By News18
Filmmaker Hansal Mehta is known for sharing his brutally honest take on the Hindi film industry and life in general. He recently expressed his candid thoughts on the current state of film and series promotions on X (formerly Twitter). He criticised the formulaic nature of marketing campaigns and questioned whether it contributes to success.
In a long post on X, Hansal Mehta asked whether these standard strategies truly engage audiences or merely create an illusion of success. Without naming any specific film or artist, he highlighted how promotional activities have become rigid templates 鈥 the same actors appearing on the same podcasts, answering the same questions, and making identical appearances across cities and events.
On Friday, the veteran filmmaker wrote on X, 鈥淒o these generic, template promotions for films and series actually work? Do they make people watch? Do they make the film/series any better? Or do they simply sustain an ecosystem built on illusion鈥擯R agencies, costume designers, event planners, influencers, sponsors, red carpets, press conferences, paid 鈥榬eviews鈥, social media fluff. It all looks like success.鈥
He continued, 鈥淚t feels like popularity. But is it? Shouldn鈥檛 a good trailer stir curiosity? Shouldn鈥檛 compelling promo units and鈥攎ost importantly鈥攁 good film or series be enough? Instead, we鈥檙e stuck watching the same actors answer the same 10 questions on the same podcasts in the same studios, flying from one city to another, chasing a perception.鈥
Mehta, who has never shied away from expressing his views, concluded his post with a thought-provoking question: 鈥淭his isn鈥檛 a rant鈥攊t鈥檚 a question: What鈥檚 the best way to promote a story today without becoming part of a machinery that serves neither the art nor the artist?鈥 Take a look:
Do these generic, template promotions for films and series actually work?
Do they make people watch? Do they make the film/series any better? Or do they simply sustain an ecosystem built on illusion鈥擯R agencies, costume designers, event planners, influencers, sponsors, red鈥
鈥 Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) July 4, 2025
Though he didn鈥檛 name any filmmaker or specific film promotion, his remarks come amid the aggressive campaigns for Metro鈥 In Dino, and other films.
Hansal Mehta is renowned for acclaimed works such as Shahid, Faraaz, Chhalaang, the hit series Scam 1992, and recently-released The Buckingham Murders starring Kareena Kapoor Khan. He began his career in 1993 with Zee TV鈥檚 cookery show Khana Khazana, which also launched celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor鈥檚 television journey.