Yami Gautam Calls Out ‘Extortion’ and ‘Paid PR’ Culture Ahead of Husband Aditya Dhar’s Film Release

The actress calls the practice of manufacturing hype or negativity an “extortion” that will “bite everyone” and urges the industry to unite against the destructive trend.

December 4, 2025: Actress Yami Gautam Dhar has openly criticized the alleged culture of “paid PR” and manufactured negativity in the Bollywood film industry, terming it a “plague” and a form of “extortion” just one day ahead of the theatrical release of her husband, Aditya Dhar‘s, directorial venture, Dhurandhar.

The gangster drama, starring Ranveer Singh, has already been generating buzz due to its themes of excessive violence and an ongoing legal row.

Slamming the ‘Extortion’ Trend

Taking to Instagram, Yami Gautam penned a lengthy and emotional note, expressing her long-standing frustration with the practice of paying for positive hype or receiving negative press unless money is involved.

“This so-called trend of giving money, in the disguise of marketing a film, to ensure good ‘hype’ for a film is created, or else ‘they’ will continuously write negative things (even before the film is released), until you pay ‘them’ money, feels nothing but kind of extortion,” Yami wrote.

She warned that this “monster of a ‘trend'” is “a plague that is going to affect the future of our industry in a big way” and will eventually “bite everyone.” The actress urged esteemed producers, directors, and actors to unite to “arrest this termite of a culture.”

Yami concluded her message by asking the industry not to “kill the joy of filmmaking & presenting it to the world & letting the audience decide what they feel,” adding the hashtag #Dhurandhar to her post.

Dhurandhar Battles Controversy

The film itself has been marred by controversy ahead of its December 5 release.

1. Violence Concerns: The trailer sparked chatter about its “brutal” and “extremely graphic depiction of violence,” leading the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to assign it an ‘A’ certification and mandate several cuts and replacements of violent visuals.
2. Legal Challenge: Director Aditya Dhar had to issue a public clarification after the family of Ashoka Chakra awardee Major Mohit Sharma moved the Delhi High Court seeking a stay on the release. They alleged the film, which features Ranveer Singh as a RAW operative, was based on the martyr’s covert operations without their consent. The Delhi HC directed the CBFC to review the concerns, and the Board ultimately certified the film as a work of fiction with “no direct or indirect resemblance” to Major Sharma’s life.

Dhurandhar is an intense spy thriller set against the backdrop of the 1999 IC-814 hijacking and the 2001 Indian Parliament attack. The film follows an Intelligence Bureau Chief who recruits a young man from Punjab to infiltrate and dismantle a powerful terrorist network operating out of Pakistan.