Citizen Vigilante and Chauhaan are normalising violence against Muslims

Two recent films, the Hollywood production Citizen Vigilante and the Bollywood movie Chauhaan, have sparked widespread outrage for their portrayal of violence against Muslims.

The use of popular media to mainstream hate and legitimise the othering of minorities is an alarming regression that has real-world consequences, given rising levels of violence against minorities.

‘Nazi’ and ‘Cannibal’ allegations dog Citizen Vigilante’s creators

The people associated with Citizen Vigilante reveal a great deal about the film’s intentions.

Actor Armie Hammer faced allegations of sexual abuse and cannibalism in 2021. He has since denied the most extreme claims.

He told Louis Theroux that “you have actually to eat human flesh” to be a cannibal.

He also dismissed his behaviour as merely “asshole” rather than criminal. The Los Angeles County authorities declined to pursue charges. However, Hammer’s past remains troubling. It includes graphic text messages and accusations from multiple women.

This raises serious questions about the judgment of those who cast him as the hero of a vigilante film targeting Muslims

Director Uwe Boll, whose work has now been banned in Germany, has insisted he is “not a Nazi,” a defence he reportedly delivered with a laugh, “like a man who has been asked this question several times before,” according to the Telegraph.

His dismissive response does little to assuage concerns about a film that critics say dramatizes and celebrates the murder of Muslims.

Techno-fascist Elon Musk posted the film for free on his X account for a few days in June, resulting in a major boost to its marketing and commercial profile.

This prompted the UK-based Muslim Engagement and Development (MEND) and the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) to write to the UK media regulator, Ofcom.

Musk’s promotion of the film raises serious questions about whether X, as a platform, has breached its duties under the Online Safety Act to protect users from material capable of stirring up racial and religious hatred.

Kashmiri “suffering as spectacle” in Chauhaan

The Bollywood film Chauhaan, starring Ajay Devgn, has drawn sharp condemnation for its portrayal of pellet gun injuries in Kashmir.

Alt News summarised the trailer:

The teaser does not invite the audience to reflect on the human cost of pellet guns or the trauma they have left behind in Kashmir. Instead, it packages that suffering as spectacle and invites viewers to cheer, with ‘Jumma Chumma De De’ playing in the background

They added that Chauhaan‘s claim that pellet injuries are “limited damage” is contradicted by Amnesty International, which has described the pellet shotgun as “cruel”, “dangerous,” “inaccurate and indiscriminate,” stating that there is no way to use it for crowd control in compliance with international human rights standards.

Article 14 commented on Bollywood’s obsession with demonising Muslims in Kashmir:

Chauhaan also extends Bollywood propaganda’s stalker obsession with Kashmir. The same terrain worked over by Uri: The Surgical Strike, Article 370, The Kashmir Files, and the Dhurandhar films.

The movie is minimising a mass-blinding campaign led by the Indian state against Kashmiris in the 2010s. More than 1,000 Kashmiris have been partially or completely blinded by pellet shotguns since they were introduced in 2010, Al Jazeera reported.

Devgn, the Hindu protagonist of the movie, is a Modi supporter and has starred in Bollywood movies perpetuating Islamophobia in India before. His previous movie, 2020’s Tanhaji, was called “two hours of Hindutva, BJP propaganda.”

Heartiest congratulations to Hon’ble PM Narendra Modi ji on this historic milestone of becoming India’s longest-serving elected Prime Minister for consecutive terms.

A testament to the strength of our democracy and the trust of the nation. May you continue to lead and inspire…

— Ajay Devgn (@ajaydevgn) June 11, 2026

In one scene, Tanhaji (Ajay Devgn) tells a gathering of Hindus who were loyal to the Mughals, “khul ke Jai Shri Ram bhi nahi bol sakte (can’t even chant Jai Shri Ram openly).”

This Hindu-Muslim narrative is reinforced throughout, writes @MeghnadBose93.https://t.co/yAZjTcix1L

— The Quint (@TheQuint) January 10, 2020

Movies as a weapon

The cases of Citizen Vigilante and Chauhaan illustrate a disturbing trend in cinema where the heroes are white males and Hindu males respectively. This framing reinforces a dangerous us-versus-them narrative that dehumanises entire communities.

It is hardly surprising that this is happening. We are living in an era where the genocide of Muslims in Palestine is met with silence, homes are bulldozed in India, and pogroms unfold in the UK. When the real world tolerates such violence, cinema will inevitably reflect and amplify it.

Featured image via Variety