"Who said it?", Kriti Sanon stands up for Bollywood's box office struggles

Actor Kriti Sanon recently spoke in favour of the Hindi film industry, which has been under scrutiny for the commercial failure of recent films. She reasoned that people's expectations from Bollywood films have reached new heights; hence, even a box office earning of Rs 100 crore doesn't make much difference. She also spoke about being an outsider in the film industry and how her parents never made her feel the need to earn money.

As YouTuber and entrepreneur Nikhil Kamath said on his podcast WTF, "Bollywood is not thriving," Kriti was quick to defend it, saying, "I think it is doing great. Who said it? My last two films did pretty well." Kriti was last seen in Crew and Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya, both of which did decent business at the box office.

Nikhil insisted on his point and said, "It is harder for talent in Bollywood to make as much money as they did a couple of years ago. It is harder for Bollywood to employ the same number of people it once employed. The odds of a movie succeeding have gone down".

Disagreeing with the YouTuber, the 34-year-old actor added, "Earlier, if a film earned Rs 100 crore, it would be a big deal. Now, Rs 100 crore is nothing. So, the expectation has gone somewhere else only. There was a phase when it (Bollywood) was not (thriving), but now theatres are back and how." 

Singer-rapper Badshah, who was also part of the interview, concurred with Kriti Sanon, noting that those in the film industry have learned from past challenges and are now thriving.

Kriti Sanon began her acting career with a role opposite Mahesh Babu in the Telugu film 1: Nenokkadine and made her Bollywood debut in the 2014 film Heropanti, alongside Tiger Shroff. Despite lacking a godfather in the industry, Kriti has successfully carved out a place for herself in Bollywood. Although it was initially frustrating, she now feels that, after ten years, she has firmly established herself in the industry.

"Sometimes I don't have someone who will make a call (for me). I've had more of those moments and a little bit of whatever frustration earlier, but it's taken me a decade to reach where I am today. Today, there's a little less to prove myself. There is a sense of validation that's happened over the 10 years, whether it is with the box office or whether it is as an actor. I've always been hungry to be known as a good actor, not just have stardom," said Kriti.

Kriti Sanon now feels she has the freedom to choose her scripts, and this isn't solely due to her financial stability. She mentioned that coming from a middle-class background, she never felt a financial pressure because her parents were well-off. Nikhil noted, "Anyone who mentions being middle-class on camera tends to get trolled".

To this, Kriti responded, "But I've genuinely been upper-middle-class, whatever, but I've not been someone who's been like extremely rich and wealthy and all of that, but I've also not been someone who felt, 'No, no, no, I need to do this for money'. I have a joint account with my father. I have no idea how much money is coming in and going out. Even today. Now, I've started being a little, 'Tell me how much is there.'"

Kriti Sanon is set to appear in "Do Patti" and "Housefull 5" in her upcoming projects. Additionally, she will make her debut as a producer with 'Do Patti'.