Veteran actor Shabana Azmi has spoken about the poor box office performance of Batwara 1947, suggesting that audiences may have struggled to accept Sunny Deol playing a Muslim character in the Partition drama.
The film, directed by Rajkumar Santoshi and produced by Aamir Khan Productions, was released on August 14 and stars Sunny Deol, Preity Zinta and Shabana Azmi in key roles.
‘You cannot accept Sunny Deol as a Muslim’
Speaking to Zoom, Azmi said she was surprised by the film’s performance because many people who watched it told her they liked both the movie and its message.
“The thing is that you cannot accept Sunny Deol as a Muslim,” Azmi said, comparing his casting with Amitabh Bachchan’s portrayal of Muslim characters in films such as Coolie and Deewaar.
She added, “In Deewaar, he put 786 and that was accepted. So how do we understand this? Are they creating an environment where such decisions are being taken on purpose? I am not able to understand.”
Azmi also said some viewers mistakenly believed that Deol was playing a Pakistani character.
“Even the ones who have watched the film think Sunny Deol is playing a Pakistani. He is not. It is simply not registering in their heads,” she said.
Shabana Azmi defends film’s Partition narrative
Azmi said she did not believe the film was politically incorrect and expressed disappointment that audiences appeared reluctant to engage with its portrayal of India-Pakistan relations and Partition.
“This is a film which is politically not incorrect in any way. You can’t find fault with it. Sunny has done a very good job,” she said.
She added that it was “very disappointing” that the subject of Hindustan and Pakistan could not be explored in the current environment.
The actor also pointed to what she described as a contradiction between the positive reactions she received personally and the film’s weak theatrical turnout.
“A lot of them feel that it is very important to speak about humanity in today’s environment,” she said. “On the other hand, people didn’t go to the theatre and the ones who did, they walked out with confused reactions.”
What is Batwara 1947 about?
Batwara 1947 follows Sikandar Mirza, played by Sunny Deol, a businessman from Meerut who is forced to migrate to Lahore with his family during Partition after being targeted by rioters.
After being allotted a haveli in Lahore, Mirza discovers that an elderly Hindu woman, played by Azmi, continues to live there while waiting for her missing son. The story revolves around their relationship and Mirza’s efforts to protect her from extremist elements.
The film clashed at the box office with Emraan Hashmi-starrer Awarapan 2. Despite receiving positive word-of-mouth, Batwara 1947 reportedly underperformed in theatres and has earned more than ₹55 crore worldwide, according to box-office reports.
