The B***ds Of Bollywood stars Bobby Deol and Raghav Juyal on how Aryan Khan stepped out of Shah Rukh Khan’s shadow with Netflix hit

Dubai: Bobby Deol still can’t get over his first work meeting with Aryan Khan, the debutant director behind Netflix’s biting satire The B***ds of Bollywood, out on Netflix now.

“I felt like I was being directed by my own son,” he recalled in an interview with Gulf News in Dubai.

“The first time I met Aryan, he narrated it to me for seven hours straight. His conviction, his thoughts, his clarity, his fire — it blew me away.”

For Deol, Aryan may be Shah Rukh Khan’s heir to the world, but on set there was no trace of a star kid finding his footing. Instead, he was a taskmaster — pushing every gesture, every line, and every scene until it matched the picture in his head.

Raghav Juyal backs that up with an infectious grin.

“The best part about Aryan is that he gives very clear instructions. Even if we had to do 23 takes, he’d make you do the 24th. But very soon, he knew he had to keep me free. He left me free — and the magic happened.”

Aryan, the perfectionist

But Bobby still marvels at Aryan’s precision.

“On set, I just gave myself to him as an actor. I always do that. The way he made Raghav perform, the way he got what he wanted — it was tiresome, but I enjoyed the process. Every character has been appreciated. You cannot forget anyone. Everybody got love because of the kind of director he is. He just knew what he wanted.”

And that clarity, he says, is what makes this glossy show with innumerable cameos from the likes of Shah Rukh Khan, Emraan Hashmi click.

“He knew what he wanted out of us. He knew what he wanted out of me and Rave [Ragha]. That’s why we’re both sitting here, enjoying its blistering success," said Bobby.

The B**ds of Bollywood* Aryan Khan’s audacious directorial debut is a sharp, satirical take on the film industry’s nepotism, vanity, and behind-the-scenes chaos. Leading the charge is Bobby Deol, who steps into the role of a fading superstar desperate to hold on to his clout, while Raghav Juyal plays an upcoming actor's slick, sharp-tongued friend with equal parts charm and hustle. Together, they become the lens through which Aryan dissects the circus of Bollywood, mixing biting humour with uncomfortable truths.

Comic Gold: the Father and the slacker

Among the show’s standout moments is Bobby’s wordless disdain for his on-screen son, a teenager embodying pure slacker energy.

Raghav still can’t get enough of it:

“That scene where sir [Bobby Deol] is looking at his son — he has no words in that scene, but his expressions! The way he is watching him and judging him is pure comic gold.”

Bobby insists it was all instinct.

“When you’re performing with other actors, it’s their energy that makes you react. The way that kid performed, I reacted the way I would normally to a person like that. Acting is action and reaction. That kid has done such an amazing job. At the premiere, I told him: ‘You’re not in the trailers, but once the show comes out, you’ll be the biggest talking point.’”

I tell Bobby it’s the best stoner kid I’ve seen on screen. He nods:

“He did it with such honesty.”

The Emraan Hashmi cry

Then comes Raghav’s now-legendary breakdown in front of Emraan Hashmi, who gamely plays himself.

“That crying just came naturally and Aryan said I should really cry in that scene because I am the biggest Emraan Hashmi fan in real life too. The character too shows his entire journey, how big a fan he is of Emraan Hashmi,” Raghav says.

Party on screen, perfectionism off screen?

The show looks like one long, riotous Bollywood party. Surely the set was the same?

Bobby shakes his head.

“It wasn’t just fun all the time. The fun was in performing in front of the camera. Aryan is a perfectionist — he would make us do quite a lot of takes. So we were always at it, always trying to do our best so he gets what he wants. It was tiring, yes. But that’s our job.”

Raghav jumps in with his own spin.

“Even the camera team, the light men, the DP — crazy! It was a rollercoaster ride. Crazy, crazy, crazy.”

Playing the mafia patriarch

Bobby’s role — a patriarch who is both protective and pettily insecure — allowed him to lean into contradictions.

“See, the whole thing is fiction. But as actors, you have your own process. Being a father, and being in the industry for 30 years, I have the experience to get those feelings. It was about being honest to the situation. It’s basically a character — I promise I’m not like that in real life.”

Aryan, he adds, insisted on the little touches.

“I still remember when Aryan added the bit where I get angry with my daughter, my son says something, and I hit the iPad. It falls. And then — ‘nahi toota’.”

Raghav chips in:

“The series shows that no matter how rich and privileged you are, you also value small things — like an iPad being smashed in anger.”

Rooting, not rooting

The brilliance of The B***ds Of Bollywood is its moral ambiguity. You’re never sure who to root for. Even Bobby’s patriarch vacillates between being sympathetic and petty.

“When I saw it with my kids and my wife, they wouldn’t stop discussing it,” Bobby recalls. “Everybody’s fighting — this portion funny, that portion funny, this character funny. Not just one character, all the characters.”

Raghav agrees:

“Crazy. Even the smallest character, the lightest gag — it pops.”

Bobby adds:

“I felt it was going to work. You can never know the end result, but with this, I felt confident.”

Aryan Khan, a name to reckon with

For Bobby, Aryan’s debut is significant not just for the show’s success, but for what it means in the shadow of Shah Rukh Khan.

“Nothing can be liked by every individual. But people have realised one thing: Aryan Khan is a name to reckon with. That makes it special. This child — he’s under the shadow of the biggest superstar of our country, and all around the world. To step out and make a name for yourself — it’s the biggest thing. He’s done that. He’s like my son. Beloved.”

Raghav, closer in age to Aryan, has a different bond.

“He is the most fun-loving ever. He doesn’t laugh in front of the camera. We all tried to make him laugh. But when we jammed, he told me: ‘You are my favourite character. Trust me. Come, just jump on the journey.’ And I did. I trusted him completely.”

Shah Rukh Khan, the golden shadow

And what about the father whose name hovers over it all?

Bobby answers first.

“Every child grows up looking up to his father. For every child, his father is the biggest hero, the Superman. For me, Shah Rukh is a man with a golden heart. He gives you so much love, so much respect, makes every individual feel special. That energy is so warm, so calm.”

Raghav gets personal.

“You know, my privilege is my talent. But Shah Rukh sir — he’s always encouraged me. You’ve seen the old clippings where he said he’s my fan? Because of this project, he gave me something else too. He’s always anchored me, encouraged me.”

A big movie in seven episodes

So, will there be a second season? Bobby keeps it cryptic.

“Actually, if you really see the show, it’s like a big movie cut in seven episodes.” According to Bobby, The Bads of Bollywood isn’t just a satire — it’s a declaration that Bollywood’s most scrutinised nepo kid has a voice of his own. And he’s using it to roast the industry he was born into, one wickedly funny scene at a time.

Translation: Aryan Khan isn’t done yet.