Nawazuddin Siddiqui Says Bollywood Is Gripped By Insecurity And Creative Poverty: 'Even Cult Films Have Stolen Scenes'

Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has voiced strong criticism of the Hindi film industry, calling out the lack of original ideas and the growing trend of copying content. In a recent interview, the actor said Bollywood is stuck in a loop of formula-based films and sequels, and accused filmmakers of lifting scenes from South Indian movies instead of coming up with fresh stories.

Lack of creativity in Bollywood

In a conversation with Puja Talwar, Nawaz spoke about how the industry has lost its creative spark in the last few years. He expressed concern over the trend of filmmakers opting for "safe" formulas over originality. “Actually insecurity bohut badh gayi hai. Unko lagta hai ek formula chal raha hai toh usse chala lo, ghiso isko. Aur usse bhi pathetic yeh hogaya ki yeh 2, 3, 4 (sequels) hone lag gaya (Actually, insecurity has increased a lot. They feel that if a formula is working, they should keep milking it, overdo it. And what’s even more pathetic is that now there are 2, 3, 4 sequels being made),” he said, calling the sequel culture “pathetic.”

To describe the situation, Nawaz coined a new term — creativeruptcy — to convey the creative drought plaguing Bollywood. “Kahin na kahin jaise bankruptcy hoti hai, vaise yeh creativeruptcy hogaya. Kangaliyat hai bohut zayada (It’s creative bankruptcy, just like financial bankruptcy. There’s a lot of creative poverty),” he remarked.

Nawaz on lifting content from other regions

Nawaz also accused the industry of shamelessly lifting content from other regions, especially the South. Without sugarcoating, he said, “Ab jo chor hote hain, voh kahan se creative ho sakte hain. Humne south se churaya, kabhi yahan se churaya, kabhi wahan se churaya. Even some cult-films which became hits, unke scenes bhi chori kare hue hain. Isko itna normalise kardiya gaya ki chori hai toh kya hua (Now, how can thieves be creative? We’ve stolen from the South, sometimes from here, sometimes from there. Even some cult films that became hits have scenes that were copied. This has been so normalised that it’s like — so what if it’s stolen?)?”

The actor shed light on a disconcerting practice within the industry — where filmmakers would simply pass along videos of other films and instruct writers or directors to replicate them. “What can you expect from an industry like this? What kind of actors will come in? They’ll be of the same kind,” he added, voicing his frustration.

He also lamented how artists committed to original storytelling often get sidelined. Referring to filmmaker Anurag Kashyap, Nawaz said, “And then actors and directors start quitting — like Anurag Kashyap, who was bringing in good work.”

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