Kangana Ranaut vs EVERYONE: Why does Bollywood's ‘moral referee’ have an opinion on Kriti, Taapsee, Sonu Sood and almost everybody else?
There was a time when a Bollywood controversy involving Kangana Ranaut usually began with Kangana Ranaut. She would take on a filmmaker, question nepotism, attack an industry practice or make a provocative statement that dominated entertainment headlines for days.
Increasingly, however, something else seems to be happening. A controversy can begin with somebody completely unrelated to Kangana and, sooner or later, she somehow becomes a part of it.
The latest example is Kriti Sanon's much-discussed Raksha Bandhan advertisement. Kriti was already being criticised on social media over the bralette-style blouse she wore in the campaign and over what some viewers felt was an overly modern interpretation of a traditional festival. Then Kangana entered the debate.
Questioning the campaign, Kangana asked why someone would tie a rakhi to her brother dressed in what she described as a bikini/undergarments. She also called the advertisement intentionally creepy. Almost immediately, the story changed. What had been a Kriti Sanon advertising controversy was now being reported as a Kangana Ranaut versus Kriti Sanon controversy.
Kriti subsequently responded to the criticism without naming Kangana. She asked when society would stop telling women what to wear and argued that culture and traditions reside in a woman's heart, not in her neckline.
Suddenly, the argument was no longer merely about an advertisement. It had turned into a wider debate about clothing, culture and who gets to decide what constitutes an appropriate way for a modern Indian woman to celebrate a festival.
But the more fascinating aspect is how quickly Kangana became one of the central characters in a controversy that had initially had nothing to do with her. And Kriti isn't an isolated example.
Barely before this, Kangana's seven-year-old feud with Taapsee Pannu found another lease of life. Taapsee was asked about their differences and pointed out that, despite years of headlines linking them, the two had actually never met. While explaining why their outlooks differed, Taapsee referred to differences in upbringing and communication.
Kangana interpreted the remark as an attack on her family. The old sasti copy jibe returned, along with a dig at Taapsee's upcoming film Gandhari. Taapsee's subsequent two-word reaction, "Hence proved", ensured that yet another chapter of their feud travelled across social media.
At this point, Kangana versus Taapsee almost feels like one of Bollywood's longest-running franchises, despite the two actresses apparently never having shared a room.
Around the same period, Kangana also referred publicly to Sonu Sood, Ashutosh Rana, Rakhi Sawant and others while responding to people she believes repeatedly criticise her. She argued that people who hadn't achieved even a fraction of her success had no business advising her and accused some of using her name merely to gain attention.
Kangana has every right to express an opinion. But it does show how her role in Bollywood has changed.
For years, Kangana's public identity was that of Bollywood's rebel. She challenged powerful filmmakers, attacked nepotism, questioned award shows and spoke repeatedly about outsiders and industry camps. Whether one agreed with her or not, there was usually a recognisable establishment she was fighting against. Today, she increasingly appears to be judging not merely how Bollywood functions, but how people within Bollywood should behave. Bollywood's rebel, in other words, increasingly resembles Bollywood's unofficial moral referee.
That description needn't automatically be insulting. A large section of Kangana's appeal comes from the fact that she says things mainstream stars would never dare to say. Bollywood interviews are often full of carefully managed answers in which everybody praises everybody else. Kangana is the opposite. She is blunt, unpredictable and rarely afraid of an unpopular opinion. Which is precisely why the media loves her reactions.
That is why blaming Kangana alone would be too simplistic. The media actively rewards the kind of opinion she supplies, while audiences enthusiastically participate. Her supporters defend her for saying what others won't. Her critics share the same clips to condemn her. Either way, the engagement keeps coming.
The larger question, therefore, isn't whether Kangana should have opinions. Of course she should. The more interesting question is whether the sheer frequency of her interventions is changing the very quality that made her unique.
There is a difference between being Bollywood's dissenter and appearing to pass judgment on practically every Bollywood disagreement.
Kangana may argue that people and the media keep dragging her name into conversations because it guarantees attention, and in several cases she would have a point. But the Kriti Sanon episode also proves that Kangana sometimes walks into a controversy entirely on her own.
Perhaps that explains the strange place she now occupies in Bollywood. She is simultaneously critic and content, outsider and central character, provocateur and someone who complains about being provoked.
It is simply Kangana Ranaut versus whoever happens to be in the news next.
Also Read: Taapsee Pannu SNAPS over repeated Kangana Ranaut questions: “I guess all of you are having fun; stop asking and this issue will end”
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