Opposition to apparent Muslim influence in Bollywood
"Urduwood" redirects here. For Bollywood as a whole, see
Hindi cinema . For the Pakistani Urdu-language film industry, see
Lollywood .
Severalboycotts have been started againstHindi films byHindu nationalists in recent years, with the termUrduwood being used to characterise theHindi-language Bollywood film industry as aMuslim -dominated, anti-Hindu industry which favours the use ofUrdu over Hindi.[ 1] [ 2] [ 3] [ 4] [ 5] [ 6]
Bollywood has historically had manyMuslims involved in the production of its movies, with some of the most popular film stars being Muslim, especially theKhans of Bollywood and many of the lyricists and songwriters infusingUrdu into the scripts;[ 7] [ 8] Persian andArabic , is generally associated withMuslims (seeHindi-Urdu controversy )[ 9] Hindus &Hinduism in negative light in the name of secularism in films likePK Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party in 2014 .
Along with Urduwood, related terms that are used are Khanwood (referring to the dominance in Bollywood of actors with the common South Asian Muslimlast name Khan ), Jihadwood, andDawood -wood.[ 2] [ 10] [ 5]
Accusations of Bollywood films hurting Hindu sentiments have prompted calls for boycotts against several major films in recent years, using the hashtag #BoycottBollywood;[ 11] [ 12] [ 13] Chhapaak acid-attack survivor which received calls of boycott due to the lead actressDeepika Padukone expressing support toSFI member &JNUSU headAishe Ghosh after she wasphysically assaulted by maleABVP cadres atJNU duringCitizenship Amendment Act protests .[ 14] interfaith romances involving Muslims (viewednegatively by Hindu nationalists) .[ 15] Hindutva propaganda , likePM Narendra Modi The Kashmir Files The Kerala Story Swatantrya Veer Savarkar [ 16] Pathaan [ 17] [ 13]
Some boycotters have called forSouth Indian cinema to be promoted instead, claiming that it was more respectful in representingHindu culture ,[ 18] [ 1] [ 19] [ 20] Annapoorani: The Goddess of Food L2: Empuraan [ 21] [ 22]
Religious and linguistic topics [ edit ] ^a b Raj, Kaushik; Gurmat, Sabah (30 September 2022)."Bollywood under siege as rightwing social media boycotts start to bite" .The Guardian .ISSN 0261-3077 .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 . ^a b "Why right wing hates Bollywood" .The Week .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ "Hindutva Protesters Stop Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor From Entering MP Temple" .The Wire .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ decine21.com (4 October 2022)."Bollywood pasa a ser conocido como Urduwood - decine21.com" .Decine21 (in European Spanish).Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 . {{cite web }}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link )^a b "Is the Hindu Nationalist 'Boycott Bollywood' Campaign Impacting the Box Office?" .thediplomat.com .Archived from the original on 30 September 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ "Dissecting the language of Baahubali trolls: 'Hindu film', 'Urduwood', 'Chrislamist critic' .Firstpost . 5 May 2017.Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ Subramanian, Samanth (10 October 2022)."When the Hindu Right Came for Bollywood" .The New Yorker .ISSN 0028-792X .Archived from the original on 30 November 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 . ^ "Bollywood Is a Major Target for Right Wing Groups Looking for Signs of 'Hinduphobia' .The Wire .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ "The siege of Bollywood" .The Economist .ISSN 0013-0613 .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ "The Bollywood saga: Social media ruining the relation" .The Times of India .ISSN 0971-8257 .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ Mallick, Kritika, Abhilash (7 October 2022)."The Booming 'Boycott Bollywood' Trend: Who Are the Players Behind It?" .TheQuint .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 . ^ "Decoding the #BoycottBollywood trend" .cnbctv18.com . 6 January 2023.Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^a b P, Jinoy Jose (22 September 2022)."Something is rotten: Understanding the Bollywood boycott phenomenon" .Frontline .Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved29 October 2023 . ^ "BJP calls for boycott of 'Chhapaak' following Deepika Padukone's visit to JNU; opposition stands in support of actress" .mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com . Retrieved17 April 2025 .^ Goyal, Prateek (28 December 2022)."Why 2022 was the year of #BoycottBollywood" .Newslaundry .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 . ^ "How Bollywood's silence proved convenient for India's Right Wing" .South Asian Today .Archived from the original on 27 February 2024. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ Ellis-Petersen, Hannah (4 February 2023)."Pathaan and the king of cinema blast Bollywood out of the doldrums" .The Guardian .ISSN 0261-3077 .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 . ^ Manga, Dhiren (13 December 2022)."Will #BoycottPathaan impact SRK's film?" .DESIblitz .Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved27 October 2023 . ^ "Explained: The #BoycottBollywood trend, and its impact on the industry" .The Indian Express . 27 August 2022.Archived from the original on 28 August 2022. Retrieved27 October 2023 .^ "Bollywood's problem is not boycotts, it is the quality. Or lack of it" .WION . 3 September 2022.Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved29 October 2023 .^ Ellis-Petersen, Hannah (12 January 2024)."Netflix pulls Indian film after backlash from rightwing Hindu groups" .The Guardian .ISSN 0261-3077 .Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved26 January 2024 . ^ "Adipurush row: Mob protests at mall in Maha's Palghar, asks people to boycott screening" .The Indian Express . 19 June 2023.Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved26 January 2024 .
