Aanand L Rai Calls Raksha Bandhan With Akshay Kumar A ‘Blunder’: 'He Was Real But...'

After reclaiming box office momentum with Tere Ishk Mein, director Aanand L Rai has looked back at one of the weakest phases of his career and admitted he misjudged his own instincts. Speaking candidly,

the filmmaker acknowledged that Akshay Kumar-starrer Raksha Bandhan was a rare moment where he lost trust in his storytelling voice — and paid the price for it. Released in 2022, Raksha Bandhan failed to connect with audiences and wrapped up its theatrical run at Rs 48.63 crore in India, far below expectations for a film carrying Akshay Kumar’s star power. I Totally Faltered There: Aanand L Rai Reflecting on the film during a conversation on Galatta Plus, Rai admitted that Raksha Bandhan marked a turning point where he began making assumptions about what audiences wanted instead of following his instincts. “I totally faltered there. This is for the first time in my entire journey of filmmaking I decided that this is the kind of story needed by a certain section of the audience where we’re not telling them great stories. I never decide. I make films. I like a story, I make a film. Raksha Bandhan was the only film where I actually judged my audience,” he said. Where Things Went Wrong Rai explained that he approached the film believing it needed to be simplified for audiences in smaller towns and cities — a mindset that ultimately worked against him. “This is the kind of a story which should be told simply. I used to take a flight with my story in which I’d discover myself. In this case, I thought I knew what I’m doing. If you look at the film, it was beautifully formatted, which never worked for me,” he said. According to the filmmaker, the issue was not the box office result, but the intent behind starting the film in the first place. “The reason of getting onto the floors was wrong. It had nothing to do with the success or the failure. I’ve failed with the films with which I’ve taken that flight. Here, the problem was that before I started, my reason was wrong.” Aanand L Rai Calls Raksha Bandhan A ‘Blunder’ Rai did not shy away from taking responsibility, calling Raksha Bandhan a misstep driven by misplaced expectations. “The problem was not with the script. The problem was with the director and the expectation from this director. If you ask me, did I enjoy the process? I enjoyed with Akshay sir. He was real. He was performing with total belief. But maybe this director’s heartbeat wasn’t with that rhythm. Somewhere, it didn’t land the way I was looking at it,” he said. Aanand L Rai has seen both extremes in his career. He delivered beloved hits like Raanjhanaa (2013) and the Tanu Weds Manu franchise, but also faced a major setback with Shah Rukh Khan’s Zero (2018). Seven years later, Rai has found renewed success with Tere Ishk Mein, starring Dhanush and Kriti Sanon. Co-produced by Colour Yellow Productions and T-Series, the romantic drama has earned Rs 111.50 crore in 16 days at the domestic box office. The film also marks Rai’s reunion with Dhanush and composer AR Rahman, following Raanjhanaa and Atrangi Re. Written by longtime collaborator Himanshu Sharma, Tere Ishk Mein signals a return to the emotional storytelling Rai is best known for.