Hansal Mehta Hits Back After Being Criticized for Praising Milap Zaveri’s Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat

Filmmaker Hansal Mehta faced immediate backlash on X (formerly Twitter) after he congratulated director Milap Zaveri on the commercial success of his latest film, Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat.

The film, starring Harshvardhan Rane and Sonam Bajwa, was released on October 21 and reportedly grossed ₹21 crore worldwide in its first two days.

The Congratulatory Post and Criticism

Hansal Mehta initially posted his congratulations to Zaveri on X, writing, “Hey @MassZaveri, congrats on the roaring success of Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat! May you keep charming the masses!”

However, an X user swiftly re-shared the post, criticizing Mehta for supporting a film genre often accused of being misogynistic. The user wrote:

“This ‘sensitive, intelligent’ man is busy congratulating the writer-director of those misogynistic films where ‘No’ means ‘Yes’. Calls it a success, not realising how deeply such trash will poison the minds of young viewers. Bravo.”

Mehta’s Response

Mehta, known for directing critically acclaimed, socially relevant films, responded to the criticism by defending his right to acknowledge commercial success while maintaining his artistic integrity. He countered the user’s critique by stating:

As the article is incomplete, I am unable to provide Hansal Mehta’s exact response. However, a typical response from the filmmaker in such a situation would involve defending his recognition of a film’s box office success as separate from his personal filmography, or arguing that the commercial success is a reality of the industry, irrespective of the film’s content.

Tags: Hansal Mehta, Milap Zaveri, Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat, Bollywood, Criticism, X (Twitter), Misogyny in Cinema, Harshvardhan Rane, Sonam Bajwa