12th Fail Director Calls Some SM Influencers “Chu**ya”

Filmmaker-producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra, known for his films like 12th Fail, 1942: A Love Story and Parinda, made shocking comments against social media influencers at the International Film Festival of India. Speaking at a masterclass, Vidhu called influencers “Ch****a” and also expressed his dissatisfaction over social media celebrities getting big offers by saying, “What the f**k is going on?”

Chopra was upset with the growing popularity of social media influencers, whom he thinks are not artists. He said that people are getting offers today based on their follower count rather than talent. “Let me tell you what’s happening. If you post a video on social media, something nice, but only five people like it. Then, if someone posts rubbish and gets five million likes, you start thinking ‘wow…this is the content’. I call these people fools. They are not artists. They are nothing,” he stated.

He then lashed out at brands and companies approaching social media influencers for promotions. He said, “Brands go to people who have more followers to sell their product. Then, the influencer stands up and says, ‘Hey, buy this tiffin. ‘ He thinks he is a legend. What the f**k is going on?”

While many actors and a few netizens appreciated Chopra for his statements, influencers and a section of netizens lashed out at him for using such language. “Kya word hai sir (what a word). So much elegance. So profound. Truly remarkable. You are so damn right, they are not happy. You seem so happy. More power to you and your nuanced language,” wrote influencer Shray Rai Tiwari.

Another influencer, Divyanshu Agrawal, commented, “Would rather prefer taking inspiration from a self-made creator doing legit valuable brand collabs for his/her audience rather than actors promoting tobacco/gambling products and whitewashing audience with their paid PR.”