John Abraham’s latest film The Diplomat may have released last month with barely a whisper, but it is quietly building momentum. Despite minimal pre-release buzz, the film has seen a steady rise in audience interest, with more shows being added across theatres.

“No one knew when The Diplomat released. There was absolutely no confidence from the partners involved in the film. I want to thank my critics and my audience for keeping it alive. The audience always finds the good films,” says the actor who also produced the film.

He takes pride in the fact that it didn’t depend on “nationalistic jingoism”, calling it a conscious decision. “We walked a thin line... Ritesh (Shah, screenwriter) wrote a banger of a script, but I also give credit to my director Shivam (Nair)... Shivam and I discussed very categorically that this cannot be a jingoism film,” the 52-year-old shares, adding, “Apne aap ko ooncha dikhane ke liye kisi aur ko neecha dikhane ki zarurat nahin hai. We’ve seen too many of them in the recent past.”

Leaning away from formulaic success, this is John’s second outing playing a secondary character to a female lead after Vedaa (2024). “It comes out of security,” he says, elaborating, “You have to be secure as an actor, and you need to know what your intention is. Do you want to keep playing a glorified lead, or do you want to tell a good story? You have to be a carrier of a good story, which is something that we must reinvent in our industry.”

The film has been banned in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Qatar. Shocked at this outcome, the actor opines, “People are very myopic in their vision. We have in no way demeaned anybody. We didn’t cheat anybody or sell our souls for the film. This is not an anti-Pakistan film. If anything, we’ve showed that the judiciary in Pakistan is honest.”