Why did 'Liger's 'Aafat' song land in controversy?
What's the story
Vijay Deverakonda's upcoming film Liger is one of the most-awaited projects.
As the film's release date is nearing (August 25), the makers are on a spree of promoting it.
Accordingly, a new song titled Aafat was dropped last week.
Now, netizens are slamming the song, claiming that it is "casualizing rape culture."
Here's all you need to know about the controversy.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Deverakonda's Arjun Reddy made him the star that he is today.
Though it performed exceptionally well, it drew the flack of critics and fans, who questioned the film for romanticizing physical abuse.
The actor, who defended the film during an interview, received further backlash for not realizing the harm of physical abuse.
Will this latest controversy affect the film's success?
Let's wait and watch.
Backlash
Will 'Liger' end up like 'Laal Singh Chaddha'?
Netizens alleged that Aafat contained insensitive lyrics.
The part which drew flack was "Bhagwaan ke liye mujhe chhodh do (leave me for God's sake)."
This dialogue was heavily used in old Bollywood movies, whenever any woman was abducted or harassed.
There are also calls to boycott the film. A Reddit user wrote, "Why not boycott this movie instead of Laal Singh Chaddha?"
Anticipation
Will the makers remove the offensive portion?
So far, Liger's makers or the lead actors haven't issued any statements about the controversy.
Thus, it is yet to be known if the aforementioned offensive statement will be removed.
While the film has been creating a positive buzz after its trailer release and the actors' promotions, this issue could create a negative impact, if the makers don't act on time to resolve it.
Details
All you need to know about 'Liger'
Also starring Ananya Panday, Liger is gearing up for release on August 25.
Directed by Puri Jagannadh, the actioner was simultaneously shot in Hindi and Telugu.
Liger will mark Deverakonda's Bollywood debut and the Tollywood debut of Panday.
Boxing legend Mike Tyson also has an important role to play.
Jagannadh has co-produced the project along with Apoorva Mehta, Charmme Kaur, and Karan Johar.