like Jodha Akbar which glorifies Emperor Akbar, a person who had killed thousands of Hindus, (although he transformed himself later on), why is it “non secular” to have a film like Chhaava, which shows how invaders used to rule over us, and how warrior kings like Chatrapati Sambhaji gave up their lives defending our culture and our dharma.
Abraham’s worry that focusing too much on one community’s stories might push others to the sidelines is valid. But the solution isn’t to stop telling stories about Hindu figures—it’s to tell more stories about other communities too. We can also tell the stories of Muslim heroes such as Ashfaq Ullah Khan who fought in the freedom struggle against British Raj, and Siddi Ibrahim Khan, who was one of Chatrapati Shivaji’s most trusted commanders.
In short, films about Hindu warriors and cultural icons aren’t a threat to secularism. On the contrary, it is an effort to balance the narrative and celebrate the rich heritage of India.
