Bads of Bollywood review: Dig at Aryan Khan's jail days, Karan Johar's Hindi slur, Salman–Ranveer cameos

Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan's directorial debut The Ba**ds of Bollywood* had its first preview released on Netflix on Wednesday. The launch event was held in Mumbai and attended by the cast, along with the Khan-daan, SRK, Gauri, Suhana, and Aryan.

The show boasts an ensemble cast and also features cameos by several Bollywood stars, including Salman Khan, Karan Johar, Ranveer Singh, and many more.

About the show

The web series explores the raw and unfiltered side of the film industry, delving into its drama, controversies, rumours, and realities. Lakshya plays the lead role of Aasmaan Singh, a young man navigating the tricky world of cinema. Raghav Juyal portrays his best friend, while newcomer Sahher Bambba plays an aspiring actor who is a "nepo kid," and Bobby Deol plays her father.

The series also stars Manoj Pahwa, Mona Singh, Manish Chaudhari, Anya Singh, Vijayant Kohli, and Gautami Kapoor.

Many dialogues and moments reminded netizens of SRK's films, with some even noting that Aryan appeared to take playful digs at himself.

In one scene, Lakshya's character, an aspiring hero, is thrown behind bars. A police officer tells him, "Tension nahi lene ka. Andar jaake log aur bhi famous ho jaate hain" (Don't worry. People often become more famous after going behind bars). The moment was widely shared on Reddit with the caption, "This was a direct reference to..."

Netizens react!

A user wrote, Might be half of Bollywood too, but kudos to Aryan for keeping this dialogue in and not taking it personally..."

Another commented, "That's pure SRK genes — making jokes at your own expense and actually enjoying it!"

A third added, "I liked them using the word 'hard' as comic background music at the end. A small detail, but it worked for me."

Another scene features Karan Johar hurling abuses, while his sweatshirt grabbed attention with the quirky line: "I did nothing. I just got lucky."

Apart from a subtle dig by Aryan in his own series, one can also see Salman Khan's cameo had fans cheering in the comment section, while Ranveer Singh appeared briefly, reiterating his iconic Gully Boy catchphrase, "Bahut hard."

Fans were thrilled to see Salman and Ranveer in the series, with some even calling it Om Shanti Om 2.

Here's why Aryan took a dig at his jail days 

For the unversed, Aryan Khan, along with Arbaaz Merchant and Munmun Dhamecha, was arrested by the NCB on October 3, 2021, on charges of possession, consumption, and purchase of banned drugs. Their arrest came a day after the agency raided a cruise ship and claimed to have seized narcotics. A total of 20 people were arrested in the case.