'Bads of Bollywood' actor defends show amid Wankhede's lawsuit
What's the story
Armaan Khera, who recently impressed in Aryan Khan's directorial debut The Ba***ds of Bollywood, has defended the show amid a defamation lawsuit filed by former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Zonal Director Sameer Wankhede. Speaking to India.com, Khera said the show's intention was never to target or insult anyone. "I believe if you watch the show in its entirety, you'll see that the team is just having fun with every aspect of industry and life."
Khera's defense
'We should all be able to take a joke'
Khera further explained, "For example, do you remember the scene where Shanaya Kapoor is posing with her mom (Maheep Kapoor) for pictures, and she says, 'Smile, stop behaving like Aryan?' That's the tone of the whole show." "What I love about it is that it's not targeting just one person- everyone is a target in a humorous, entertaining way." "We should all be able to take a joke; it's healthy comedy."
Show's intent
Khera on why focusing only on Wankhede would be problematic
Khera also stressed that if the show had an entire episode dedicated to Wankhede, it would have been problematic. "If they had brought him back just to focus on him for another episode, then I'd say that's problematic- like, let's not pick on one individual." "But that's not what's happening. The script is having fun with everybody, even the director himself, and even Shah Rukh Khan and the complexities of him being 'the King,'" he added.
Legal battle
HC summoned SRK, Netflix over Wankhede's petition
To recap, Wankhede filed a defamation suit against the show, its director, Shah Rukh, and Netflix, alleging that the series' depiction of a narcotics officer defamed him. Meanwhile, The Ba***ds of Bollywood also stars Bobby Deol, Lakshya Lalwani, Raghav Juyal, Sahher Bambba, among others. It premiered on September 18 and is streaming on Netflix.