Varun Dhawan opens up on 'Bawaal' controversy, 'some people got triggered'

Varun Dhawan responded to Bawaal backlash revolving around infamous Auschwitz concentration camp

One of the lines involves a Holocaust survivor mentioning "every relationship goes through its Auschwitz," alluding to the famous Nazi concentration camp where countless Jews were suffered and killed.

Another controversial line is where Janhvi's character suggests that every person carries a "Hitler within" due to their greed.

In conversation with Pinkvilla, the Student of the Year star acknowledged the criticism but also expressed that he's becoming more receptive to it gradually.

The 36-year-old actor explained, “Some people got triggered or sensitive about this. But I don't understand where does that sensitivity or trigger go when they watch, suppose an English film, I'm saying for example.”

Varun Dhawan pointed out the different standards applied to films from different cultures, citing a controversial scene in Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer, which released on the same day as Bawaal.

“They're allowed to do everything there, they're allowed to take leaps and they're allowed to show things in a certain way, but you'll find that correct. I know people have got very triggered after watching a small scene in a brilliant film, recently released,” the Dilwale star added.

“It's a scene that's important to our culture and our country. But that's okay for you. You don't feel they should be more sensitive to you? So where does your criticism go then?”

In the controversial scene of Oppenheimer, the character of J Robert invokes Bhagavad Gita after a (expletive) encounter with his girlfriend, leading to objections from some quarters for its insensitivity towards Indian culture.

The Indian actor said that such criticism should be applied equally across all films and cultures.

Overall, Nitesh Tiwari's Bawaal which was released on Prime Video India last Friday, has sparked a social media debate, with opinions divided over its handling of sensitive historical references and cultural contexts.