{
  "id": 4149282,
  "title": "'You Cannot Accept Sunny Deol As A Muslim': Shabana Azmi Says She Was 'Surprised' By Batwara 1947 Box Office Failure",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/29/you-cannot-accept-sunny-deol-as-a-muslim-shabana-azmi-says-she-was",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-29T08:03:57.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Press Journal",
    "slug": "free-press-journal",
    "url": "https://www.freepressjournal.in/entertainment/you-cannot-accept-sunny-deol-as-a-muslim-shabana-azmi-says-she-was-surprised-by-batwara-1947-box-office-failure"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Veteran actress Shabana Azmi expressed her surprise at Batwara 1947's underwhelming box office performance despite receiving positive feedback from audiences. The film, starring Sunny Deol and Preity Zinta, was released on August 14 and was based on the 1947 partition of India and Pakistan. Azmi claimed that people who watched the movie misunderstood Sunny Deol's character to be a Pakistani, which she denied, stating that was not the case. She pointed out that the film's message of humanity was lost on the audience, leading to confusion among viewers. Azmi also addressed criticism from Pakistani actor Bushra Ahmed, who reportedly objected to the Punjabi dialect used by the film's antagonist. Despite the controversy, Azmi believed the film's message of unity and understanding should have resonated with audiences, but the subject of Hindustan and Pakistan remains a sensitive topic in the Indian film industry.",
  "summary": "Actress Shabana Azmi has expressed her surprise over the poor box-office performance of Batwara 1947, which was released on August 14 starring Sunny Deol and Preity Zinta, saying she has received positive feedback from people who watched the film but believes its message failed to translate into theatrical footfall. Sunny Deol Was Upset With Aamir Khan After He Rejected Batwara 1947's ₹60 Crore…",
  "key_points": [
    "Shabana Azmi surprised by Batwara 1947 box office failure.",
    "Audience misunderstood Sunny Deol's character as Pakistani.",
    "Film's message of humanity lost on viewers."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}