Pakistani actor Dananeer Mobeen has questioned why Devdas—the Sanjay Leela Bhansali film starring Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan—is treated as an untouchable classic, according to NDTV Movies. Her criticism centres on the film's glorification of its protagonist's descent into alcoholism.
Mobeen's concern is not with the filmmaking or performances. She objects to the film's treatment of a self-destructive love story. "Why are we glamorising alcoholism?" she asked, arguing that audiences treat the narrative like art while it normalises substance abuse.
She questions why a man's descent into depression and drinking is romanticised as tragic cinema rather than examined as destructive behaviour.
Devdas has dominated "greatest Bollywood films" lists for over two decades, with Shah Rukh Khan's performance considered career-defining and the Bhansali aesthetic treated as genre-defining. For such a celebrated film, Mobeen's critique challenges its foundational assumptions.
Cinema shapes culture. When a protagonist's self-destruction becomes beautiful cinematography and swelling violins, audiences internalise the message that suffering equals sophistication.
Mobeen's comments are prompting debate about what stories Bollywood tells and why. Is Devdas still a masterpiece if its central message is problematic? Can a film be both visually stunning and deeply flawed?
Bollywood fans are defending the film's artistry on social media. Others are reconsidering narratives they have accepted since 2002. Mobeen's intervention has forced a reconsideration of the film's legacy.
