Chiraiya, JioHotstar’s latest original sensation, has undoubtedly become the talk of the town and is getting widespread attention from OTT viewers across the nation, but not necessarily for the reasons the makers hoped. While the show aims to tackle serious social issues like marital rape and patriarchal mindsets, it has found itself in the middle of a massive digital war.
At present, Chiraiya currently sits at a 5.8 rating on IMDb with more than 1.4k votes. But don’t let that average number fool you, the audience is actually split right down the middle.
What’s really interesting is how extreme the reactions are. Out of those 1.4k ratings, about 408 people have given it a perfect 10/10, calling it a brave and necessary watch.
On the flip side, 419 people have slammed it with a 1/10. This all-or-nothing trend is a classic sign of review bombing.
Usually, a show’s ratings are spread out across the middle, but for Chiraiya, people either absolutely love the message or totally hate what they think it represents.
The big reason for the backlash is how the show portrays men. A large group of viewers feels that the series goes too far in painting Indian men in a bad light. They argue that even the “good” male characters are written poorly or made to look weak, leading to claims that the show is trying to harm the image of the traditional Indian family. These viewers feel that instead of being a fair social drama, it comes across as an attack on men across the board.
However, supporters of the show say that’s missing the point. They believe the series is just holding up a mirror to real-life problems that often happen behind closed doors. For them, Divya Dutta’s performance is a highlight, showing the struggle of a woman trying to find her voice in a house where her consent was never considered. They argue the show isn’t “anti-men” but “anti-toxic behaviour.”
This heavy polarisation shows just how sensitive these topics still are in India.
From a technical side, some critics and viewers have pointed out that the show can feel a bit like a “daily soap” at times, which might give its haters more ammunition to call it one-dimensional.
But whether you think it’s a masterpiece or a hit-piece, Chiraiya has definitely succeeded in one thing: getting everyone to talk. On an entertainment site, this kind of drama is exactly what keeps people clicking, even if the IMDB score is a total battlefield. Stay tuned for more updates.
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