Did a rival fan group start a social media hate campaign against 'Fan'?

A still from Fan

Shah Rukh Khan's much-awaited film 'Fan' has not even hit theatres yet and it looks like the film has already attracted unwanted attention. On Tuesday, much to the actor's fans' dismay hashtag #SayNoToFan began trending on Twitter. It is said that this was a reaction to the actor's comment on intolerance in November last year.

A still from Fan

Says a source, "A rival fan group that is trying to sabotage the film by spreading negativity. 'Fan' is releasing this week and certain people in the industry want to gain some publicity by doing all of this."

So do these antics affect the film's collection? Distributor-exhibitor Akshaye Rathi doesn't think so. "These unwanted elements can't do anything to affect the film's collection. People who want to watch the film will always watch it no matter what. The fans really don't care about such nuisance. Certain people come up with such stunts for cheap publicity. They should be ignored," he says.

Trade expert Amod Mehra seconds Rathi's opinion and adds that at the end of the day, it's the content of the film that matters. "Till now nothing of this sort has managed to even put a dent on the business of a film. Certain loyal fans of rival groups spread such rumours, but if the content of the film is good, it is bound to work at the box office. I also feel that sometimes this kind of unwanted attention helps giving the upcoming release publicity. If you have noticed, the film has not been promoted in typical SRK manner so as to generate curiosity," he adds.

Trade analyst Girish Wankhede, says that social media bashing might affect the psyche of certain moviegoers, but their percentage is way too small. "We have observed a trend where social media bashing happens for certain films and it indeed influences certain moviegoers' psyche but it is just too small compared a percentage as compared to the overall canvas of a film. Some random negative post can never influence the popularity and strength of a blockbuster. Especially a comment in the digital space where everyone holds either an expert opinion or some hidden agenda or plain criticism. I strongly feel that such negativity is never taken seriously by true fans," he signs off.