Shahid Kapoor experienced the biggest box office success in his career in the form of Kabir Singh, a south remake helmed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga. The Hindi adaptation of Vanga's Telugu original, Arjun Reddy, broke several box office records, but also invited brickbats due to the problematic nature of its protagonist. The film was criticised for peddling toxic masculinity, which sparked several debates about the portrayal of gender roles in the film. 

During the latest episode of our print and podcast series Sit With Hitlist, Shahid talked about the criticism the film faced. "When Kabir Singh released, so many people refused to accept that the film is being liked by the audience. If people are liking the film, who are you to say, 'How dare you make a film like this?'"