Siddharth Anand Recalls How Shah Rukh Khan's 'Pathaan' Faced "Sea Of Forces" Against It
Siddharth Anand is gearing up for his upcoming release 'Fighter', starring Hrithik Roshan, Deepika Padukone and Anil Kapoor in lead roles.
Director Siddharth Anand is gearing up for his upcoming release 'Fighter', starring Hrithik Roshan, Deepika Padukone and Anil Kapoor in lead roles. The upcoming Hindi film is scheduled to release in theatres on January 25, 2024. Ahead of the film's release, Siddharth Anand took to social media, to recall the euphoria around 'Pathaan' that “changed everything” for him.
For the unversed, 'Pathaan' marked the comeback of Shah Rukh Khan to the big screen after a gap of more than four years. The film, which also stars Deepika Padukone and John Abraham, released in theatres in January 2023, and it went on to do a business of more than Rs 1,000 crore worldwide.
Before the release of 'Pathaan', several sections were calling for the boycott of the film and a huge controversy broke out after Deepika Padukone was seen wearing a saffron bikini in the song 'Besharam Rang'.
Taking to Twitter, Siddharth Anand wrote, "PATHAAN, my film was releasing amidst a sea of forces against it. Something very weird called Boycott Bollywood was the phrase of the season. Hindi films were written off by naysayers. And then the day came. 25th January. I remember waking up at 7am. After going to bed at 3:30am post the cast & crew screening. Woke up feeling numb."
Check out the post here:
As the new year draws to a close, I take a moment and look back. The year 2023 that changed everything for me. It started with a lot of nervousness and anxiety. PATHAAN, my film was releasing amidst a sea of forces against it. Something very weird called Boycott Bollywood was the…
— Siddharth Anand (@justSidAnand) December 31, 2023
Siddharth Anand also shared that when reviews for 'Pathaan' started coming in, he found that the film was “unanimously” declared a “blockbuster”.
"Got to the theatre but for the first time didn’t see the entire film with the audience. I saw the first 30 mins and I could gauge the pulse of the audience. It was something else. And then the videos started pouring in. Of people dancing in theatres to Jhoome Jo Pathaan. History was created. Pathaan became an ALL TIME BLOCKBUSTER IN 2023,” he shared.
Talking about 'Fighter', Siddharth Anand said, "Something else also happened in 2023. Mamta & me started our film company MARFLIX with #FIGHTER. A film that is ambitious in more ways than one. It’s more than just a film for us. And we have given it all to this one."
"2024 starts with the same feeling again of nervousness and anxiety. Here’s hoping that you guys give the same love to FIGHTER that you showered on PATHAAN.
Happy new year guys! See at the movies!! On 25th January," he added.
Directed by Siddharth Anand of ‘War’ and ‘Pathaan’ fame, ‘Fighter’ is being touted as India's first aerial action film. The teaser of the film was released last week, and it met with a positive response from all corners.
‘Fighter’, originally scheduled for release on September 3, 2022, got postponed due to production delays owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
