Actress Swara Bhasker has sparked controversy on social media by comparing the public’s emotional reaction to Vicky Kaushal’s historical film Chhaava with the muted response to a recent stampede tragedy.
On Wednesday, Bhasker took to X (formerly Twitter) and wrote, “A society that is more enraged at the heavily embellished, partly fictionalized, filmy torture of Hindus from 500 years ago than they are at the horrendous death by stampede & mismanagement… is a brain & soul-dead society. #IYKYK.”
Her statement quickly drew criticism from netizens, who accused her of undermining historical atrocities and making an unfair comparison. One user wrote, “Yes, Swara… Chhaava was fictionalized. Had the makers shown the original torture, the Censor Board would have objected to its release.” Another commented, “Wow, you’ve actually lost the plot.”
Many social media users defended Chhaava’s depiction of history and slammed Bhasker for downplaying past events. A comment read, “The torture in history was so horrific that filmmakers had to tone it down just to get the movie released. The Mughals were barbarians!” Another user wrote, “Your husband’s cult committed massive atrocities under Mughal rule. More movies will come… learn to cope harder.” As the debate continues, Bhasker remains at the center of yet another social media storm, with her remarks fueling widespread criticism.