Soon after its release on June 12, 2026, Main Vaapas Aaungawas proving to be a typical Imtiaz Ali movie at the box office. Several of his films are celebrated as classics years after underperforming in theatres, and Main Vaapas Aaunga seemed to be following a similar trajectory. The film had a limited release and footfalls were far from encouraging.Then, social media became the movie’s biggest ally. One post of appreciation led to another, and more people began turning up at theatres to watch Main Vaapas Aaunga. Confessions of crying inside cinema halls followed. Fans wanted to meet, discuss the film, and have a “group crying session”. Tweets and Instagram stories urged people to watch the movie.“People felt a sense of ownership,” Imtiaz tells The Hindu. “They watched the movie, liked it and urged their friends and families to watch it. They made Instagram reels about it. The reels had so much earnestness in them that everybody was surprised and they came to see what the movie was about.”Seeing the outpouring of love, Imtiaz decided to personally champion the movie by participating in ground-level promotions. He began meeting fans after the show, discussing the movie and thanking them for their support. En route to theatres in Bengaluru, the Jab We Met director discusses the remarkable turnaround of his movie.“My friend Anurag Kashyap, who now resides in Bengaluru, called me to say the film had very few shows in the city,” he recalls. “A week later, they increased, and there was even a 6.30am show, which was filling fast. I was surprised that people were waking up this early to watch a movie. Bengaluru woke up, and parallelly, the entire nation woke up to show love for Main Vaapas Aaunga,” he says with a relieved smile.