Aryan Khan's Ba***ds of Bollywood in legal trouble; reason is Ranbir Kapoor, even fans are upset

Aryan Khan's debut web series, The Ba***ds of Bollywood, was dropped on Thursday, September 18, 2025. The series has a stellar star cast and cameos by who's who of Bollywood, from Emraan Hashmi to Salman Khan, Arshad Warsi, Disha Patani, SRK, Aamir Khan, S. S. Rajamouli, Orry, Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, among others. The series has been receiving mixed responses from netizens — many lauded Aryan's direction and cinematography, while most felt it's the Om Shanti Om of GenZ with its multi-star cast.

Although the lead of the series is Lakshya, it's Raghav Juyal who stole the show with his power-packed performance and witty dialogue delivery. The entire series and cameos of Bollywood stars are on one side, and Raghav's screen presence is another. Needless to say, he carried the show on his shoulders.

Amid accolades and applause, Aryan Khan's debut series has landed in legal trouble. Yes, you heard that right. Netizens are calling out Ranbir Kapoor's vaping scene in the series. Although Ranbir doesn't have a full-fledged role, he has a 5–7 minute cameo in the show.

In the particular scene that has gone viral on social media, filmmaker Karan Johar, Anya, and Ranbir Kapoor are in the frame. The clip shows Ranbir walking into the room and telling Karan, "Fk all jacket, to this Karan." To which Karan replies, "Oh, fk you too." Ranbir then meets Anya's character and asks her if she can be his manager. She declines, and then Ranbir asks her whether she would like to take his vape. She refuses and leaves. After Anya exits, Karan tells Ranbir she is naive. Ranbir responds by saying, "It's called loyalty."

The scene shows Ranbir Kapoor vaping, but there is no statutory warning when the scene is played.

As the clip went viral, the National Human Rights Commission stepped in, asking Mumbai Police to register a case against Ranbir Kapoor, the show's producers, and Netflix. They allege that the series promoted e-cigarettes in violation of the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019. According to activist Vinay Joshi's complaint, Ranbir was shown smoking an e-cigarette without a health warning or disclaimer, which could influence young audiences and normalise banned substances.

The complaint further accused the show of spreading irresponsible content that undermines public health and law enforcement while glorifying an illegal product. Acting on this, the NHRC issued notices to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to take immediate action. Meanwhile, the Mumbai Police Commissioner has been asked to investigate the supply chains of e-cigarettes and submit a report within two weeks.

Apart from the controversy, Ranbir is also being trolled for smoking after publicly mentioning that he had quit smoking and drinking while preparing for his role as Lord Ram in Ramayana.

This scene comes after the actor confirmed that he quit smoking last year. He shared how the birth of his daughter Raha significantly impacted his life, including his decision to quit. "I started smoking cigarettes, which became a very nasty habit from the age of 17 till last year, when I finally quit. When I became a father, I started feeling very unhealthy," he said.

Work Front

Ranbir was last seen smoking onscreen in Animal. He will next be a part of Animal Park, directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, reportedly releasing in 2026. Apart from this, he has Love and War with Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal, helmed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, scheduled for March 2026. Meanwhile, Ranbir also has Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana franchise in his pipeline. The first look is already out, and part one is set to release in November 2026. The film also stars Yash, Sai Pallavi, Sunny Deol, Lara Dutta, Kajal Aggarwal, and other big names.