The Truth Behind Bollywood Biopics: How Much Is Real?

 The Truth Behind Bollywood Biopics: How Much Is Real?

Bollywood adores biopics about real individuals. From athletes to politicians, these biopics line our cinema halls year in and year out. But are they really true? Most audiences enjoy watching these movies without realizing that movie makers manipulate facts to create more compelling stories. The truth gets distorted in these "based on true events" movies. Let's look closer at what is fact and what is fiction in Bollywood biopics.

The Emerging Trend of Bollywood Biopics

Over the past few years, Bollywood made dozens of biopics. Some are such massive hits, while others end up flopping at the box office. There were blockbusters like "Bhaag Milkha Bhaag," "Super 30," and "Sanju," which people loved. On the other hand, recent movies such as "Main Atal Hoon" and "Swatantra Veer Sawarkar" could not gather audiences despite being based on prominent historical characters.

The popularity of biopics is understandable. They allow us a glimpse into the lives of celebrities we idolize. They provide tales of hardship, triumph, and sometimes shame. Directors understand these true stories contain inherent drama audiences respond to. But this works only when audience members feel what they're viewing is largely true.

The biopic trend refuses to let up. There are some new films lined up in 2025-26 already, namely "Azaad" with Ajay Devgn, an untitled Yuvraj Singh biopic on the cricket sensation, and "Kamal Aur Meena" on the romance between actress Meena Kumari and director Kamal Amrohi. The people obviously have a taste for these tales, but should we believe them at face value?

How Bollywood Manipulates Facts in Biopics

Most Bollywood biopics are highly untruthful. Directors take great liberties with the facts. They put in fictional sequences or modify actual events to make them more dramatic. Let us see some instances that illustrate how deep these films are from reality.

In "Dangal," the coach figure Pramod was depicted in a bad light. The actual coach was however not like this and had even spoken out of distress after the film's release. The film also sensationalized Geeta's last match to the last moment, whereas in real life, she won in the second round. Such alterations were made for more thrilling cinema but distorted the facts.

"Sanju," the biopic of actor Sanjay Dutt, was heavily criticized for sanitizing his life of controversy. The film provided emotional justification for his addiction to drugs to elicit sympathy from the audience. Sanjay Dutt himself, however, has confessed that he got addicted to drugs in school days, not for the reasons depicted in the film. Director Rajkumar Hirani himself confessed to having manipulated the audience after initial audiences hated Dutt's character.

"I was thinking 'What am I doing, I'm doing wrong,'" Hirani told in an interview. "When the first edit was ready and we showed for people, they hated him. They told us we don't like this man, we don't want to watch him. Since I wanted to make a true story, I did not generate any empathy for him. But later on, I realized that he is our hero, we should have some empathy for him."

In "Super 30," we find students battling goons to rescue Anand Kumar's life. This thrilling scene never occurred in real life but was included to add drama.

Why Facts Get Changed in Bollywood Biopics

There are a number of reasons why Bollywood biopics tend to lack accuracy. Knowing these makes us understand why the fact-fiction gap occurs.

The Legal Constraints

One key reason is India's "Right To Publicity" legislation. This legal shield provides an individual or his or her family members with authority over how they're represented in business. It's actually under the right to privacy under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.

"This implies that the filmmakers would have to obtain permission from the individual himself or his relatives if he/she intends to make a film about their lives," elaborates one industry analysis.4 When the filmmakers require permission, they automatically refuse to depict bad things about the lives of their subjects.

The Commercial Pressures

Bollywood is a company, and biopics must be profitable. Movies that depict heroes who are seriously flawed may lose audience members searching for inspiration. Producers and directors are aware that instilling empathy in primary characters sells tickets.

This commercial imperative results in what critics refer to as "the whitewashing problem." Films such as "MS Dhoni: The Untold Story," "Azhar," and "Sanju" all did this, turning their lead characters into either clean heroes or innocent victims of circumstance.

The Formula Problem

Most Bollywood biopics use a standard format. They begin with the biographee's childhood, depict their rise to stardom, have a fall or crisis, and conclude with success. This model is effective for entertainment films but tends to necessitate altering timelines or introducing fictional content.

A recent study of Bollywood biopics observed: "Bollywood biopics usually give priority to drama over truth, resorting to formulaic molds, sanitized plots, and overwrought melodrama." This strategy is entertaining to watch but not historically accurate.

The Impact of Fictional Biopics

When films manipulate facts but present themselves as true stories, it impacts the way audiences perceive history. Most people will recall the movie narrative instead of what actually happened. This generates false public information about great people and events.

For instance, "Dangal" formed a villainous coach character which wasn't real. People believe this fictional representation now. In the same way, young audiences may think Sanjay Dutt's issues were the result of mainly things beyond his control, as seen in "Sanju," not his own decisions.

Movie critic Imtiaz Ali, director of "Chamkila" (a biopic of Punjabi singer Amar Singh Chamkila), accepted this challenge: "This has been built on facts and as a director, I told myself that I will not tamper with things and invent my scenes."

Alas, not every director has such dedication to veracity. Some regard biopics as possibilities for "image-cleansing" instead of truthful storytelling.

Different From Hollywood Biopics

The approach to biopics differs between Bollywood and Hollywood. Hollywood has produced films like "JFK," "Vice," "Charlie Wilson's War," and "Oppenheimer" that don't shy away from showing their subjects' flaws.

"Unlike Hollywood which has had films such as JFK, Vice, Charlie Wilson's War and the recent Oppenheimer, which portray the individuals with all their flaws, in Bollywood, we tend to anoint them with demi-god-like status," notes an industry specialist. "There is an inherent tendency to whitewash the truth. You want to humanise them, show them as people."

This difference in approach means Bollywood biopics often feel more like hero worship than balanced portrayals of complex individuals.

When Bollywood Gets Biopics Right

Despite these problems, some Bollywood biopics manage to balance entertainment with honesty. These films prove that accuracy and good storytelling can go together.

Shows such as "Scam 1992" and movies such as "Shahid" have also been lauded for their truthful depiction of reality. These movies emphasize research, subtle performances, and depicting the entire story—both the positives and negatives.

"Pann Singh Tomar,"  and "Neerja" were also praised by critics for their balanced presentation of their topic. These films were successful in the box office while remaining more true to facts.

Why are they different? They focus on the humanity of their heroes rather than presenting them as larger-than-life figures. They acknowledge mistakes along with achievements. And above all, perhaps, they prioritize the truth of the story over formula.

How to Watch Bollywood Biopics

As viewers, we must view Bollywood biopics critically. Here's how:

Remember that entertainment is the main concern in most Bollywood biopics. Don't expect everything you're watching to be historical fact.

• Look for the "inspired by" disclaimer rather than "based on a true story." This usually means more creative license.
• Do some background research on the real person after watching the film to separate fact from fiction.
• Appreciate the artistic value of these films while recognizing their shortcomings as historical accounts.
• Encourage biopics that make sincere efforts at telling well-researched, balanced tales.

The Future of Bollywood Biopics

The biopic spree in Bollywood is set to persist with a few high-budget films scheduled to arrive in 2025-26. "Azaad," a pre-Independence period drama with Ajay Devgn, will come out in January 2025.2 Untitled biopic on Yuvraj Singh will tell the cricketer's story, his famous six sixes during the 2007 ICC T20 World Cup, among other aspects.

Other biopics in the pipeline include "Kamal Aur Meena" on actress Meena Kumari and director Kamal Amrohi, with Kiara Advani to play Kumari. Aamir Khan is reportedly in talks to portray singer-actor Kishore Kumar in a biopic by Anurag Basu.

Will these fresh pictures at last break the habit of drama over reality? The indications are mixed. Some filmmakers see merit in authenticity, but others continue to regard biopics as a means to star vehicles and manipulation.

Conclusion: Separating Fact from Fiction

Bollywood biopics walk a fine line between entertainment and history. Most lean heavily toward entertainment, bending facts to create more sensational narratives. While this is entertaining to watch, it does not always honor the truth of the people and events being portrayed.

As one academic study concluded: "Unless a film impartially brings out both the positive and negative sides of an individual's life, it cannot be called a biopic and if the intention of a biopic is mere aggrandisement of the central character, it is a work of fiction without justice to the historicity of the genre."

The next Bollywood biopic you watch, watch the story but keep wondering how much is fact. The truth of these films is typically more complex and interesting than the abridged version that is given to us on the screen. Knowing the artistic choices made in these films, we can appreciate them as cinema while still searching for the true history to the stories.