As Saiyaara, starring debutant Ahaan Panday and newcomer Aneet Padda, gears up for its big release on July 18 that is tomorrow, one thing is louder than the film’s trailer—the fake hype machine running on overdrive.
According to unconfirmed reports, Makers proudly claims that Saiyaara has already sold 95,000 tickets in advance bookings, with some media outlets suggesting that the film is tracking for a ₹100 crore opening. ₹100 crore? For a film led by a debutant most of India hasn’t even heard of? Be serious. That figure isn’t even wishful thinking—it’s outright delusion.
Box office trackers who aren’t part of the PR circus peg Saiyaara’s actual Day 1 collection to be anywhere between ₹1.5 to ₹4 crore. And honestly, even that is generous. The supposed buzz? Completely inorganic. No viral song, no public excitement, no trending hashtags—except for the ones probably paid for by the studio.
Let’s talk about the trailer. It dropped with barely a whisper. Bollywood Helpline, a portal that actively engages with audiences on the ground, did a public review of the trailer. Shockingly—or not—a majority of people had no idea the film even existed, let alone that someone named Ahaan Panday is making a debut. That’s Nepo star? The guy who’s supposed to rake in ₹100 crore on day one? The only thing louder than Ahaan’s PR push is the collective yawn from the public.
And let’s address the elephant in the room: nepotism. Yet again, makers are trying to shove another star kid down our throats. If the makers had genuine confidence in Ahaan’s potential, they wouldn’t be resorting to shady PR tactics, last-minute booking updates, and laughable “record-breaking” numbers. They would’ve let the film speak for itself. But clearly, even they aren’t sure he can carry the film.
The desperation is obvious. This sudden marketing blitz started just three to four days before release, a textbook move when a studio knows the film might flop. Pump the air, inflate the numbers, and hope the noise distracts from the emptiness. But audiences aren’t stupid anymore. The success of 12th Fail, Kantara, and even Sita Ramam has proven that authenticity wins, not PR gimmicks. The makers think that after all over India blockbusters like Bahubali, KGF, Salaar, this romance shit-show can reach that level, where they're utterly wronged.
And let’s not even compare Saiyaara to those gems. It’s not just a weak launch—it’s a textbook example of how Bollywood’s elite are still clinging to outdated formulas: rich banner + star kid + auto-tuned ballads + fake numbers = hit. Only, that equation doesn’t work anymore.
Saiyaara is less of a movie and more of a marketing hallucination. No one’s watching. No one’s caring. And come Friday, no one’s showing up. When a production house that once gave us Dhoom and Band Baaja Baaraat is now pushing out hollow hype jobs like Saiyaara, it’s safe to say: Bollywood hasn’t just lost the plot—it’s busy Photoshopping the box office.