Karan Johar's Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani is currently the buzz of town. The breezy romcom, starring Alia Bhatt-Ranveer Singh in lead roles is being lapped up by the audience and critics alike. However, parallel to their story, there is another love saga developing in the movie, as Shabana Azmi plays Rani's grandmother Jamini, who was in love with Rocky's grandfather Kanwal, played by
Dharmendra.
As Kanwal, now sick and suffering from Amnesia meets Jamini again, the two rekindle their romance, even as Kanwal's bitter, otherwise aloof wife Dhanwanti (Jaya Bachchan) is shown seething in anger.
On the internet, a debate sparked off if KJo, at any point tried to justify adultery, by showing Jamini and Kanwal's romance. One user wrote, “Karan Johar and his obsession with infidelity is sickening! Please don’t watch #RockyAurRaniKiPremKahani if you’re triggered by adultery, this movie has not only glorified but also JUSTIFIED infidelity! Cheating is never okay, no matter how unhappy you are in your relationship.” Another one chipped in, saying, ‘Can we stop normalizing adultery!’
However, many users jumped to KJo's defence saying that what is even worse is an abusive marriage that Jamini was in when she met a young Kanwal. A user wrote, “What’s worse than cheating is abuse - mental and emotional included. And using children and money and society to keep you tied to the marriage. But that’s so normalized, no one even talks about it and it’s just accepted as ‘marriage.’"
Another user chipped in saying, “Have y'all even watched the film properly? Neither was in a happy marriage which was actively because of their spouse. They even explicitly show what an abusive household did to Ranveer's father and his relationship with Dharmendra.”