📌 Key Points
- Imtiaz Ali’s film “Main Vaapas Aaunga” has garnered both praise and ‘anti-national’ labels on social media.
- AR Rahman reacted to a satirical post mocking the ‘anti-national’ claims with a simple laughing emoji.
- The controversy stems from the film’s portrayal of Pakistan without terrorists or secret agents, challenging typical narratives.
- This movie marks the fifth collaboration between Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman and director Imtiaz Ali.
Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman has weighed in on the social media debate surrounding Imtiaz Ali’s film, ‘Main Vaapas Aaunga.’ The movie, praised by many, has also been controversially labeled ‘anti-national,’ prompting Rahman to respond to the criticism with a simple, yet impactful, laughing emoji.
Imtiaz Ali’s Film Sparks ‘Anti-National’ Debate
Filmmaker Imtiaz Ali ’s Main Vaapas Aaunga has been steadily finding its audience, with positive word-of-mouth helping the film gain traction at the box office. But alongside the praise, the film has also found itself at the centre of a social media debate, with a section of people branding it ‘anti-national’. Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman has now reacted to a post that accused the film of pushing an ‘anti-national’ narrative.
The satirical caption of the said post read, “The man who was excited to watch an Indian spy exact revenge on Pakistan, and who, toward the very end of the movie, says, ‘Mein Vaapas Aaunga,’ was disappointed that the movie had nothing to do with terrorists and spies. Though touched by the heartfelt drama, he was confused about how Pakistan can neither have terrorists nor spies, given that’s all they seem to have in other movies. He later mentioned in an interview that this was something completely new, and he walked away with the perspective that there can be normal humans in Pakistan.”
Rahman took to his Instagram Stories to respond to the post, seemingly brushing aside the criticism and laughing off claims that the film is “anti-national.”
AR Rahman’s Viral Reaction to Criticism
The music composer shared a screenshot of the satirical post that mocked claims against Main Vaapas Aaunga for “showing Pakistan without terrorists and secret agents.” Reacting to the post, Rahman simply added a laughing emoji.
Main Vaapas Aaunga marks the fifth collaboration between Rahman and Imtiaz Ali after Rockstar, Highway, Tamasha, and Amar Singh Chamkila. Rahman worked with writer Irshad Kamil for the soundtrack for the film, which has songs such as Kya Kamaal Hai, Maskara, and Ishq Mastana.
“Main Vaapas Aaunga” Box Office & Reviews
Hindustan Times’ review for the film reads: “There’s a certain skill to Imtiaz’s filmmaking. When skill is honed to this degree, it begins to resemble magic, and that’s precisely what one feels while watching his work.”
The film took a slow start, collecting ₹ 1.15 crore on its opening day. However, positive audience feedback helped boost its collections, with the film earning more on its first Monday ( ₹ 1.25 crore) than on its opening day. As per Sacnilk, Main Vaapas Aaunga collected ₹ 1.51 crore on its 6th day of release, bringing the total India net collection to ₹ 9.81 crore so far. It remains to be seen whether the strong word of mouth can revive the film’s box-office run.
Ultimately, AR Rahman’s lighthearted response underscores the often-unfounded nature of online controversies. While ‘Main Vaapas Aaunga’ navigates its box office journey, the film continues to spark discussions, highlighting diverse audience perceptions and the power of social media.
