Bollywood has been in utter doldrums since 2020. The pandemic-induced lockdown threatened to nearly kill the industry. Akshay Kumar's films have been flopping continuously, while Shah Rukh Khan's 'Jawan', 'Pathaan' and 'Dunki' became saviours in 2023. The plight of mid-range actors is unbelievably bad.
In this scenario, Bollywood stars are reportedly relying on crowd-supplying agencies to "rig" film events. Movie promotional events in Mumbai and other locations are not attended by crowds organically. They are attended by paid crowds.
As per an Indian Express report, crowd mobilization agencies are paid up to Rs 1 lakh per event for their valuable services. These crowds fake excitement upon seeing the celebrities on the dais. The visuals and images from these events are amplified across social media platforms to build hype.
Artificial crowd mobilization is possible because of a "network of colleges". Agencies ask for "constant student crowds in return of a celebrity for their college fest", the IE report adds.
One wonders if this situation is prevalent in Tollywood as well to some extent.
