As Shah Rukh khan's film Pathaan breaks box office records despite a social media campaign to boycott the film, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur has spoken out against this recent practice of making calls to boycott certain films, saying such "negative" talk "vitiates the atmosphere" at a time when India is seeking to enhance its influence as a soft power. At the BJP's National Executive, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had told party leaders and workers to not indulge in unnecessary remarks on irrelevant issues such as movies. The question is would the Bollywood brigade back off?