Aashram director Prakash Jha has claimed that the show, which streams for free on MX Player, has raked in one billion (100 crore) views. Previously, before Part 2 was released in November, he’d said that the first part had raked in 400 million views.
In an interview, the filmmaker said that the viewership figures are proof that audiences are liking the show, contrary to what certain controversies surrounding it might suggest. The filmmaker was served a notice, along with actor Bobby Deol, for the show’s depiction of a godman.
“When you make something that affects the masses, a polarised reaction is to be expected,” Jha told Mumbai Mirror, adding that no Hinduphobic sentiments are being propagated on the show and that there’s no mention of any religion.
He said that the viewership numbers prove otherwise. “They kept rising, but I was really surprised to see it cross the 1 billion mark. From this I gauged that people love to watch such content; I can’t imagine why though!” he said. “During my research, all of which is in the public domain, I learnt how these organisations function, and even those who go there exploit such places to absolve themselves of their sins. I had to sift through a lot of mundane stuff to explore the relationships these self-proclaimed godmen have with women, police, investigative agencies, politicians, the youth, and also drug cartels,” he added.
The filmmaker had taken a similar stance when he was served a notice by the Karni Sena, ahead of the release of Part 2 of the show. “Who am I to make a judgment on their demand? We had 400 million-plus views for the first season. I think viewers are the best placed to decide on ‘negative goodwill’. Shall we leave it to them?” he’d said, according to SpotboyE.
While the first two parts of the show, in which Bobby plays a ‘dhongi baba’, were released in quick succession, Jha said that they were shot as one part. He said that he’s already working on the next chapter, which ‘will be the actual Part 2’, and will focus on the downfall of Baba Nirala.
