Mumbai: The casting of journalist and internet personality Saurabh Dwivedi as the antagonist in Kartavya has reignited debate over follower-based casting in films, with industry executives saying producers are increasingly factoring in digital popularity, audience data and online engagement while making creative decisions.

Two key questions have been widely debated and discussed by industry professionals and audiences on social media. One is: Why are producers casting people based on their social media following or popularity? And the other: Is this strategy the need of the hour?

ET spoke to casting directors, producers and distributors to understand the rationale behind this trend.

Casting based on social media popularity provides business value to producers as such personalities drive engagement and viewership either in theatres or on streaming platforms, said casting directors.

"It is the need of the hour today. An entire generation of audiences may not connect with old Bollywood tropes. Influencers bring relevance and familiarity, which pique this audience's curiosity," said casting director Nandini Shrikent, who has worked with multiple directors and served as a casting director on films such as Gully Boy and Wake Up Sid.

Even studies support this trend. According to a study by research firm Ormax Media, 57% of Hindi films' box-office revenue comes from audiences below 30, usually digital citizens underlining the importance of catering to the social media universe and its influencers. Also, 40% of audiences share film-related memes on social media after watching films in theatres, the study showed.

Producers shared that casting based on followers reduces film marketing costs.

"Today, data plays a critical role in many creative and non-creative decisions related to films. Producers believe that replacing actors with people who have large followings can help reduce film marketing costs, as these influencers provide instant reach. Also, they believe that brand endorsements by influencers can help mitigate overall film costs," explained producer Rajesh R Nair.

But Nair observed that this trend is unfairly denying opportunities to genuine talent. "There is so much talent in the industry that is not even considered anymore. Actors are being judged first on their follower count instead of abilities. This is damaging not only to films but also to the industry," he added.

"Some filmmakers believe that people who have a strong digital connection with audiences can offer an immediate promotional advantage. These people can organically create conversations around a project from the announcement stage itself," said veteran producer Anand Pandit.

"We are already seeing creators like Kusha Kapila, Prajakta Koli, Bhuvan Bam and Dolly Singh becoming part of mainstream films and streaming platform projects because of their relatability and audience engagement," added Pandit.

Casting directors said that only those people who have a large following, but no acting skills, are failing.

"Increasingly, producers have realized that influencers work better for web series or music videos. But for films, only people with real acting ability survive in the long run," explained Kunal M Shah, casting director on web series and films such as Bhaukaal and Phule.

Kusha Kapila was thrilled when she was offered a role in Maamla Legal Hai’s second season. More importantly, she felt ready. For years, she was putting in the work after she realized her acting career wasn’t shaping up as well as her content creator run had.

“Everything had panned out so nicely for me. I thought this [acting] would too. But a reality check is good for you,” quipped Kapila, showing that signature humorous streak.

She is one of the most popular exports from the content creation world to the film industry. But soon after foraying into acting with Ghost Stories (2020), she understood she needed to earn her place.

“I told myself, ‘This is not working out. Take a step back and learn for two years.’ I came to Mumbai, and became a student before I became an actor. During that time, I let go of many opportunities because I felt I couldn’t do justice to them. If you don’t want to be a marketing hire, you need to suss it out before anybody else can,” she said.

According to Kapila, the question — ‘Should influencers become actors?’ — is a valid one. In an industry where actors are being rejected for having less social media following and influencers are preferred over them, she stands by the actors.

“Actors are right. They have studied acting. But [hiring influencers] is not the case anymore. Maybe in the past, I’ve been hired for [eyeballs]. But after a while, there was a lull because there has to be merit. How can creators become actors if they haven’t learnt anything? I can assure you that the creators who are working [in acting today], have taken out time and worked on themselves.”

Content creator-actor Kusha Kapila has been in the news for her drastic physical transformation. While fans speculated the use of diabetes management drug Ozempic as a weight loss method, Kusha remained tight lipped. Now, she has shared her emotional journey.

In a video posted on her YouTube channel on Friday, Kusha addressed her weight loss, and also revealed her childhood trauma, starving for validation, struggling with body image issues and her tuberculosis diagnosis.

“For the past month, I’ve been seeing so many transformation Reels of myself that I started feeling like I wasn’t even in my body,” the 35-year-old said, adding that this isn’t her first transformation journey.

“I started gaining weight when I was 10, and people made me aware of it in a very harsh way — calling me names like ‘motu’.” After she gained a considerable amount of weight till the time she reached class X, her mum enrolled her in a gym, through which she lost 20-22 kilos of weight.

“At 15 or 16, I was becoming beautiful, but I didn’t realise how deep my body image issues had gone and how long they would stay with me,” she said. This returned at the age of 22: “I was starving myself and consuming only 800-900 calories a day, sometimes even less.... I didn’t gain muscle — just rapid weight loss.” While people complimented her, she lost her immunity and was diagnosed with abdominal tuberculosis.

This time around, she worked on herself not for validation but for herself: “I told myself: ‘You are by yourself now. Take care of yourself, because no one else is coming’.”

Content creator-actor Kusha Kapila grabbed attention recently after her roast on comedian Aashish Solanki’s Pretty Good Roast Show on YouTube, in which comedians Samay Raina, Aaditya Kulshreshth, Shreya Priyam Roy and Gurleen Pannu cracked jokes on her life, acting career, sex life and even on her recent divorce with internet personality Zorawar Singh Ahluwalia, after which some of Raina’s potshots (we reached out to him, but he refused to comment on the matter) at her were censored in the video. In an elaborate statement posted on YouTube, Kapila called the roast “shockingly unkind”. Excerpts from her statement:

“It was done in good faith and for a friend. Nobody has been paid (neither comics nor guests) for it so the argument that people are ‘being paid big fat cheques to hear their insults’ is baseless.”

“While I endured some of the really raspy jokes in front of a live audience and technicians, I absolutely was not okay for it to play for millions of people since some jokes straight up dehumanized me. It was shockingly unkind (sic).”

“Mine was the first episode to be shot (in January), so everyone had fair bit of learnings post shoot which is why in other episodes, boundaries haven’t been crossed, especially with women.”

“Over the course of last six months during negotiations, I have been told that I deserve these jokes and that as a divorced woman, I should have seen this coming. Maybe I should have and maybe silence on this topic is seen as cowardice but it’s mostly choosing peace over endless discourse that will likely villainize women.”

“This is the third roast of my career technically and I shall never sit for one again, at least not without knowing what may come for me. The previous two roasts were a wonderful experience. This, too, would have been if all parties involved were aware what may come for them.”

“A considerable section of the male audience believing I deserve this roast further proves our decision to censor the jokes. You may write something as a joke, but it’s not in your hands if it will be perceived as one. Many women in the live audience post the roast shared their disapproval of the jokes and I understood where they came from and I, too, come from the same place.”

If I hadn’t let the episode go live, I would have been called a coward and a crybaby and a different kind of trolling would have ensued.

I had no idea what was in store for me. Maybe I should have asked for a script and known better, but since friends were involved, I didn’t. Rookie mistake.

It has been an eventful week for Varun Sharma. The actor wrapped up the shoot of Sab First Class in Punjab, returning to Mumbai in time for the launch of D, which was announced on Thursday as part of Netflix’s 2024 slate. He believes the Samarpreet Singh-directed comedy, which also stars Jassie Gill, Manjot Singh and Sunny Singh, will resonate with the youth. Reason? To the actor, it’s the perfect road trip film.

“I think the best road trips happen after a break-up. When you have your friends by your side while going through a break-up, the chaos, wickedness and wackiness that take place—[it’s all reflected] in Wild Wild Punjab. After a relationship ends, every person feels the need to say, ‘I am over you’. Here, my character is on a journey to say these four amazing words,” laughs Sharma.

Comedy comes naturally to him. While it was evident in his debut film Fukrey (2013), where he shone as the goofy Choocha, the actor, over the past decade, honed his craft and was praised for his performances in the subsequent Fukrey instalments and Chhichhore (2019). Sharma aims to widen his range within the genre this year.

“In each film, I’m portraying a character that challenges me to redefine comedy. It’s a thrilling experience to experiment with different comedic styles. I had a great time shooting with Shehnaaz Gill and Kusha Kapila for Sab First Class. We are friends, and when friends reunite on screen, the process becomes a lot of fun.”

The actor will also be seen in Rumi Ki Sharafat, produced by Dinesh Vijan.

In the lockdown, when everything came to a standstill, content creator Srishti Dixit received a call, asking that she audition for a Yash Raj Films production. Her first instinct—that it was “a scam.” But soon, she learnt that director Vijay Krishna Acharya was making The Great Indian Family with Vicky Kaushal, and he was keen that Dixit play his on-screen sister.

“I recorded my audition and sent it to them. Then I spoke to Victor [Acharya] sir, who said, ‘My wife and daughters are your fans. Your Kanpuriya accent is nice, and we want exactly that for the film,’” she recalls.

Soon, Dixit found herself on the set of her debut film. It doubled up as an acting school as she watched Kaushal and the ensemble cast, including Manoj Pahwa, Kumud Mishra and Manushi Chhillar, perform. “I would ask Vicky many questions about acting. I learnt so much by observing how he would prepare for a scene and go over his lines.”

Of late, there has been an influx of digital content creators in Bollywood. Dixit’s peers Kusha Kapila and Prajakta Koli have become frequent faces in movies and web series. “We [keep saying], ‘Kahaan se kahaan aa gaye hum’. When we started making videos, we never thought this would be possible.” 

However, she points out that at times, they have to fight stereotypes. “Usually, my peers would be asked to play an influencer or the protagonist’s social media-savvy best friend. But it also depends on how a casting director envisions you. I have auditioned for many acting-based parts. So, it’s slowly changing.”

“If you’ve ever sat down with your girlfriends to discuss life, age, career, politics, and dating, among other things, without the fear of judgement, then you know what sisterhood feels like. But we don’t have enough stories about female friendship,” says Internet star Kusha Kapila, who presents the theme in her upcoming films Sukhee and Thank You For Coming.

Taking baby steps into Bollywood, Kapila, who has previously been part of Masaba Masaba, Plan A Plan B, and Selfiee, will share screen space with Shilpa Shetty Kundra in Sukhee. She says that the story and “cracking the chemistry” with director Sonal Joshi drew her towards the film.

“And Shilpa is a woman’s woman. She is a technically sound actor who lets you shine in scenes. From telling me when to dab my face and do touch-ups to [instructing] me on the kind of lighting that would make me look better. It is inspiring to be around someone who has been in the industry for three decades.”

While she is relatively new in Hindi cinema, Kapila is a star in the Internet universe, with millions following her every reel. She says that the people around her exist to ground her. “They, in fact, treat me poorly. When I go back home, I have to get an appointment to meet my friends. Recently, my friend was complaining how  I am not there for her because I have been busy,” jokes the actor, adding that it is endearing to see her close friends still treat her the same after she became popular.

“They troll me on pap videos. Friends give you a reality check and remind you of who you are and used to be. Their interventions have saved my life.”

Although on home ground nothing seemed to have changed, her private life has been split wide open for comment. Especially after she announced her separation from husband, Zorawar Singh Ahluwalia, Kapila endured unnecessary hate online. It became worse when reports of her dating Arjun Kapoor went public, which she denied on social media with a long post.

A week later, we asked her how she dealt with the negativity, she said, “I designate hours of the day to cry. Love on the internet comes with its fair share of criticism, from slut shaming to body shaming. I am easily affected. This year has been a lesson in silence and going to work with blinders on. I don’t want to trivialize it by saying, ‘Farak nahi padta hai [It doesn’t matter]’. Everyone is affected by it, but how you navigate it shows who you are.”

Does success put a balm on it? “Success offers the privilege to distract yourself. It also gives you perspective on how to move on with life and protect oneself from pain,” she concluded.

There is growing chatter around actor-couple Malaika Arora and Arjun Kapoor’s love life hitting a rough patch. From Arjun going on a solo trip to the two sharing cryptic posts on Instagram, including one about change being the law of life, several factors fuelled the speculation.

More recently, it was speculated that content creator Kusha Kapila — who parted ways with her husband Zorawar Ahluwalia — is dating Arjun. However, Kusha has seemingly denied the same.

While Arjun and Malaika continue to follow each other on Instagram and their pictures are on each other’s Insta feeds, social media users pointed out how Malaika no longer follows Arjun’s family members, including his sister Anshula.

Sources close to Malaika and Arjun, who have been dating since 2019, have quashed the claims. “Strange that people draw these conclusions because one of them went for a trip without the other. They are working individuals. Sometimes, their schedules don’t align,” says an insider, while another tells us, “The breakup reports gathered steam when Kusha reacted to the linkup rumours with Arjun. These are mere conjectures and that too, based on social media.”

Reports did the rounds that content creator Kusha Kapila is seeing Arjun Kapoor. Amid these reports, Kusha wrote on Insta: “Every time I read sh*t about myself I just hope and pray ki meri mummy na padh le yeh ab.”