Dileep's 'Bha Bha Ba' movie gets massive backlash for kidnapping, rape jokes; netizens are 'disgusted'

Released just days after Mollywood actor Dileep was acquitted in the 2017 actress assault case, his latest film, Bha Bha Ba, has already sparked controversy over kidnapping and rape jokes.

In the controversial scene, Godson (played by Dhyan Sreenivasan) refers to Radar (Dileep's character) as a "professional kidnapper", adding that this was "not the first time he kidnapped someone".

The very next scene is a flashback to the time Radar "kidnapped and milked" someone called Ramani. Though Radar is shown approaching a woman on screen, it is soon revealed that Ramani was a cow.

Netizens were quick to compare this with the actress assault case, in which Dileep was accused of orchestrating the kidnapping and rape of a Mollywood actress in 2017.

As a result, this debut film from Dhananjay Shankar has garnered massive backlash online, with netizens questioning how it was even allowed, despite one of its writers being a woman. Produced by Gokulam Gopalan, the film stars Dileep and Mohanlal, as well as Dhyan and Vineeth Srinivasan.

While some have speculated that the film's title itself mocked the actress that accused Dileep, others have criticised how Radar often called himself a victim, and wanted to "settle scores" with people who "ruined his life".

"What happens in this scene is a spoof of that incident ... I feel disgusted with the entire cast and crew, including the king ... It should be remembered that one of the writers in this is also a woman," a Redditor wrote.

"Even by the pathetic standards of his movies, this is something bordering on criminal mentality," an X user wrote, offering screenshots of Letterboxd reviews attacking the supposed joke.

"For those who are saying this is just a scene. This is not. It is deeply misogynistic and not one to be uttered by the hero," another Redditor wrote.