People calling for boycott of movies are not genuine audience: Saif Ali Khan

Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan has spoken up against the increasing incidents of calls for boycotts. He said those who are calling for the boycott of Hindi films are not a genuine audience and they are using the industry's "bad" films as a launchpad for attacks.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, he said Bollywood's lack of response to the boycott trend and hate has been disappointing. He added that the industry has not shown unity against the growing issue. "Until we have that ability to take that step, we will never really know the truth of how effective this boycott culture is."

He added that cancel culture is generally scary but a worldwide phenomenon. "When a film's release is on the line, artists are cautious and naturally keep a low profile. When your film is about to release and so many other people are on the line, it is just obviously simpler to keep a low profile and get it out of the way."

Khan said the Indian population likes movies and it is one of the common modes of entertainment. For that reason, boycott trends are not going to affect the film industry. "People like entertaining themselves, people like watching movies, so they are not going to not watch a movie. We don't really have much to do in our country, you can't go for a walk in the park or take a quiet boat ride with your kids. Entertainment is limited in cities like ours, so movies are one of those things,"

Recently, films starring Aamir Khan, Akshay Kumar, Ranbir Kapoor, and Alia Bhatt have been subjected to a boycott trend in which people are shaming films for their content or choice of actors. Sometimes, the personal choices of actors are also cited as reasons for the boycott.