It seems that taking potshots at your fellow Bollywood colleagues has become something of a norm in the industry. Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan have been doing it for ages, Bollywood actresses do it almost 4 times a day, and even the respectable Aamir Khan got down to slate a legend or two last month. They say this is all done deliberately for promoting a film… and promotion is what makes or breaks a film. But, we have never seen potshots and insults being fired during the film… i.e. within the film… or have we…

If you have managed to get yourself to the cinema to watch Ajay Devgan in Halla Bol, then you might have seen the actor’s character bad-mouthing Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan. The film is a journey of a Bollywood actor (Sameer Khan played by Ajay Devgan). In the film, Sameer Khan’s secretary pokes fun at a ‘Khan’ who is to dance at LN Mittal’s daughter’s wedding… this is something that Shah Rukh and Saif Ali Khan have done in real life. There is also mention, in passing, of a ‘Khan’ who is cheating on his wife.

Now insiders have said that both Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan are not happy with how they have been shown or depicted in Halla Bol. Both actors believe that Ajay Devgan has himself put these dialogues in the script of the movie, deliberately, to express his feelings towards them. The film’s director Rajkumar Santoshi has gone on record to say that the dialogues were part of the script from day-one and Ajay Devgan had no input.

What are your thoughts on this sensational story coming out of Bollywood? Do you feel that actors such as Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan are right to complain about how they are being depicted in this film? Do you believe that it was Ajay Devgan, who has always had reservations about the Khans, who got these dialogues put in the script of the film? If you have seen the film, do you think these scenes and dialogues enhance the film or could they have been done without? With last year’s mega-hit Om Shanti Om making fun of Bollywood actors left right and centre, is it now time for movies being used to express opinions? Please use the comments section below to leave your feedback.