Aishwarya Lekshmi has opened up about the impact of King of Kotha’s failure on her career and confidence. The 2023 Malayalam film, directed by Abhilash Joshiy and headlined by Dulquer Salmaan, arrived amid considerable hype but eventually emerged as both a critical and commercial disappointment.

The film marked Dulquer’s first theatrical release in his home industry in nearly two years after Kurup (2021). However, its underwhelming performance was followed by heavy trolling directed at the cast and crew, particularly Dulquer and Aishwarya, who played the lead roles.