Inside the Dirty Business of Online Hate and Why Varun Dhawan Is Paying the Price

Something deeply unsettling is playing out online, and Varun Dhawan has become its latest target. In the days leading up to Border 2, what should have been normal anticipation and healthy conversation has instead turned into a flood of oddly coordinated negativity which is so repetitive and personal that it no longer feels organic.

What makes this moment disturbing is not criticism itself, but the nature of it. The conversation about Varun Dhawan has gone from his work into demeaning territory. Instead of discussing performance that they are yet to watch, audiences are being fed commentary obsessing over his height, facial expressions and physicality, often laced with mockery and crude language. This blatant character assassination now seems to be a targeted attack as per reports on Reddit.

A leaked message circulating online exposes how easily “hate” can be manufactured. A circular doing the rounds appears to show a pitch for paid collaboration, explicitly encouraging creators to push a negative narrative against Varun Dhawan under the guise of critical film commentary. The language suggested is designed to ridicule and spread contempt while pretending to be opinion.

Varun Dhawan is facing what seems to be a calculated campaign driven by engagement economics. Because Outrage sells, cruelty trends and tearing down a mainstream star becomes an easy way to make money online.

The irony is that Varun is an actor who has consistently shown range, evolving with each project. Very early on in his career, he surprised audiences with Badlapur and later, October. His movies are both blockbusters like Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania series and critically acclaimed like Sui Dhaaga. And today, he is being reduced to punchlines instead of being judged on performance.

There’s also something deeply hypocritical about how the same industry that celebrates “real conversations” turns a blind eye to this.

Varun Dhawan has earned his place through years of work. Orchestrating negativity through lazy, paid outrage masquerading as honesty needs to stop, not just for Varun Dhawan, but for the future of film discourse itself.