Salman Khan‘s latest release Radhe is one of the lowest rated films on IMDb with a 1.8 out of 10, as of May 17. It followed a “hybrid model” of release with a simultaneous release in theatres as well as digitally on Zee5’s pay-per-view premium medium ZeePlex.
The rating dropped by 0.1 from May 16 when it stood at 1.9.
Khan’s film featuring Disha Patani, Jackie Shroff, and Randeep Hooda in key roles, comes second to Alia Bhatt-starrer Sadak 2 with the lowest IMDb rating of 1.1, while Race 3, also starring Khan, holds the third position with a 1.9 rating.
Silverscreen India had reported earlier that films like Sadak 2, Coolie No. 1, Khaali Peeli and others witnessed their respective current ratings of 1.1, 2.9, and 2.3 as a consequence of backlash against nepotism in the Hindi film industry.
IMDb, or Internet Movie Database, is a user-generated online database platform which provides information on films, television programs, home videos, video games and online streaming content.
It has a trusted base of registered users or “regular voters”, whose ratings, out of 10, determine the final rating. To ensure the effectiveness of the voting or rating system, the platform does not disclose the criteria that makes a user a registered one. These anonymous registered users are invited to rate a film on a scale of one to 10. An average or weighted mean is taken of the total and is displayed alongside the title of the film.
Radhe receives flak for serving “old wine in new bottle”
Radhe majorly received negative reviews from critics and IMDb users majorly owing to lack of story and performance, and what looked like a repetition of themes and dialogues from his earlier films like Wanted and Dabangg.
(Read Silverscreen India‘s review of Radhe here).
The film released on May 13 to several pirated versions and were available on platforms like Moviesflix and Tamil Rockers.
Khan released a statement on social media on May 15 urging people not to download or watch the pirated version as the film was available digitally at a “reasonable price of INR 249 per view”.
He faced backlash online after social media went abuzz with various hashtags directed to the film, including #BoycottBollywood, #RadheFlop, and #radhemovie.
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While the foundation stone of endless mockery was laid on the day of the release after the film received negative reviews from the critics, it was Khan’s tone in his post that intensified it in addition to being attacked for releasing his film during trying times such as this and voiced their preference to donate that amount to a Covid patient.
However, trends like #BoycottBollywood have been doing the rounds for almost a year now since the death by suicide of Hindi actor Sushant Singh Rajput in June 2020. What followed was a wave of debates over nepotism, with allegations of abetment to suicide on filmmaker Karan Johar, who faced a trial by media for allegedly “spearheading” the nepotistic brigade in the Hindi film industry.
Soon, a drug probe was initiated with the biggest names in the Hindi film industry, including Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, and Shraddha Kapoor, being interrogated by the Narcotics Control Bureau.
This exacerbated the situation as Khan’s film, one of the most anticipated, whose theme oscillates between women’s safety and drug abuse came under fire from netizens who called it out for its hypocrisy.
Look who is talking about crimes..#BoycottBollywood pic.twitter.com/1imF3XV9iO
— KIZIE #JusticeForSushantSinghRajput (@Sushantify) May 16, 2021
Radhe is the biggest flop of the year
Karma is hitting back harder #BoycottBollywood pic.twitter.com/jOlTGdZWPo— Anurag Bisht (@ianuragbisht) May 16, 2021
Considered to revive the cinemas in the country, Radhe released when the country is still grappling with the second wave of Covid-19, with several states imposing lockdowns and curfews.