Bollywood and controversies go hand in hand and the year 2023 is no different. This year, many popular celebs and movies grabbed attention and made headlines for controversial reasons. As the year is coming to an end, let’s take a look at Bollywood’s top controversies. Be it Shah Rukh Khan starrer Pathaan song Besharam Rang controversy to Alia Bhatt and Deepika Padukone getting trolled, this year saw many controversies. Without further ado, have a look at top Bollywood controversies in 2023.

Top Bollywood Controversies in 2023

Pathaan song Besharam Rang:

Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone starrer Besharam Rang song from Pathaan released last year, but remained a topic of discussion this year too. What was the controversy, you ask? Besharam Rang courted controversy over the use of an orange bikini. Madhya Pradesh Minister Narottam Mishram threatened to not let Pathaan release in the state if the outfits and scenes were not changed in the film. The music video showed Deepika and Shah Rukh Khan romancing. The Siddharth Anand directorial released in theatres on 25^th January, and it also crossed Rs 1000 crores at the worldwide box office.

Deepika Padukone and Shah Rukh Khan in Besharam Rang song

Alia Bhatt‘s wipe it off comment:

Alia had said in a beauty tutorial video that her husband-actor Ranbir Kapoor doesn’t like when she wears lipsticks and tells her to ‘wipe it off’. Netizens trolled her and even called Ranbir ‘toxic’. Later, Ranbir reacted to the same and said, “I was reading some articles about being toxic and something relating to some statement I made and I understand this. And I am on the side of the people who are fighting for the toxic masculinity, if they use me as the face of it, it’s fine because their fight is bigger than just me feeling sad about them having an opinion about what I said. I look at a larger picture.”

Adipurush dialogues changed:

After Prabhas starrer Adipurush released, it faced criticism. The makers had to change a few dialogues after many found them offensive. The word ‘baap’ was changed to ‘Lanka’. Another dialogue by Bajrang saying, ‘Kapda tere baap ka, tel tere baap ka, aag bhi tere baap ki, aur jalegi bhi teri baap ki’, was changed to ‘Kapda teri Lanka ka, tel teri Lanka ka, aag bhi teri Lanka ka, aur jalegi bhi teri Lanka ki’.

Prabhas starrer Adipurush

Kriti Sanon and Om Raut:

Kriti and Om Raut landed in controversy after the director was seen kissing goodbye to the actress inside the Tirupati temple. This had happened before the release of Adipurush. Kriti played the role of Sita in the Om Raut directorial.

Om-Raut-and-Kriti-Sanon

Deepika Padukone getting trolled for her comment on KWK 8:

The controversy sparked when Deepika hinted at an open relationship with Ranveer Singh before their engagement. Netizens trolled her left, right and center. Later, Deepika broke her silence and said that she has grown to become this person who is not afraid of speaking her truth or owing up to her mistakes.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s lip-lock with Avneet Kaur in Tiku Weds Sheru:

Netizens slammed 49-year-old Nawazuddin for kissing a 21-year-old Avneet in Tiku Weds Sheru. Later, Nawazuddin reacted to the criticism and told India Today, “Romance is ageless. The problem is that the young men have no romance left. We are from the times when romance was something else. We would be in love and be in ‘ishq’ for years. Today, Shah Rukh Khan continues to do romantic roles because the young generation is ‘nalli’ (useless). They don’t know romance.”

Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Kaur in Tiku Weds Sheru

S Rajamouli’s statement:

SS Rajamouli’s statement that ‘RRR is not a Bollywood film’ made headlines for multiple reasons. RRR song Naatu Naatu won an award for the Best Original Song at the 80^th Golden Globes. Post the win, at the Directors Guild of America screening, SS Rajamouli introduced RRR as a ‘Telugu film the South of India’. RRR also won at the Oscars.

RRR starred Ram Charan, Jr NTR, Alia Bhatt, Ajay Devgn, and Olivia Morris. The makers made India proud. On the other hand, Priyanka Chopra had called RRR a ‘Tamil film’ during her appearance on a podcast. The actress was massively trolled for it. Later, Priyanka addressed the trolling and told Mid-day, “People try to find a mistake in anything I do. I think people enjoy that a little bit. I was a lot more free-spirited, but now, I am a bit more cautious because I have my family to think about.”

Priyanka Chopra reveals she was cornered in Bollywood:

During a promotion of Citadel in Mumbai, Priyanka Chopra said she was cornered in Bollywood. A few netizens slammed her and some questioned her for remaining silent for years. She later made it clear that she made the revelation as she has moved on and has made peace with the matter.

Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway:

Rani Mukherjee starrer landed in controversy after the Norwegian Government slammed some parts of the movie. He stated that the film ‘incorrectly depicts Norway’s beliefs’. Reacting to the claims, Rani said that the intent of the film was not to villainise any country. The film is based on Sagarika Chakraborty’s story, whose kids were taken away from her by the Norway’s Child Welfare Services citing improper parenting, further showing how she fought against the government to get her kids back.

Rani Mukerji in Mrs Chatterjee vs Norway

Bawaal:

Varun Dhawan and Janhvi Kapoor’s film landed in trouble for using the Holocaust to tell a story of marital discord.