Director Imtiaz Ali has pushed back against the long-held perception that Bollywood is an unsupportive and cruel industry, pointing to Alia Bhatt’s knee-jerk promotion of his upcoming film ‘Main Vaapas Aaunga’ as evidence of the genuine warmth present within the film.
His comments come before the film is released in theaters on June 12.
Imtiaz Ali defends Bollywood after Alia Bhatt’s video
Imtiaz Ali and Alia Bhatt previously collaborated on Highway (2014), which is widely viewed as a career-defining film for the actress. Recently, Alia created a video using a song from the film ‘Main Vaapas Aaunga’, an act the director described as spontaneous and purposeful.Speaking to Free Press Journal, Imtiaz said: “Itne hum log means hai hie nahi (We are actually not that mean).
Look what you did. She had no reason to do so. It’s not like she simply sent something. She honestly did something because she felt like it.”The “Tamasha” director went on to describe the film industry as an alternative family bound by common ambition and mutual affection. “We’re all part of this alternative family situation,” he said. “We’re all wanderers and dreamers who want to make great films, we want our films to succeed, and we also want others to flourish and prosper.”
We want to show love to each other too. What Alia did is actually a representation of how cinema is really made.
“There’s a lot of love that people have for each other.”The warmth was not limited to Alia alone. Actress Sharvari, who plays the lead in the film, had previously shared that Alia supported her during the shoot and remained available for calls even while she was working abroad.
More about “Main Vaapas Aaunga”
Set against the backdrop of the Partition era, ‘Main Vaapas Aaunga’ marks Imtiaz Ali’s second collaboration with Diljit Dosanjh after the critically acclaimed ‘Amar Singh Chamkila’. The film also stars
Nasir al-Din Shah
Sharvari, and
Vidang Rena
.It will be released in cinemas on June 12, 2026, where it will face competition from
Kangana Ranaut
“Bharat Bhagya Vidhatta” and “The Ruler: The Silent Savior” by Manoj Bajpayee.