When it comes to Bollywood, drama doesn’t always happen on screen. Sometimes, the best entertainment is served off-stage—unfiltered, funny, and straight from a comedian’s mic. At the recently concluded Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM), comedian Sapan Verma reminded everyone why roasts are the perfect spice for a star-studded evening. His monologue was both cheeky and incisive, and one joke above all—targeting Aamir Khan—soon began making ripples.
The Big Setup: Aamir Khan’s Unconventional Move
A little background before going into the roast itself. Aamir Khan has never been the kind of superstar who plays by the rules of the game. Over his decades-long career, he has built a reputation for zigging when others zag—whether it was producing a risky drama like Lagaan back in 2001 or taking on taboo topics in PK.
So, when he announced that his latest film, Sitaare Zameen Par, wouldn’t be heading to any streaming giant despite a reported ₹120 crore offer, people were stunned. Instead, he put the film on YouTube, charging a nominal ₹100 per view. For an industry obsessed with massive OTT deals, this was a bold, almost rebellious choice.
His reasoning? Simple. Aamir wants every film under his production house to eventually reach audiences directly via YouTube at an affordable price after its theatrical run. Call it democratizing cinema or call it a gamble—it’s undeniably “classic Aamir.”
Enter Sapan Verma.
Now, Aamir’s unusual move was just the kind of fodder a comedian dreams of. Hosting the IFFM awards night, Sapan Verma wasted no time bringing it up. He first teased Aamir for his marathon promotional campaign.
“Aamir Khan did so much promotion for Sitaare Zameen Par,” Sapan quipped, “that when my doorbell rang, I was half-expecting him to personally ask me to watch the film.”
It was the kind of observational humor that hits because it feels oddly believable. After all, Aamir really had popped up in interview after interview, across platforms, tirelessly plugging his film.
The Viral Punchline
But Sapan wasn’t done. He leaned into Aamir’s much-talked-about rejection of the OTT deal and dropped the line of the night:
“Aamir sir made history. He released this film directly on YouTube. I have heard you declined an offer of more than ₹100 crore for this move. ₹100 crore! You know what that means, right? Akshay Kumar’s monthly salary.”
The room erupted. It was irreverent, cheeky, and Bollywood-coded enough that the fans immediately clipped and shared it online. By dragging in Akshay Kumar, whose reputation for back-to-back films and fat checks precedes him, Sapan took an intelligent joke to the level of a cultural meme.
Why the Joke Worked So Well
Good comedy has its roots in truth, and Sapan’s punchline succeeded because viewers already think of Akshay Kumar as one of the industry’s smartest commercial actors. The exaggeration that ₹100 crore is “monthly pocket money” for him is exactly the kind of exaggeration that comedy thrives on.
And then there’s Aamir—the “serious” actor, the perfectionist, the one who often gets portrayed as distant from Bollywood’s commercial chaos. By contrasting him with Akshay, Sapan bridged two ends of the industry spectrum, and the audience loved it.
The Bigger Picture: Aamir’s YouTube Gamble
While the roast got the laughs, Aamir’s decision still stands as one of the more fascinating experiments in recent Bollywood history. Sitaare Zameen Par wasn’t just a financial success—earning over ₹267 crore on a ₹122 crore budget—but also a critical hit. Directed by RS Prasanna, the sports dramedy is a remake of the Spanish film Campeones and features Aamir alongside Genelia Deshmukh and a cast of debutants who are specially abled.
By choosing YouTube over a mega OTT deal, Aamir seems to be signaling a shift. Instead of exclusivity and high barriers, he wants accessibility and reach. The ₹100 fee makes the film more affordable than many multiplex tickets or subscription packages. For an audience base as diverse as India’s, that’s significant.
Star Power Meets Self-Awareness
What makes the whole episode refreshing is how self-aware the industry is becoming. Once upon a time, stars were untouchable, surrounded by an aura of seriousness. Today, they’re sitting in audiences, laughing at comedians who roast them without hesitation.
Aamir, in particular, has taken the jokes in stride, much like he once laughed off his Andaz Apna Apna character’s cult memes. It’s a sign that Bollywood, for all its glitz, is loosening up.
Final Thoughts
What happened at IFFM is more than just a viral one-liner. It’s a reminder of how Bollywood is evolving—in its business models, in its storytelling, and even in how its stars handle being the butt of jokes. Aamir Khan may have walked away from ₹120 crore, but he gained something else: a fresh narrative, a headline-grabbing experiment, and yes, one of the funniest roast moments of the year.
Because in the end, what’s Bollywood without a little drama—on screen, off screen, and sometimes, straight from a comedian’s mic?