The viral “kacha badam” sensation Anjali Arora has been cast as Sita in the upcoming mythological drama Mahakavya Shri Ramayan Katha, and the internet is not impressed with what it has seen so far.
The casting announcement and the project’s promotional teaser drew sharp criticism across social media platforms on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, with viewers taking particular aim at the visual effects. According to The Indian Express, the backlash has been swift and unforgiving.
The Kacha Badam Star’s Big Mythological Leap
Anjali Arora shot to fame with her lip-sync video to the “kacha badam” track, a moment that turned her into one of India‘s most recognisable social media faces. Now, she is stepping into one of the most revered roles in Hindu mythology.
Playing Sita in a Ramayan retelling carries enormous cultural weight, and the announcement has triggered debate about whether a social media influencer is the right fit for such a role. The teaser, released alongside the casting news, was meant to build anticipation. Instead, it became the target of ridicule.
Netizens criticised the VFX as dated, pointing to unconvincing backgrounds and artificial-looking effects that failed to match the scale of the epic narrative. One user called the visuals “a decade behind” modern mythological productions, while others questioned the overall production quality.
Why Netizens Are Slamming The VFX
The criticism is not just about aesthetics. For a story as grand as the Ramayan, audiences expect a certain visual grandeur. The promotional material, however, appears to fall short of that bar. Social media has been flooded with reaction videos, memes, and side-by-side comparisons with recent mythological and pan-Indian films that set a high benchmark for VFX quality.
> “You don’t cast this pair by accident. The calculus is deliberate — a comedian with a massive following brings eyeballs, but the visuals need to match the ambition,” one film industry observer noted. The backlash also extends to the casting itself. Some users argue that Anjali Arora’s casting is a marketing gimmick designed to generate buzz rather than a creative choice. Others defend her, pointing out that debutants and influencers deserve a fair chance. The debate is a familiar one in Indian entertainment, where digital stardom increasingly collides with traditional expectations — much like the trajectory we tracked with the Jana Nayagan Film last week. For more detail, see VentureBeat AI.
What This Means For Anjali Arora’s Career
This is not Anjali Arora’s first brush with the film industry. She has been part of music videos and reality television, but a mythological epic is an entirely different scale. The role of Sita demands not just screen presence but a performance that resonates with devotion and dignity.
Whether she can deliver. The project itself now faces an uphill battle. A strong teaser can build momentum; a poorly received one can sink a film before release. The makers will need to address the VFX criticism head-on, perhaps by reworking the visuals or releasing a more polished cut. For now, the conversation around the film is dominated by mockery rather than anticipation, a pattern similar to how Vishwanath Sons Film handled early backlash earlier this year.
What Happens Next
The makers have not yet responded publicly to the backlash. If history is any guide, a revised teaser or a behind-the-scenes look at the production could help shift the narrative. The film‘s release timeline also remains unclear, giving the team room to course-correct.
For Anjali Arora, this is a defining moment. The “kacha badam” fame that brought her here is both a blessing and a burden. It ensures attention, but it also invites scrutiny.
Whether she can transition from viral star to credible actress will depend on the final product — and on whether the makers listen to the criticism now flooding their mentions. The internet has spoken. The question is whether the film’s team is listening.
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