In the latest episode of Newslaundry’s Awful & Awesome Entertainment Wrap (Episode 406, released April 10, 2026), co-founder Abhinandan Sekhri was joined by film critic Sucharita Tyagi and quiz winners Trupti Kulkarni and Veer Ojas Khanna to review Dhurandhar 2, along with other releases like Sentimental Value and How to Get to Heaven from Belfast.
During the casual chat about Dhurandhar film, Abhinandan Sekhri lamented about wanting item songs in the film, preferably right at the beginning: flashy, sexualised dance sequences that serve little narrative purpose beyond titillation
“This film had f*cking one item song which came at 2 hours 25 minutes which was very nice. Ting ding ting ding. Shararat. Fantastic song. But dude I sat [for so long]. In Hum, f*cking Jumma Chumma came in the first 7 minutes dude. You were happy. I was like..’Neither there is item song in this film, there’s one which comes in the third hour’. I got really irritated watching the film. And I found.. I mean again.. they said it’s a very smartly done propaganda. And it was stupidly done.“, Abhinandan Sekhri lamented.
Sucharita Tyagi, who has repeatedly positioned herself as a sharp critic of Bollywood’s treatment of women, didn’t push back. She didn’t call out the reduction of women to dancing props for the male gaze. She didn’t deliver her usual lecture on objectification or sexism. Instead, she nodded and smiled along, treating the comment as harmless banter.
This is the same Sucharita Tyagi who, alongside outlets like Newslaundry, has spent years slamming films for “misogynistic” tropes whenever they stray from left-liberal ideological comfort zones. Item songs have long been a favourite target: accused of commodifying women, normalising the male gaze, and degrading actresses into sexual commodities. Yet when the trope appears in a discussion that doesn’t immediately trigger their anti-nationalist or anti-majoritarian reflexes — or when it comes from voices they engage with — the outrage machine suddenly stalls.
The selective silence is glaring. Newslaundry and Tyagi have no hesitation in dissecting films like Dhurandhar (and its sequel) for perceived propaganda, historical framing, or anything that smells of patriotism. Abhinandan Sekhri himself expressed visceral disdain for director Aditya Dhar’s earlier press remarks, claiming they made him “almost vomit” and accusing them of grovelling. But on the item song comment? Crickets from the feminist critic in the room.
Item songs are problematic by the very standards Newslaundry claims to uphold. They reduce women to gyrating bodies, cater to mass titillation, and add zero depth to storytelling. Progressive voices have rightly criticised them for years when it suits their narrative — especially against films that celebrate tradition, heroism, or national pride. But the moment the conversation drifts into territory they don’t instinctively oppose, or when a filmmaker casually expresses a desire for more such sequences, the principles evaporate.
This perfectly captures Newslaundry’s operating manual: apply stringent “woke” scrutiny to anything that doesn’t fit their narrow ideological parameters, dredge up lame reasons to condemn it, and give a free pass — or at least polite nods — when it aligns with their worldview or simply doesn’t threaten it. Feminism here isn’t a consistent ethical stance; it’s a convenient weapon, deployed ruthlessly against cultural or political opponents and quietly shelved otherwise.
