“We did get some notes on certain scenes"
Aryan Khan has opened up about his hit Netflix directorial debut, The Ba***ds of Bollywood, which continues to dominate viewership charts despite controversy.
Since its release in September 2025, the series has been Netflix’s most-watched show in India.
It has drawn both praise and criticism for its sharp satire of the Hindi film industry.
The show, written and created by Aryan alongside Manav Chauhan and Bilal Siddiqui, pokes fun at Bollywood through inside jokes and biting humour. However, some viewers and industry figures have accused it of crossing lines.
In his first-ever interview, Aryan told Variety that the creative team received several notes to tone down certain scenes but chose to stay true to their vision.
He said: “We did get some notes on certain scenes where they were like, ‘Oh, this is too this, or this is too that’, but then I took a stand.
“If you don’t like it, I mean, the show is not meant for you, or it is meant for you, but you might not like it, your 18-year-old kid might like it.
“Your uncle might like it who likes certain kinds of humour or certain kinds of jokes.”
Aryan also emphasised that while the show was self-aware and humorous, it was never meant to be offensive:
“We wanted to be self-deprecating, but not disrespectful anywhere.
“So I think we maintained that line correctly, and the guardrails were self-imposed, mostly because, making something about the industry and being a part of the industry, there has to be, there is a lot of respect.
“People being able to take jokes on themselves, I feel, is the first and most important thing about comedy.
“Take a joke on yourself and then spread the love.”
“People were extremely sporting, and we also made an effort not to push boundaries in terms of being disrespectful, only being self-deprecating.”
Despite the positive reception, The Ba***ds of Bollywood has also become the subject of legal scrutiny.
Former NCB officer Sameer Wankhede has filed a defamation suit against Netflix and Red Chillies Entertainment, claiming the show parodies and maligns him.
The Delhi High Court has since issued summons to the makers in connection with the case, keeping Aryan Khan’s much-discussed debut firmly in the spotlight.
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